Saturday, September 17, 2005

Struga Five-O

It was bound to happen. Spend two years in a foreign country and you’ll inevitably have at least one run-in with the cops. Or, in my case, a swim-in.

Yesterday, the weather was beautiful, so I decided to go for a swim in the lake. Of course, it is now far too late in the year for any right-minded bearer of a Macedonian passport to go swimming, so I was the only person actually in the water. (“You go swimming NOW?! But it’s too cold!” Wimps. Get into an outdoor pool in DC in May, and then we’ll talk.)

I should probably mention that when I go swimming, I GO SWIMMING. None of this standing-around, old-lady-sidestroke, little-mermaid-hair-flipping bullhonky. Racing suit. Cap. Goggles. Stopwatch. Giddy up.

So, in my usual fashion, I headed out past the reeds and weeds toward the middle of the lake, then turned to swim parallel to the shore and around the aforementioned reeds and weeds. I swam past a couple beaches and reed beds, then turned back after about a half an hour. I realized that this might be the last time I’m in the lake, so I took off my goggles and did a little elementary backstroke (AKA tickle-T-touch AKA monkey-airplane-soldier) so I could look at the beautiful mountains that surround the lake.

I was in mid-monkey when I saw a nice speedboat heading straight for me. (Cue “Miami Vice” theme song.) This was particularly unusual because (1) there were no other boats on the lake, and (2) nice boats are few and far between here. Not so unusual that it was heading straight for me, as boaters in these parts like to use me for target practice. As the boat approached me, it slowed down and I saw POLICIJA emblazoned on the side. Was I breaking a law? No swimming after September 15th? Speeding? Illegal breaststroke kick? At least I felt comfortable that they wouldn’t deliberately run over me. They kept pace with me for a few minutes, then they continued on toward my destination, the little beach by my apartment building. I noticed that they were poking around the reeds a lot, but still wasn’t sure what they were doing.

After a few more minutes, the boat turned around and began to return from whence it came. They honked at me and asked if I was going to “that beach.” Yes, I replied. They said something else that I didn’t quite understand and sped off. Then, as my little beach came into view from behind the reed bed, I saw four men standing and looking toward the lake…and I understood.

I had been gone for so long that they called the police to search for me! Apparently, going swimming for an hour is highly unlikely here. The men on the beach greeted me with a heroine’s welcome, thoroughly amazed that I could still walk after such an ordeal. I was touched that these strangers were so concerned about me. I was sorry that I worried them so much. I was disturbed by a mental picture of my body entangled in the reeds. But more than anything, I found it hilarious.

What I find particularly amusing is this: The police were responding to a call about a missing swimmer. They head directly toward the only swimmer in the lake, who happens to be relatively close to the place that the missing swimmer was last seen. They pass the swimmer, spend fifteen minutes poking around the reeds, THEN ask the swimmer if she’s the missing person. Brilliant.

What a way to end the summer. If I manage to get in another swim this year, I’ll be sure to tell the nearest sunbather to call the police only AFTER I’ve been gone for an hour.

PS: In exactly 6 weeks, I will be in London. Holla.

1 Comments:

At 8:23 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Liz, that is a good story. I like to swim myself, but Prespa Lake was too far from my house and is not very appetizing as a swimmer's lake. As for the police, who knows what they were doing. Maybe something important, but they would never tell you, the foreigner. On the other hand, maybe they were just practicing their teamwork skills, limbering up for bigger fish. Funny: I live in Greece, which is in the EU, but everything that is sadly funny in MK is even worse here. I bet you a latte that former Yugoslavia surpasses Greece in development in the coming years. Kevin

 

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