From my hotel room’s balcony, Skopje, the capital of Macedonia, lay before me like a curiosity shop at the crossroads of antiquity and absurdity. Its shelves were crammed with symbols of long-gone epochs, genuine collectibles and dubious tchotchkes. An Eiffel Tower topped one building. A Statue of Liberty adorned a hotel. Beyond them, authentic monuments like the crenelated Kale Fortress, with sixth-century foundations, the minimalist Museum of Contemporary Art and the domed St. Clement of Ohrid Church crowded the vista.