Distance: 94km
Elevation: 1.255m
I had slept for 10h straight. Must have needed it.
When I woke up, the rain was pelting down on the metal roof in front of my window.
The breakfast was nice yet special. I was sitting alone on a small table in a very large room, that was completely empty after the remains of a big wedding party had been put aside. 
Looking at the weather forecast showed that it would rain all day. Great!
I had asked for an early breakfast, but now I realized how I was trying to gain time.
Eventually, after I had called myself to order, I was in the saddle by 9am. 
Today, there were four little passes to climb, each of them reaching 1.100m.
Navigation was easy because I was just following one back road to Strumica for the entire day.
I was climbing up a small valley that had been carved into the land by a little creek.
About one year ago, there must’ve been a big fire in the valley. Many trees were totally burned skeletons. Also, some trees had been severely burned, but had somehow refused to die and were carrying green leaves again.
After 30km of climbing, after I had just completed the first pass, the sky opened up and it started to pour cats and dogs. It was about 8° and I could see my own breath.
I came by a little gas station and pulled in without thinking. 
A woman and a man were on shift and they had mercy with me and invited me for a coffee in their little office.
Yufka was 34 years old and had a son who was two. She had studied economics in Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia. And now she was working at the gas station because there were no other jobs to find here.  She spoke pretty good English.
Branco was 63 years old. His wife and two sons were all working in Germany. They were civil engineers helping with the construction of roads. He would see them only two times a year for a couple of weeks when they came home for vacation.
I asked them many questions about life in North Macedonia. I asked Branco how life was today compared to live in former Yugoslavia.
Without hesitation, he stated that life back then had been way better than today. People had work and income, there were many state-owned companies providing work and structure and people could afford to own a house and a living.
For him, the dictatorship and human rights concerns under Marshal Tito played no role.
Since the breakup of Yugoslavia, quality of life had worsened quite a bit. Young people had either to move to Skopje or to another country altogether.
I asked them, what they thought of their country joining the European Union. They had no opinion in regards that.
Fun fact: Macedonians (and Bulgarians) shake their head when they agree and nod when they disagree.
Since I was all wet from the rain and from my sweat, I was freezing badly after a while. I had another 50 km to go, and I needed to move on.
So after enjoying their hospitality for about an hour, I went out again, put on an extra jacket to keep me warm, and cycled into the pouring rain.
Originally, I had planned to just cycle 10 km into the next village and have an extended lunch break there in a restaurant waiting for the rain to stop.
The road went downhill. My body was shaking uncontrollably from the cold. It was so bad, that the entire bike was shaking wildly. I had to be careful not to lose control.
I figured, that the only way to get warm again was to continue cycling. The idea made sense from a logical standpoint, yet every fiber inside me was against it. But in the end, logic prevailed.
After about 30 minutes of cycling uphill, I finally started feeling warm again.
After having climbed the second pass, my legs got weak. I needed some carbs. So, I had a little break in the rain and ate some chocolate bar.
The third pass had an incline of 9%. Had it not rained, it would’ve been super beautiful.
The final pass had a slope of 11% and was a real piece of work. They were really saving the best for last.
After I had reached that summit, I entered into a spectacular descent. The road went down from 1.100 m to 250 m within less than 10 km in numerous crazy serpentines, mostly without hard shoulder.
It was like landing with an airplane. I could see below me in the distance a wide fertile valley with lots of greenhouses.
I actually cycled through a low-hanging cloud. within minutes, I was so cold, that I could not feel my hands or feet. Breaking was an issue because I had no feelings in my fingers.
The roads were full of mud and debris, and in some cases freely roaming cows. My newly fixed disc brakes were screaming and the squeaky noise irritated them. So I had to be extra careful what they did.
When I finally reached the bottom of the valley, I saw two dogs having sex on the road in the middle of the rain. Just when you think you’ve seen it all!
After 45 minutes, I finally got to my hotel. It was about 5pm. It was neither pretty nor was the service great, but it was dry and warm. And what can you expect for €30 including breakfast? 
I had fantasized all day of soaking in a hot bath in a bathtub, but had to be content with a shower at the end. No problem.
My room had no heating and there was also no blow dryer. The owner needed about 15 minutes to find both and get them to my room.
Once the heater from the 60s slowly started to work, my room started to smell like a lion cage. But I did not care and honestly. I think I have grown blind to bad odors meanwhile.
Meanwhile, the rain had stopped as forecasted. That had been the first time in the last weeks that a forecast actually had hold true here.
I found a restaurant nearby. They only accepted cash so I had to find an ATM as well. I withdrew 1.000 MKD, about 25€. I did not need any more money, because I would leave for Greece the next day. 
The food was great. I had some pork skewers, fried potatoes, and a Greek salad. And a beer, of course.
I was the only guest in the restaurant on a Sunday night.
When I wanted to pay, the total was 1.100 MKD, so more than I had withdrawn. We found a solution with some Euro coins, and some other foreign currencies that I had on me. 
Eventually, the owner told me that his wife and him would be leaving for Toronto in the following week to visit their newborn grandchild. I gave them a few tips what to visit in Toronto and wished them a great trip.
I went back to the hotel and was in my bed by 9pm.
Looking back at the day, it had been really tough. Yet I was grateful that this weather had not happened a day before when I was caught on goat trails and finally ended up in the thicket. That could have ended up very badly.
As per the forecast, the days to come we’re all sunny. Something to look forward to.