Feature Article

A Canadian in Serbia by Laura Stusiak

The decision of where to go on vacation is very important to me.   For my husband David and me that means choosing someplace new, and hopefully a bit adventurous.  This year we decided on Belgrade, Serbia.  We have friends there, but Serbia is still very much an undiscovered tourist destination as I found when we tried to buy a guide book. Neighbouring Croatia is well documented but Serbia only rates a mention as part of travel books on the Western Balkans. 

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We left in July, flying through Munich to Belgrade.  Before we left, a native Belgrader, Vesna from Solaway Travel, gave us a list of insider tips.  Our friends acted as our guides and took us to all the same places Vesna had suggested – right down to the restaurant in Zemun, a quarter of Belgrade!

We were picked up from the airport but it wouldn’t have been a problem to get into town.  The only concern is taxi drivers – it’s important to go with an official taxi with a name printed on the side, but the Lonely Planet guide book covers that in better detail.  The weather was wonderfully hot and it felt great to see some sun not hidden behind thick layers of grey clouds.  We stayed in Novi Belgrade (novi means new), the housing development on the other side of the Sava river, travelling into the city every day.  We were in Belgrade for two weeks (with a 5 day break for a trip to the Croatian coast and Zagreb by bus), a perfect length of time. 

We saw Kalemegdan Park, where the fort is; strolled along Knez Mihailova, the main shopping street; lit a candle at the Church of St. Sava, the largest orthodox church in the world and still under construction; ate in Skadarilja, the bohemian cafe district; played in the Botanical Gardens; saw a John Lennon/Yoko Ono exhibit at the Museum of Yugoslavian History; saw hundreds of batons at The House of Flowers (Tito’s mausoleum and location of gifts he received while president); sunbathed on the beach of Ada Cinganlija, enjoyed a cool drink on Strahinjia Bana, a street that is always active but explodes with life in the evening as people come to the bars; explored Zemun, a very cute quarter; and learned at the Nikola Tesla museum.  We also saw more sombre sights, such as the NATO bombed Former Yugoslav Military Headquarters which has been left as it stood.

A highlight was going to Brian’s mother-in-law’s house for dinner.  There was so much food, and it was amazing to see what she had cooked.  So much was similar to the Ukrainian-Canadian food that I grew up with, but with food I always thought of as Italian or Greek mixed in.  We had melon with prosciutto, stuffed mushrooms, what seemed like a side of lamb, beets, soup, lots of feta cheese, and so much more.  At first I thought she had made a special meal because we were there, but I later learned she cooks like that every Sunday!

We also had amazing food our last night at a restaurant called Fonda (Nebojsina 49a, Beograd.  011/303-7450).  We had, in addition to the ever prevalent cevapcici (minced meat sausages), stuffed zucchini, beet salad with feta cheese, and beef with a kajmak (clotted-cream) sauce.  It was one of the best meals I’ve had and I can’t recommend it highly enough.

I was a bit nervous about travelling in Serbia since not only do I not speak Serbian but I can’t read the Cyrillic alphabet.  It turns out I shouldn’t have been concerned.  A lot is written in English, and the people are very helpful and patient.  I did have a lot of fun using my travel book’s guide to sound out words written in Cyrillic!

We also wanted to see the Croatian coast, which we had heard was gorgeous.  We were not disappointed.  We went to Rovinj, which sits across the Mediterranean from Venice with a day trip to Groznjan , a small mountain community where artists sell their wares.  I went snorkelling, we ate fresh fish and enough ice-cream for an entire summer, and each got a sunburn .  We stopped in Zagreb on the way back to Belgrade since there is not a direct bus to Belgrade, and we were astounded by the beauty of this small Habsburg city. 

Even while we were holidaying we were already discussing future vacations in the former Yugoslavia.  Next time we want to rent a car and go to more smaller towns (friends of ours rent a car in Germany to allow easy travel through the countries).  We’d explore Croatia some more, but also go back to Belgrade.  It’s the kind of place that pulses with life, and we don’t think it will be “undiscovered” much longer.  We want to be there to watch as it changes.