Belgrade, Serbia

Belgrade is one of the most unique places I have visited. Many travelers would disagree with me I know. It was difficult for me to find a lot of useful information about the city before arriving there. Most of the blogs and reviews I’d read from people who had been to Belgrade said that the city was urban and ugly with no real attractions other than the fortress. I probably would have thought the same if I had simply walked around the city myself (as is my usual touring style). However, I decided to join a free walking tour of the city, and what a difference that made to my perception.

I flew into Belgrade on a 24 hour layover between Montenegro and Romania. With so little time in the city, I wasn’t sure how to best experience it. I checked into my hostel, where I was greeted with a map of the city, an offered shot of home-made rakia (I appreciate it, but you realize it’s not even noon right?), and a recommendation for a city walking tour. I headed out to find some lunch and ended up at a rather generic Chinese food restaurant on one of the many side streets filled with generic shops and ugly, blocky buildings along a busy boulevard crowded with honking cars and crowds of people. I suppose my feeling about the city at this point was meh. I decided to head to the National Museum, where the walking tour was supposed to meet, to see if I wanted to join. There was a good-sized group of people there, probably 12 in all and a young Serbian woman as the guide. She introduced herself, stating that she was a college student at the university, then began the tour.

The guide explained that there was good reason for the lack of architectural style and historical buildings. As a strategic city, Belgrade has been fought over nearly constantly throughout its long history (stretching back to 3rd century BC). It has been completely bombed to the ground 7 times. Most of the city’s historical sites have been destroyed by war – at some point they had to start building for efficiency rather than appearance. Peace is relatively new in Serbia – just since 1999 – but it is amazing to see how deeply the effects of war run. Our guide brought us to the only house still standing from WWI and showed where you could still see the artillery holes in the outside walls. She was extremely proud of her country and obviously cared a lot to show the world that Serbians take maintaining the new peace seriously.

There is beauty to be found in the city as well. We visited Skadarlija, the Bohemian Quarter, which is filled with cavanas, the traditional Serbian style bars, along with restaurants serving traditional Serbian fare. It can be a little touristy, but our guide explained the cavanas are still where Serbians go to celebrate important events – you just need to know which ones are authentic to visit. We also visited Kalemegdan and the fortress. The fortress is the oldest landmark in the city, built overlooking the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers. Spreading out from the fortress is the city park, Kalemegdan, which covers a large stretch of land filled with green grass and lined with trees and pleasant walkways. It’s a gorgeous place to watch the sun setting over the rivers. There is plenty of nightlife in Belgrade as well if that’s your thing – everything from traditional cavanas to dance clubs to party boats on the river.

Belgrade really grew on me even in the short time I was there. It is both historical and modern – moving forward in establishing its new identity and economy while at the same time remembering its war-torn past. There’s an amazing amount of history and culture to soak in visiting the city – you just have to know where to look.