History and a mere sip of wine
I woke up with a dull headache, must have been the raspberry liqueur!
We slept as long as we could, before another quick breakfast then a wander to the Courtyard by Marriott for our next tour pick up. Today we are travelling to the north of Serbia and to the second largest city, Novi Sad. Included in the tour is a wine tasting and a stop at a monastery, as well as a look at the Fortress overlooking Novi Sad.
Melica, pronounced Melitsa, is our guide for the tour. We hop into the minibus and head out of the city towards the north. As we travel out of Belgrade into New Belgrade, Melica tells us about Serbian history and other facts connected with the country. Each day we learn more and more, but it’s difficult to piece it all together.
Belgrade has been around since prehistoric times, some 5000 years before Christ. The Celts were the first to settle here, followed by the Romans. Serbia, as British Airways has named it, is the heart of the Balkans and a very important area which explains why it has been involved in over 100 wars; Belgrade has been destroyed 44 times, and I think this goes to explain a little about the Serbian psyche. The Serbians really don’t care, they do what they want and they have a fighting spirit; they don’t rely on anyone and just look after themselves. It’s funny because they are the grumpiest people, until you get to know them, and then will go out of their way to help you. I also think this explains Novak Djokovic, who is a national hero and rightly so.
Now I get a bit lost with the timings of everything, but Serbia was ruled by the Ottoman Empire for a large period of its existence, as well as the Habsburg Empire, and it was only in the 19th Century that it became the Kingdom of Serbia and gained its independence. The country became a constitutional monarchy, then the First World War happened. Serbia fought against Austria-Hungary, but were ultimately defeated and then occupied for most of the war period. After the war, the Kingdom of Serbia joined with other South Slavic nations in the foundation of Yugoslavia (Yugoslavia means South Slavic). This continued until World War Two, when most of the area as occupied by the Wehrmacht. In 1945, a coalition Yugoslav government was formed in Belgrade by Tito. It was only in 1980, after the death of Tito that Communism started to weaken. Throughout the 1980s, there was great austerity and protests and it was only in 1987, that stability came in the form of Slobodan Miloševic, but there were great tensions between the different ethnic groups, and this ultimately ended with the Kosovo War and tensions throughout Yugoslavia, and also the break up of Yugoslavia. I need to point out that the Royal family left Serbia at the start of WW2, and only came back after the end of Communism; to this day, there is a royal family, but Serbia is still a Republic as the monarchy was abolished by the communists. We have been told that people are not against a monarchy, but they have been without it for so long, that maybe there is no need. There is, however, still a crown on the Serbian flag.
I’m sure you are completely lost, me too!
Anyway, back to the tour. Our first stop was Krusedol Monastery which was a 45 minute drive from Belgrade; it was in a valley and very peaceful. We were taken into the church which was painted from top to bottom, but unfortunately no pictures were allowed inside. It was just a short stop, but worth seeing as there are a huge number of monasteries throughout Serbia. They always tend to be in the back of beyond so that they could not be destroyed, particularly by the Ottomans.
Our next stop was the town of Sremski Karlovci, it is famous for its wine making and there are wine shops on every corner. It’s quite a quaint town by Serbian standards, but there are still over 7000 people who live here. The guide took us to a wine shop to try their speciality, a red dessert wine with 25 herbs. It was super sweet, but we bought a little bottle to take home. Apparently it goes well with cookies and cakes! The wine was nice, but I feel like we were mis-sold the tour, as we thought we would have a few tastings, not just one. Apart from that, the town was very pretty. There was a fountain with four lions, and legend has it depending on which lion you drink water from, you will stay in this town and marry someone from the direction the lion is pointing. Clearly, I would be drinking from the one pointing to wine street, if I wasn’t already married, of course! There was also a beautiful church and school, but we didn’t have too much time to wander or even enjoy a beer.
We all got back on the bus and headed to our next stop, the Petrovaradin Fortress, also nicknamed “Gibralter of the Danube.” As you can imagine, we had to climb the 200 steps up to the fortress in 36 degrees, we were soaking in sweat at the top but thankfully it was quite breezy. The clock tower was quite quirky, although it got damaged by hailstones only 3 weeks ago. The clock was built for fishermen on the Danube so they could see the time from a long distance, the minute and hour hands are reversed with the small hand showing minutes and the big hand showing hours. The clock is also known as the “drunk” clock as it seems to be faster in summer, yet slower in winter!
The views from the fortress were worth the effort and we had a good view of Novi Sad, the next stop on the tour. Novi Sad feels quite European and quite different to Belgrade, probably due to the Austrian occupation of the city. The guide showed us to the main square, which has a large Catholic Church at the centre; it has a stunning roof and spire, and like most of the city is only 150 years old. We had 2 hours of free time so we went for lunch at Lazin Salaš, a local restaurant recommended by the guide. Iain went for a meat feast, whereas I opted for pork and a Shopska salad as everything is so salty. The food was excellent, not so sure about the live music though.
After lunch, we decided to go for a wander, we headed into the church but the heat was unbearable. The best plan was a cold drink near the meeting place; we found a little bar to cool down again.
At 4pm we met back up with the group to head towards Belgrade; we were told it might take a while as there was a protest happening on one of the bridges, but it didn’t really impact us and we were back at the hotel around 5.30pm.
Neither of us were hungry, but we wanted to visit the Moskva hotel to try the cake that was recommended. I ordered wine whereas Iain went with the ‘When in Moskva’ hotel cocktail; according to our waiter, the hotel had changed the rules about “sharing” cakes just the day before so I had to eat a whole one to myself! I did give Iain a tiny bit…
We had a couple of drinks before we heard some police and loudspeakers; we were pretty sure the protest was coming towards Republic Square so we decided to wander back towards the hotel. There was a place called Bistro Wine that we thought we would try out; the woman was definitely typically Serbian and appeared super grumpy. She asked if we wanted red or white and nothing else. We drank the wine, then thought it best to leave as she seemed to be clearing up; when we left, she gave us a smile and was now our best friend.
Tonight was our last night in Belgrade, so we wandered around the corner to the hotel. We still had half a bottle of raspberry liqueur left so we drank that between us then attempted to pack. I was pretty convinced the liqueur was stronger than we were told, and it was only when Iain started slurring his words and giggling that we realised it must have been some homemade liqueur that was brain damage.
We literally both collapsed, Iain was snoring before his head hit the pillow.
We slept as long as we could, before another quick breakfast then a wander to the Courtyard by Marriott for our next tour pick up. Today we are travelling to the north of Serbia and to the second largest city, Novi Sad. Included in the tour is a wine tasting and a stop at a monastery, as well as a look at the Fortress overlooking Novi Sad.
Melica, pronounced Melitsa, is our guide for the tour. We hop into the minibus and head out of the city towards the north. As we travel out of Belgrade into New Belgrade, Melica tells us about Serbian history and other facts connected with the country. Each day we learn more and more, but it’s difficult to piece it all together.
Belgrade has been around since prehistoric times, some 5000 years before Christ. The Celts were the first to settle here, followed by the Romans. Serbia, as British Airways has named it, is the heart of the Balkans and a very important area which explains why it has been involved in over 100 wars; Belgrade has been destroyed 44 times, and I think this goes to explain a little about the Serbian psyche. The Serbians really don’t care, they do what they want and they have a fighting spirit; they don’t rely on anyone and just look after themselves. It’s funny because they are the grumpiest people, until you get to know them, and then will go out of their way to help you. I also think this explains Novak Djokovic, who is a national hero and rightly so.
Now I get a bit lost with the timings of everything, but Serbia was ruled by the Ottoman Empire for a large period of its existence, as well as the Habsburg Empire, and it was only in the 19th Century that it became the Kingdom of Serbia and gained its independence. The country became a constitutional monarchy, then the First World War happened. Serbia fought against Austria-Hungary, but were ultimately defeated and then occupied for most of the war period. After the war, the Kingdom of Serbia joined with other South Slavic nations in the foundation of Yugoslavia (Yugoslavia means South Slavic). This continued until World War Two, when most of the area as occupied by the Wehrmacht. In 1945, a coalition Yugoslav government was formed in Belgrade by Tito. It was only in 1980, after the death of Tito that Communism started to weaken. Throughout the 1980s, there was great austerity and protests and it was only in 1987, that stability came in the form of Slobodan Miloševic, but there were great tensions between the different ethnic groups, and this ultimately ended with the Kosovo War and tensions throughout Yugoslavia, and also the break up of Yugoslavia. I need to point out that the Royal family left Serbia at the start of WW2, and only came back after the end of Communism; to this day, there is a royal family, but Serbia is still a Republic as the monarchy was abolished by the communists. We have been told that people are not against a monarchy, but they have been without it for so long, that maybe there is no need. There is, however, still a crown on the Serbian flag.
I’m sure you are completely lost, me too!
Anyway, back to the tour. Our first stop was Krusedol Monastery which was a 45 minute drive from Belgrade; it was in a valley and very peaceful. We were taken into the church which was painted from top to bottom, but unfortunately no pictures were allowed inside. It was just a short stop, but worth seeing as there are a huge number of monasteries throughout Serbia. They always tend to be in the back of beyond so that they could not be destroyed, particularly by the Ottomans.
Our next stop was the town of Sremski Karlovci, it is famous for its wine making and there are wine shops on every corner. It’s quite a quaint town by Serbian standards, but there are still over 7000 people who live here. The guide took us to a wine shop to try their speciality, a red dessert wine with 25 herbs. It was super sweet, but we bought a little bottle to take home. Apparently it goes well with cookies and cakes! The wine was nice, but I feel like we were mis-sold the tour, as we thought we would have a few tastings, not just one. Apart from that, the town was very pretty. There was a fountain with four lions, and legend has it depending on which lion you drink water from, you will stay in this town and marry someone from the direction the lion is pointing. Clearly, I would be drinking from the one pointing to wine street, if I wasn’t already married, of course! There was also a beautiful church and school, but we didn’t have too much time to wander or even enjoy a beer.
We all got back on the bus and headed to our next stop, the Petrovaradin Fortress, also nicknamed “Gibralter of the Danube.” As you can imagine, we had to climb the 200 steps up to the fortress in 36 degrees, we were soaking in sweat at the top but thankfully it was quite breezy. The clock tower was quite quirky, although it got damaged by hailstones only 3 weeks ago. The clock was built for fishermen on the Danube so they could see the time from a long distance, the minute and hour hands are reversed with the small hand showing minutes and the big hand showing hours. The clock is also known as the “drunk” clock as it seems to be faster in summer, yet slower in winter!
Neither of us were hungry, but we wanted to visit the Moskva hotel to try the cake that was recommended. I ordered wine whereas Iain went with the ‘When in Moskva’ hotel cocktail; according to our waiter, the hotel had changed the rules about “sharing” cakes just the day before so I had to eat a whole one to myself! I did give Iain a tiny bit…
Tonight was our last night in Belgrade, so we wandered around the corner to the hotel. We still had half a bottle of raspberry liqueur left so we drank that between us then attempted to pack. I was pretty convinced the liqueur was stronger than we were told, and it was only when Iain started slurring his words and giggling that we realised it must have been some homemade liqueur that was brain damage.
We literally both collapsed, Iain was snoring before his head hit the pillow.
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