Rechica

Rechica (alternatively spelled Recica or Rechitsa, meaning “river”) is a small mountain village about 20 km from Ohrid, located north of the road connecting Ohrid and Resen. The village is famous for its natural washing machines, used to clean big rugs. These natural washing machines are large wooden barrels, and the crystal clear water is ingeniously siphoned of little mountain streams. The wooden barrel on the first picture is 2.5 meter deep, 50 cm in diameter at the bottom and 2 meter wide at the top. The endless supply of water induces a whirlpool in the barrel which moves the rugs around like a modern washing machine. The cleaned rugs are then hang to dry in the sun or under a roof.

We found two off these natural laundries in Rechica, the first one opposite to the Church of St George along the road to the village Plakje (N41° 12′ 40.6″ E20° 56′ 24.4″) and the second one a bit further down the same road (N41° 12′ 30.9″ E20° 56′ 43.4″). We were lucky because the second one was actually working and we got an interesting demonstration. The owner of the natural laundromat collects the rugs from people’s houses, washes them and then returns the rugs. It’s hard work because you can imagine that a big wet carpet weighs a lot! We found these natural washing machines quite unique and certainly worth a visit if you have the time.

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Church of St George

The Church of St George in Rechica dates back to the 14th century. It is located on the graveyard and was closed when we visited. However, it was possible to peep inside through a hole in the door.

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A sign at the entrance of the village mentions that the village pays tribute to the Saint Healers Cosmas and Damian on November 14th, and lunch is served at the newly built church (which we did not visit). It’s always great to visit a village during these special days. On May 6th these is another ceremony, known as taking out crosses at the Church of St George.

After our visit to Rechica, we visited the nearby village Kuratica.