"Ohrid ! The most beautiful city !" a Ohrid Travel Page by Olgeorg

Dive into the waves of the Lake Ohrid, build sandy towers or just lay on the
warm sand, close your eyes and listen to the sound of the lake, the whisper of the mountain….there is nothing like a day spent on the beach!

Ohrid is doubtless one of the most attractive tourist cities in Republic of Macedonia, with population of 41.146 inhabitants. It's built over the northeast coast of the Lake of Ohrid, on altitude above sea level of 693-750m, in the southwest part of the Republic.
But, beside its peripheral position, it's said that all roads lead to Ohrid. The city is connected to all important highway directions in the country. We can reach Ohrid from Skopje by three main communication lines: Skopje-Tetovo-Gostivar-Kicevo-Ohrid; Skopje-Tetovo-Gostivar-Mavrovo-Debar-Ohrid and Skopje-Veles-Prilep-Bitola-Resen-Ohrid. The first one is the shortest, long 168 km. The most attractive is the second one, which leads through the valley of one of the most vivid rivers on the Balkan, the river Radika.
The point that gives the city the attribute of most affirmative tourist centre, besides other values, is the beautiful Lake Ohrid. This lake is really the most valuable pearl not only on the Balkan, but in Europe too. The city and the Lake Ohrid are localities under protection of UNESCO. The beautiful climate determined the colonization, even from ancient times. According to some legends, Kalmos formed the city, and the Illyrian tribe Lesareti lived there the longest. The antique name of the city was Lychnidos. This name is mentioned in the time of Philip II Macedonian, who subdued the city in the year 353 B.C.
During the Roman period the city is one of main stations on one of the Roman traffic arteries, called Via Egnatia. The name Lychnidos came from a point of the lake, which because of its shining and transparency is called lychnid-light lake.
The city, during the time of the Slavic, was the capital of the first Samuel's state, the witness of which is the ancient Samuel's or nowadays called Ohrid fortress. It presents one of the greatest monuments witnessing the rich history of this legendary city.
Beside the fortress, there are a lot of other cultural monuments, which present the wealthy cultural layer of this territory. Such are: the antique theatre, many old coins, the ancient cemetery, a lot of stone monuments (now placed in the Ohrid National Museum).The name Ohrid comes from the complex word "vo hrid" i.e."vo rid" (in the hills), where actually the city is placed. The root of the name is in the Slav word Ahrida, from the 8th century. The name Ohrid was mentioned for the first time in the protocol of the Constantinople convention in 879.