Skopje, the capital of North Macedonia, is widely known as the “City of Statues” for hundreds of monumental sculptures.

In order to attract tourists to this little known city, in 2014 the city spent a LOT of money they didn’t have to revamp the city centre building historically inaccurate neoclassical buildings and monuments.

Locals argued that money should have gone to schools, hospitals, or infrastructure. And trash removal !

Many contracts were awarded without public tenders or open competition, leading to widespread accusations of corruption and money laundering.

In any case, all these huge statues are weird and wonderful for the tourist.

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In 1963, an earthquake destroyed roughly 80% of the city. Spearheaded by a United Nations-backed master plan from Japanese architect Kenzō Tange, the city was rebuilt using raw concrete (béton brut). Designed to withstand the next earthquake — and reflect the (boring) socialist aesthetic.