Essential Macedonian phrases

Hello, informal and universal. 'Добар ден' (DOH-bar den) is the polite daytime version you use at a counter or with a landlord.

Thanks. 'Благодарам' (blah-GOH-dah-ram) is the full formal version; 'фала' is what people actually say all day.

Please, you're welcome, and 'sorry, say that again' — one word doing three jobs. On its own with a rising tone it means 'pardon?'.

How much is it? Worth having ready — much of the Old Bazaar and the green markets still price by conversation rather than by label.

The Old Bazaar on the north bank — the largest Ottoman-era bazaar in the Balkans outside Istanbul, and the way locals refer to the whole quarter, not just the shops.

The bill, please. Nobody will bring it unasked; a kafana table is yours for as long as you want it.

Baked beans with red pepper in an earthenware dish — the national dish. Ordering it is the fastest way to stop being read as a tourist.

Roasted red pepper relish. Making it in late September is a household event with a name of its own — 'печење' (PEH-che-nyeh), the roasting — and the whole city smells of it for a fortnight.

The all-purpose Macedonian particle, tacked on the end of a sentence for emphasis, exasperation or affection. Untranslatable, and you will hear it a hundred times a day.

Both the city transport card and the national beer, which causes exactly the confusion you would expect. Context is the only guide.

Pollution. From November to February this is a daily conversation topic, an app on everyone's phone, and the reason people ask which floor your flat is on.

The 13-digit unique personal number. Foreign residents get one too, and nothing — bank account, health card, prepaid SIM registration — works without it.

Temporary residence permit. The phrase to use at the Ministry of Interior counter, and the thing the D visa is issued against — not the other way round.