The Prokletije holiday
Sharp peaks, bears and traditional singing. What’s not to like? Continue reading The Prokletije holiday
Tag: balkan
Hidden Belgrade (17): Belgrade’s Bavarian Protectress
From its beginnings, Belgrade was a multi-confessional city, due to its the location at crossroads or major trade routs and the borders of major empires, from the Romans to the Habsburgs. Although the city’s location brought diversity and rich history, it often proved disastrous. The city was burnt to ashes many times by defenders and conquerors alike, and its citizens were too often forced to … Continue reading Hidden Belgrade (17): Belgrade’s Bavarian Protectress
Hidden Belgrade (16): The Forgotten Feminist Palace
If you pass through a hallway of an unassuming building with a blackened facade in Resavska 11, you will find yourself staring at a graceful jewel box of a building which currently houses Serbia’s leading folklore dance society AKUD “Lola”. Its pink and white facade, hides behind it one of the prettiest halls in Belgrade, decorated with wonderful chandeliers and elegant art-nouveau ornaments. This hall, … Continue reading Hidden Belgrade (16): The Forgotten Feminist Palace
Bač: fortress in the plains
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 … Continue reading Bač: fortress in the plains
Day 4-7: The Bulgarian Riviera, from Varna to Rezovo
There might something in the mix of testosterone and sea air, or the fumes from sun-screen lotions, that makes men of all ages behave like they are teenagers whenever they approach the coast. This strange effect descended on us as soon as we entered Varna’s brutalist suburbs, and started discussing horrid facial hair experiments and buying fake Adidas tracksuits. It was the air, and definitely … Continue reading Day 4-7: The Bulgarian Riviera, from Varna to Rezovo
Day 3-4: The Balkans, Veliko Tarnovo and Zheravna
From Sofia we drove north-east towards the old Bulgarian capital of Veliko Tarnovo and its impressive UNESCO-protected citadel Tsarevets. We were going deeper into the Stara Planina (Old Mountain) and the scenery was lovely. It was this mountain range’s Turkish name, Balkan, meaning “a wooded mountain”, that gave our peculiar region its name. In the early 19th century a German geographer Zeune, wanted to find … Continue reading Day 3-4: The Balkans, Veliko Tarnovo and Zheravna
The Nutshell Guide to the Montenegrin coast (2): Budva, Lake Skadar, Podgorica and Cetinje
This is the second part of my guide to the Montenegrin coast aimed at visitors planning to spend a weekend or a week in Montenegro. The first part suggested places to visit in the Bay of Kotor. Budva Both metaphorically and physically, Budva is at the heart of the Montenegrin riviera and concentrates all of its best and worst features in its wonderful bay. On … Continue reading The Nutshell Guide to the Montenegrin coast (2): Budva, Lake Skadar, Podgorica and Cetinje
The Nutshell Guide to the Montenegrin coast (1): The Bay of Kotor
Despite its great natural beauty and diversity, until relatively recently Montenegro was under the radar of tourists outside the Balkans, Italy and Russia. Tourism in Montenegro started in the times of Yugoslavia, from the opening of the luxury peninsular fishing village/ resort of Sveti Stefan in 1955, which has since hosted glitterati like Elizabeth Taylor, Sophia Loren and Bobbi Fisher, to the nudist camp at … Continue reading The Nutshell Guide to the Montenegrin coast (1): The Bay of Kotor
Lake Skadar: eerie land of macabre fairies, ruins and skeletal hills
Lake Skadar is as dramatic as landscapes get in Europe. Whichever side you apprach it from in Montenegro your first sight of it will be an explosion of a green watery expanse, dotted with white cones of karst covered in thick Mediterranean bush. As you train your eye on its beauty, you will notice birds soaring above its waters and maybe a ruin of a … Continue reading Lake Skadar: eerie land of macabre fairies, ruins and skeletal hills
Serbian elites’ long war on clarity
Although it is 170 years since a simplified Serbian language became the norm, Serbian elites still prefer muddying the rhetorical waters In 1847, after three decades of struggle, Vuk Karadžić and his allies, Petar Petrović Njegoš, Branko Radičević and Đura Daničić, decisively won the battle for the standardisation of Serbian folk language and its literary use. Their victory was achieved by proving that the language … Continue reading Serbian elites’ long war on clarity
Hidden Belgrade (6): Hristifor Crnilović’s extraordinary passion project
Hristifor Crnilović’s life was an exciting one, certainly more than his slightly pompous old-school name and passion for national costumes, would let on. Born in a middling family in Vlasotince in 1886, Crnilović decided to pursue a painterly career and moved to Munich to learn his trade. In Munich, according to one source, he was in class with Adolf Hitler to prepare them for the … Continue reading Hidden Belgrade (6): Hristifor Crnilović’s extraordinary passion project
Ljubljana + Postojna: Castles and dragons
The magic of Slovenia can transform even a crappy solo trip into a pleasant experience In 2013, work led me to Ljubljana. I spent four very intense months there, during which I had little opportunity to explore the rest of the country, as I was working 24/7. Due to the frantic pace of work, the city, even though it only had around 300,000 souls and … Continue reading Ljubljana + Postojna: Castles and dragons
April in Belgrade: Photos from pro-democracy protests
After a sort of Easter break, the protests for media freedom and democracy continue today. They started on 3 April, after PM Aleksandar Vučić won the Presidential election, and gathered large crowds across Serbia demanding free media, democratic control, fair elections and social justice. In Belgrade, on Saturday 9 April there were a few tens of thousands marching from the main Serbian government building in … Continue reading April in Belgrade: Photos from pro-democracy protests
Priča o dva “Balkana”
Krajem 1896., Beograd i Zagreb su bili gradići sa oko 60.000 duša sa velikim ambicijama da postanu kulturni centri emancipujućih jugoslovenskih naroda. Te godine, oba grada su imala prve projekcije filmova braće Lumière. U Beogradu to se desilo na Terazijama, u gostionici Zlatni Krst, 6. juna, manje od šest meseci od prvog javnog prikazivanja filma u Parizu, i prvi put na Balkanu. U Zargebu, malo … Continue reading Priča o dva “Balkana”