History Class - Belgrade 100 years ago and now

City that is bigger and bigger every day!

About 100 ago, Belgrade was small trade center, and capital, with 80,000 inhabitants. Since Serbian population mostly lived in villages, cities couldn't be so big.

Before World war 2, 80% of Serbs lived in villages, after it when communism and heavy industrialism came, 80%  of Serbs moved to cities, so they grew very very fast. So did Belgrade, it practically ate surrounding settlements like Ovcha, Borcha and others.

When Belgrade became Yugoslav capital, factories, trade stations, Nikola Tesla, airport, roads were built.

Migrations to Belgrade from all over Balkans started, mostly from Yugoslavian peripheral areas, like mountains.
Education in all socialistic states was on high level, so was in Belgrade. Serbian Academy of Arts and Sciences and Belgrade University are highly prestigious universities. In Belgrade university students from around the world were coming to study.
Atelje 212 (Атеље 212) is a theatre in Belgrade, biggest in whole ex-yu, so you can imagine how cultural level was high.It was funded in 1956.

City soon had about million inhabitants, and it needed more houses and all other sorts of buildings for people to live and for work.
In that moment, starts biggest expansion of Belgrade - building new part of city across the other side of the Sava river - New Belgrade.(Also known as Blocks)
There are over 70 blocks, and last constructions were over in 1947.This is today most populous municipality in city.
Fast development, planned building and of course a lots of people made this part of city so important today.

Today we have many shoppping malls such as "Delta City" and "Usce" where you can find all popular brands like Nike, Adidas, Gucci, Armani, Samsung, Sony, Apple...
These shopping malls are huge, Usce shopping mall for example is on 4 floors and has a part for dinning, entertainment, shopping, car parking and many other features.

Belgrade from air

Checking out Belgrade from air

You can see statue "Winner" , St. Sava Church , Republic square, the "Gazela bridge", Lake Ciganlia, "Ada bridge" and many more. This is just what i was talking about so far, you can now see it.

Video by D.Trifunović

Hope you will like this video, more posts soon!

Belgrade Foam Fest

Belgrade FOAM FEST

Ready to get wet? Ready for BG Foam Fest?
At the end of every summer, in Belgrade Arena, foam fest is organised.This is basically something you can't even imagine..Popular Dj's from all over the world come to foam fest that's happening one a year. Something about 15,000 people on this all inclusive party that i don't want to miss next year. Tons of types of alcoholic drinks, foam all over me, and of course girls.

Spiritual atmosphere makes foam fest special, last year 17,000 people enjoyed nice music and cool visual effects.
After 2 hours of party passed, foam turbine is released the foam, which melts after half-hour and becomes water, and then it begins real party.
Entry to party is 15 euros, which for this all inclusive party isn't much.
New thing in this whole foam fest party is so called "ice parts" which are huge blocks
of ice that are flooded whit foam which i bellive that will serve you in hot summer
 days and cool up temperature in BG arena, 
knowing how much people are going to come...

Wrong opinion about Serbia and Belgrade

Since our blog is pretty much visited by visitor from USA and GB which i want to greet and thank for reading.I want to educate people that things they see on television are absolutely false and just unnecessary propaganda against my beautiful country and city.
Serbia is very old culture in middle of Balkan peninsula. It was mentioned in old scriptures about 1300 years ago!
First ancient houses appeared in Vincha(north Belgrade) 4800 years before Christ. First city name was Singidunum and it was funded by Romans,  3 centuries BC.
When Serbs populated Belgrade, they renamed it in Beograd, which if we would transalte it directly would mean WHITE-CITY(BEO-GRAD).
Politics which i don't want to talk about too much is largely responsible for global wrong opinion about or culture, people, and everything.
My people are aware of how old our culture and traditions are, and therefore do not allow any foreign interference, which produces a bad relationships between Serbia and other countries.
First question that you will ask, i'm sure is: Are Serbia and Belgrade even safe?
-Because of bad propaganda and all incorrect things you heard, it's quite normal to ask that question. My family lives here about 150 years, and they never had any problems.Crime is on low level and demonstrations are not constant..All things you hear are rumors.
Why would we travel to Belgrade, there are more interesting places?
People that come to Belgrade, never come once..they always come back, why? Because of all things i mentioned in earlier posts and because all things i'll mention in future, all theaters, concerts, parties, movies, good people, cultural heritage, exquisite music, and all positive things they have been to.
Once again, thank you all people who read my blog, i hope you will continue! :)
It is about a month i run this blog with my friend, and i hope that we will progress more.

New year in Belgrade

***NEW YEAR***

New year in Belgrade will be quite fun.Whole city will be in fireworks mostly on Ada Bridge, skyscraper "Beogradjanka" and great St. Sava Temple.

Of course i have to mention all parties that are going to happen in center in clubs such as "Stefan Braun" , "Club Colective" , "Blaywatch" , "Club Tash", "Teatro Bar" and a lots more.

Whole city is in new year mood, and every time i have beautiful memories from every new year.

Recently I have got information that Belgrade is rated as one of best places in Europe for parties.
Here we make a lot of types of parties like foam parties, scoreboard parties, heart parties, water parties, white sensation parties and many more. 
Experiences that you see here will always stay in your hearts.

Welcoming people will always give you advice where to shop, go on a party or have nice meal.

Spectacular thing is that in center of city, in new year night you can hear counting from 10 to 0 when these last seconds part you from new year, and than of course, fireworks, music, and people happy everywhere.

Unlike other people, we, Serbs are hedonists and we can't live without a good party and music, and there are many rafts with private parties and if you know somebody that is making party there i suggest you to instantly agree to come, because you will definitely have time of your life.

Fame period of year

It is november which means that is period of serbian orthodox "fame" or as serbs say "slava".
It is religious festival that exists only in serbian culture.
Celebrated all over Serbia, Republic of Srpska(Bosnia), Montenegro and Macedonia.
There are several saints in whose name we celebrate, and each family celebrates one.
Traditionally friends and family members gather at home, light a candle, have huge lunch with a lot of Serbian traditional food and drink, chat and pray to God to be with them.
Males from family take round cake, pour it with wine which is symbol to Jesus Christ's blood, and than tear it in few parts which is Jesus's body.
People in Belgrade never miss their fame, all shops in Belgrade lower their prices on food, milk, and alcoholic drinks(whine and beer are often very cheap).

Rival football teams in Belgrade

Serbian FOOTBALL

FC Red Star and FC Partisan are rival teams, and also 2 best football teams in Serbia.The "Eternal Derby" is name for their match is always monitored by a lot of fans of both teams and media.

Matches are always uncertain until the very end and tension is always in air.Both clubs have stadiums in Belgrade, very close to each other.

Red Star's stadium is called "Marakana" while Partisan's stadium is"J.N.A."

People are divided about supporting clubs, bud R.S. has a bit more supporters.

This is FK RS stadium which can support about 40,000 people and North part is always popular for Red Star's supporters.

Red and white are symbolic colors of this football team.

They were formed in 1945 and are slightly more successful.

About 40% people in Belgrade support this team.

This is FK PARTSAN stadium.Symbolic colors of Partisan is black and white, it can support about 32,000 people.South side of  stadium is always their place.
This football club was also formed in 1945 and from then they were always excellent on the ground.
About 30% people in Belgrade are supporters of this team.





Rivalry between these two teams are going for years and it's always exciting to watch their match.
If you are football lover, I think you will love to see this competition between them.
The fans of both teams are numerous, but always in spirit of sport, with dignity accept to win or lose.

Prince Mihailo's Street

Knez Mihailo's Street

Prince Mihailo street is one of the most popular places you can go to while in Belgrade. It has a lot of shops , restaurants,  cafes,  hotels  and so on.  It is 1 km long and it starts on Terazije(center of Belgrade) and finishes in Kalemegdan(Park with fortress) . If you can find tourists in Belgrade you’ll find them there. It has a lot of street performers, acrobats, magicians, signers, dancers and all kinds of performers.  About 200 years ago it was a prestige neighborhood to live in, only the richest people in Belgrade lived there. 
While walking on footpath, on your side are numerous shops, selling most popular brands for clothing, souvenirs, snacks...
This street can be considered as one of the oldest in Belgrade and in Serbia.




There are a lot of old houses, fountains and passages. It has a beautiful park at the end of the street( Kalemegdan side) which has one of the most beautiful views in Serbia. You can see river Sava flowing into the Danube and enjoy in it for hours. I personally like sitting on the bench, watching the water and listening to music.  Trg republike(Republic square) is also a part of this famous street. It has a theater, a museum and there are a lots of events that are being organized on the Republic square, such as political rallies.
In the middle of Republic square is big statue of prince Mihailo, pointing to south.Its interesting that on the sides of the statues are names of some Serbian cities.These cities were on the south, under Turkish occupation and prince Mihailo was pointing on them, saying that tey are next to be liberated.
Behind the statue is National Theatre. Hundreds of theater performances are played every year!
People call Belgrade "Buried gold of Europe", so if you like meeting new cultures, old for hundreds, of years, i recommend you to start from PRINCE MIHAILO'S STREET.

Kosutnjak - Forest in middle of the city

Kosutnjak

Kosutnjak is name for small city-forest and neighbourhood near it. Name "Kosutnjak" comes from serbian word kosuta(Hind).There are a lots of cafes, tennis, basketball, and football courts.
It also has a few spacious meadows, which makes it perfect place for picnic or just hangout in nature.In Belgrade, this place is well know by so called "Haiducka Sesma" which means renegade fountain.

I love circular running track 1,5 kilometer long with instructions for gymnastics.Also there can be found exercise equipment and yoga spots.
There are also some events there like small car races, or marathons on which hundreds of people come every year.
Across the street is Department for sport that involves one big indoor pool and several outdoor pools.In indoor pool, you can have swimming classes.Prices are low, for indoor pool in winter, price per hour is 2e, and for swimming classes about 10e. Same is for outdoor pools in summer.                                            

"8" pool - it has shape of number eight

Outdoor pools can have about 1000 visitors at the time.
There are pool for young kinds, teens, for jumping (3, 5, 7, 10 meters)
There is a lot of space for everyone, to find shade, put their towel and other stuff.
There are 3 cafes with garden close to entrance and exit.
Security is at maximum and there are a lots of lifeguards that keep whole place secured.
In brief, Kosutnjak is complex of sport and entertainment stuff on the periphery of Belgrade, which i highly recommend you to visit when in Belgrade.

Belgrade BEER Fest!

Every august a big event called beer fest is happening in Belgrade.Beer lovers from whole Europe come to Belgrade to enjoy this 5 days long event.
Traditionally, ex-yu bands play their well known music there.
Entry is free, so you have more money to buy yourself beer or anything you like there.
There can be tasted more than 50 different types of beer.
Like "Amstel", "Heineken", "Staropramen", "Toubourg" ...
Prices are a bit bigger that in drink stores, but, where can you find so many brands of beer in one place.
Whole happening is located near popular shopping mall "Usce" and event can be attended by 20,000 people at once.

2012 - Beer Fest Belgrade - 700,000 visitors in 5 days

People that come there are friendly, love to listen to some good music, to talk, and of course buy and drink some good beer.
There have been few incidents there so far, of course, because of too much beer, but generally it is pretty interesting and good going out.

Big bottle of beer (BF Belgrade)

My favorite beer(even though i don't really drink it often) is "Mythos" and all types of red beer, but not only because of their color, but because of that rare taste, that i can't feel every day.
Also,  among the local beers, i would recommend you to check out "Lav beer" and "Jelen beer".

Serbian Traditional Food

Food

Some really interesting stuff about our food

So, as subject says, lets talk about serbian food and drink.As i don't want this blog to be so official I will always add my personal opinion and share my thoughts about all subjects that we are going to talk about.

I know you've all eaten chinese or italian food, but, have you ever tried serbian specialties?

Did you know that yearly, Serbia is producing tons of unique cheese, with delicious taste?

Food is based on mixture of meat and vegetables.

Kebabs are national meal, in combination with cabbage, olives, and tomato.
Sauerkraut, cabbage rolls, corn bread and pies are also often on the menu.
I also like fish soup of trout, it has strong taste, and if you eat it with bun, it will be delicious.

In old part of Belgrade, there is a street that I proudly recommend to all gourmands, street name is "Skadarlia Street" where are about 10 prestige restaurants .

Every night, there is live music for all of you who like that way of night life.

Of course, i have to mention serbian national drink of "Šljivovica" which is basically a plum brandy.

Its really tasty, but two glasses are enough :)

There a lots of variants of brandy, based on what fruit is used to make it.(Apple, plum, apricot...)

Pork and chicken are definitly favorite meat here in Serbia, and its usually served with johnnycake, brandy

and all kinds of salads. Pork goes best with "greek salad" - olives, tomato, lemon juice, oregano and cheese.

Small lake "Ciganlia"

Just before confluence of Sava and Danube

Yes, its a pretty popular place also know as "Ada Ciganlija".

It has a lot of nightclubs, pubs, 7 km long shore, huge waterfall, water skiing clubs, cycling paths and many more.Whole place is parted in two so called sides. There is "New Belgradian" side and "The Makish" side. 

I love to come to this place on summer, I literally spend my whole summer there.There are lots of people there, no matter what season is, there is always something happening, from kids attractions to swimming or rowing competitions.

In autumn leafs from numerously trees falls on esplanade and makes beautyfull panorama.
I'm absolutely sure that there are about 20 cafes that will satisfy every taste.

If you ask where it is, every belgradian will know to help you to get there, its like little sea on the outskirts of the city.
Also, about nightlife, its totally here, there are about 4 big clubs and most popular's name is "Time Out".Music that is played is from trance all to reggae, so you will definitely find something for your friday night.

Let's start!

   Introduction

Hello dear people.I decided to start this blog, to spend my free time, to introduce you to a common city life.I'm going to talk about many things such as places for going out, common days, way of living, the mentality of my people, and i think you will find it very intresting because a lot of things are unique to Belgrade.
I am not going to talk about politics.

I am going to answer all questions that you maybe ask.

I will take photos of some popular places in my town, post 'em here, and talk about them.

Blog will be updated twice a week or more, depending on my free time.

Some basic things about Belgrade before i start actually bloging photos and posts:
It has over 2 milion people, 

It is of course capital of Serbia

It is located at the confluence of the Sava river and Danube river(which i am going to photo)