Bač’s medieval heritage juts out awkwardly from the tree lined streets of this quiet town. The remaining fortress tower overlooks one story homes where elderly ladies snooping on visitors, probably with the same passion of medieval guards. A wonderful gothic gate protects an unremarkable concrete bridge over Mostonga. Honey-coloured tower of the monastery, dating from the crusades, pierces the endless Pannonian sky.
This quiet town was mighty once. It gave the name to the whole region of Bačka in northern Serbia, its fortress protected Avars, Hungarians and Turks, while it also claims to have had the first hospital in the Pannonian plains in the old monastery and the first pharmacy in Vojvodina. The city’s importance was diminished once its fortress, which survived all the centuries unharmed and once hosted Hungarian kings, was blown up during 18th century Rakoczi rebellion, in which Hungarian nobility rebelled against the Habsburgs. Although the former glory is only visible in the mangled towers and brick walls, the town is very pleasant to visit because it has more to offer than the usual mix of small houses, baroque churches and concrete granaries typical of Vojvodina. Keep an eye out for the calvary constructed by Mostonga and the ruins of the Turkish bath, the only of its kind in Vojvodina.