Serbia, The Bad Boy of the Balkans

To understand the ongoing conflicts in the Balkans, you have to get to know Serbia's roots, its complex history and people.

For example, the Serbs occupied the entire Balkans Peninsula in the early centuries until the Ottoman-Turks conquered and ruled for 500 years.  In the 20th century, despite being part of a larger socialist federation of Yugoslavia, Serbia continued to be the political center of the federation and called the shots.  Yugoslavia's collapse in 1992 opened up 'opportunities' for extreme Serbian nationalists to push their  'Greater Serbia' agenda forward under the leadership of the infamous Slobodan Milosević, resulting in bloodshed, wars, and atrocities such as ethnic cleansing.  As punishment and disapproval, the world isolated Serbia in response to their behavior. 

Despite all of this, Serbians demonstrate the highest self-esteem of any nation in a study conducted by David Schmitt, PhD and published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology in 2005.  They have a higher sense of identity, optimism, self-esteem, and self-competence than us Americans who ranked #6 behind Serbia, Chile, Israel, Peru, and Estonia!  By the way, Japan was dead last in self-esteem.  How sad.  

Combining this very proud group of people with their long history of dominance in the region has earned them the nickname, "The Bad Boys of the Balkans".   

The international community may have now recognized that Serbia has put all this behind them, are in process of EU recognition, and does not deserve this "bad boy" title any longer. However, we felt Serbia's reputation continues to be tainted amongst the Balkan countries that felt they were oppressed or aggressed by Serbia, especially when there are underlying disputes still going on today over Kosovo and Macedonia. 

So, we decided to experience the capital city, Belgrade for ourselves and come to our own conclusions.  

The religious and ethnic segregation in this part of the world was very obvious as soon as we left the city of Sarajevo and headed 15-minutes up into the mountain through the Republic of Srpska still within the country Bosnia and Hercegovina (BiH).  Suddenly, the minarets of mosques that peppered the entire Bosnian landscape disappeared as we drove deeper into Serbian Orthodox territory.  

Parliament Building

Belgrade was, as expected, a very large city with imposing stone buildings, promenades, fountains, and parks of Austrian-Hungarian influence alongside square concrete buildings in disrepair from the communist-era.  If you want "charming" or "quaint", this is not the place for you.  If you're looking for a grey, industrial, communist-esque backdrop, you will also be disappointed.  The landscape was very European and reminded us of a cross between Vienna and Budapest, which makes sense as these cities are just north of Belgrade. The domed Parliament building was grand and impressive, but no grander than the Orthodox cathedrals and churches that filled the landscape.  

Hotel Moscow - nicest, oldest hotel in Belgrade.

National Museum under construction and renovation for a while after being destroyed in wars. 

Example of architecture gone wrong during the communist era.  Could they not have found a more aesthetically pleasing building for their Cultural Center of Belgrade?

Nice ornate buildings stand next to....concrete block buildings 

Traditional Serbian song and dance
in the Bohemian Quarter

Hidden amongst the shadows of the buildings were pockets of thriving neighborhoods with cafes and restaurants that could easily be found in any first-class city.  The Bohemian Quarter - Skadarska - with it's cobble-stoned streets, was lined with touristy restaurants and souvenir shops, but had a nice artsy quality and still a center for the local artist community.  Our hostel was right near Strahinijica Bana Street, or what Lonely Planet calls "Silicon Valley" or "Peroxide Promenade" or "Botox Alley" because of all the trophy girlfriends accompanying their rich boyfriends or seeking a rich boyfriend.  The lengthy pedestrian mall, Inez Mihailova, was full of trendy and upscale stores, cafes, and restaurants as well.  Apparently, there is quite a music culture as well, although we didn't have time to explore this part of Belgrade.  

Bohemian Quarter, Skadarska

Bohemian Quarter, Skadarska 

Main pedestrian mall - Knez Mihailova.

We hung out at this cafe, Pastis Bistro, a lot.  Just a step away from our hostel (Hostel Kapitan) onto the cafe-lined ritzy street of  Strahinijica Bana Street.

...and the actual aperitif, Pastis Ricard.  Akiko's new favorite.

All this started as the Beograd Citadel protecting the very sought-after land where the Sava and Danube Rivers converge; effectively controlling the commerce and traffic up and down these rivers.  Over 1500 battles were fought over the area for this very strategic reason.  

But let's be honest.  We are quite tired of seeing yet another ornate building, another beautiful church, another square/plaza, whatever you want to call it.  So, as much as we should've embraced the monumental offerings of the city, our best time was had at the Nikola Tesla Museum.

Nikola Tesla was the ultimate genius and geek of all time!!!  For starters, he invented the alternating current (AC) electrical technology that allows us to receive electricity in our homes and businesses, as well as an integral part of the motor in most electrical appliances we use on a daily basis.  He operated the first remote controlled boat (which, upon witnessing it, people were more likely to believe that it occurred due to magic instead of some logical explanation).  He also pioneered the radio technology (although credit originally went to someone else), and laid the foundation towards a vision of wireless communication that was completely advanced for his time.  He was born a Serbian, but died alone and destitute in his New York apartment as a US citizen.  He originally worked for Thomas Edison when he first arrived in the States, but they were lifelong rivals in electrical engineering.  He willed all of his research and belongings be returned to Serbia, so most of his items are stored at this museum now.  The admission price is the same, with or without the tour guide.  We recommend the tour guide because he has permission to turn on many of the electrical displays. 

Tour guide demonstrating Tesla's discovery of the electromagnetic technology 

Demonstrating wireless transmission of energy from this high-voltage transformer, which lights up the fluorescent light bulbs without being plugged into anything. 

Tesla's first remote controlled boat, where it was more logical for people to believe it happened by magic instead of wireless communication technology.

Mile trying to get zapped. 

Well, we may not have paid much attention to the churches and monuments, but we did notice some random things about town...

Yugo's all over Belgrade! 

If I needed an ambulance in Belgrade and this showed up, I will surely die. 

Any other place, this would be called a latte, but Serbians prefer to list it as "Nescafé" on the menu.  Hmmmm.  Thought Nescafé was just instant coffee. 

Japanese family sat near us at a cafe for lunch.  A random older Serbian lady walks by with her groceries in tow.  Recognizes they may be Japanese, and the Serbian lady starts talking to the family in Japanese - fluently.  Before we know it, they've invited her to sit down and carry on a lengthy conversation like old friends. Very interesting. 

You made a wrong turn somewhere, buddy.  Long way from Florida. 

The fun part about a new place is experiencing the centuries of cultural influences in the local food.  Turkish rule brought variations of the gyro and kebabs, as well as the thick coffee.  We loved their close proximity to Hungary as we feasted on Hungarian goulash.  And of course, meat and potatoes is the staple in Southeastern Europe.  Meat and meat parts of every kind can be found on traditional menus.  

At the oldest restaurant in Belgrade, called ? (Question Mark), after a dispute over the name of the restaurant, owner temporarily changed it to ? and never changed it to anything else.  

Serbian beans and sausage dish 

Serbian salad consists of tomato, cucumber, red onion, and goat or sheep cheese.  Very refreshing. 

Interior of ? Restaurant.

Serbian Merlot was very good! 

Enjoying a nice glass of rose at the eclectic Whatever @ The Corner restaurant.

Got excited that this trendy Asian-fusion restaurant, Whatever @ The Corner, had miso soup on the menu.  This is what came out.  Vegetable and rice noodle soup in a flavorful broth for sure, but definitely not miso soup.  Lol.  

Overall, our impression of Belgrade was of a cosmopolitan city with fashionable people, spending time drinking strong espressos and smoking cigarettes at trendy cafes, enjoying life. It was a very safe and pretty city, similar to many of the larger European cities to the north and west.  There was no trace of their former isolationist status, and appears they have fully embraced the 21st century...perhaps to the chagrin of their rival neighbors.  Only time will tell what's to become of this entire Balkans area.  

View entire album of Serbia here.