Belgrade, Serbia

After a great night sleep, our time in Belgrade begins...
Friday, May, 20th...

We have been so fortunate with our Belgrade hostel. It is fairly small, and could be deemed a home away from home. The young adults that run the hostel and the other guests had gone out for drinks a couple days before we got there. During their pub crawl they had come up with the brilliant idea for a boat cruise! They told us about it last night and said we had to be ready by 1030am this morning. AND it was only 6 euro! We had to do it. With 5 other hostel guests, our Aussie travel friend, Jo, and the hostel owner, Dunja (pronounced dune-ya) we took a boat around the river.

Since the boat was docked a little ways away, we all piled into this small car (small for 9 people that is). 

Morgan: On the way over the woman sitting in front of me introduced herself and when while we exchanged the normal get to know you niceties she suddenly said she was from Rochester, New York. I couldn't believe it I just looked at her and said I lived there when I was very little and then we got to chatting about Rochester, penfield, Webster and wegmanns. After about a minute I finally told her what elementary school I went to and as it turns out we went to the same one. It's just absolutely absurd that in all places I would run into a person from rochester in a small hostel in Belgrade, Serbia. The world truly is a small place and getting smaller by the minute. She then told us about how she lives in Turkey and had met her husband while backpacking in southern France and they had shared a taxi and that's how they met. Hearing that story puts you at ease with the uncertainty of where life will take you. Here were two strangers who were thousands of miles from home and found eachother in the most random of ways. Life is beautiful in this sense. Being a planner type, I found this story thoroughly inspiring in the sense to stop planning. I focus way too much on the future and need to remember to be aware of the present and just have fun.

So with that being said back to our day trip. Once we got to the docks, we all climbed out of the car, the scene was similar to an image of 10 clowns crawling out of a mini car. As soon as we were all out of the vehicle Bojan (boy-on), the guy from the hostel who drove us over (who is hilarious by the way) started pulling the supplies out for the day trip. The supplies consisted of cups, three bottles of wine, one bottle of water, and a beach volleyball. Upon boarding the boat we each were given a potion-beaker-like shot glass of Rakja (rak-ya). Rakja is a potent fruity brandy like liquor that Serbs love. Some countries have wine, others have beer, and the Serbs have rakja. So at 11 am in Belgrade we started drinking. 

During the boat ride, Dunja told us a little about the city and the things we were seeing but to be honest the day trip was more about good drinks, good food, and good company. About 30 or 40 minutes after cruising around the water we docked the boat at an island in the middle of the river. We grabbed the bottles of wine and water to head to the other side of the island with a sandy beach.

The environment that travelers create when interacting with each other is absolutely amazing. Its wonderful to tell stories of your journey and listen to others. Especially "older" travelers who have been around the world with more passports stamps than one can count. Topics range from a country's literature and politics, along with the older travelers careers, advice, and tips towards traveling.

At lunch time, we went back to the boat for some traditional fish soup. It was a red/yellow broth with fish parts. The bones were still in the fish, and the broth was exceptionally hot. It may have had saffron in it? It was also served with GIANT bread roll with sesame seeds. Afterward, we walked around the island. There were many shack/tree house looking homes that people actually lived in. It was very primitive with generators running their electricity. They also had a large patch of land to grown their own food. After our walk, the boat drove us back. So in total: a boat at hand for 6 hrs, 3 bottles of wine, fish soup, bread, and rakja all for 6 Euro each! Or ten dollars.

We relaxed at the hostel for a few hours than went for dinner. A taxi drove us to a section of the river with restaurants floating like boats on the edge of the land. We were supposed to find the Balkan Express, but our leader accidentally went the wrong way. So after an hour or so of walking, we were all starving! We ended up at a restaurant with cute menus, and a nice waitress. The restaurant ended up being an Italian restaurant. We all had some fun variations of salads, bruschetta, carpaccio, pasta, and steak. We were all exhausted so we saved our going out energy for tomorrow night.

The next day (Saturday, May, 21) we had a walking tour starting at the city center called Republic Square. Republic square is the classic place to start a first date, grab a coffee, see business men eating lunch, and meet friends before the clubs. We continued the walk around the city seeing various old buildings, statues, and fortresses. A lot of stories centered around the Turks and drinking. Everything it seems in Belgrade revolves around drinking/"inspiration". A classic saying in Belgrade is that there is 3 levels of drinking. One: Sitting at the table. Two: On the table. Three: Under the table..We ended the tour at the fortress that overlooks the city. The city was named "The White City" because the fortress used to look white when it was built. It was a phenomenal view overlooking the entire city, river, and lush scenery. 

After the tour, we headed for a classic serbian meal. We ordered cevapci (similar to breakfast sausage we found out), a cabbage wrapped sausage, grilled veggies, a spicy cucumber tomato salad, and of course Rakja. We then went to a sketchy market looking for black market bottles of Rakja. It had been raining, so the market was fairly empty. We couldn't seem to find the right person to point us in the direction to buy some black market liquor. A Texan, who lives near Austin, found a clothes stand to buy some pants. He was going to White Sensation Serbia with us that night, which required white pants and shirt. He bought an excellent pair of white European style capris for 75 cents! We walked around the city an hour or two more, then went to get ready for White Sensation!

White Sensation is a very large event in Serbia that is similar to an American rave on steroids. There is a light/laser show, women dressed in bikinis walking a cat walk, giant jellyfish hanging from the ceiling, two jumbo trans, a lineup of 5 famous DJs, and everyone is in white. If you did not have white pants or shirt, you would not be let in. We had tickets, but our other Texas friend, Ed, did not. We wondered around looking for a scalper. We learned the Serbian word fore ticket, carte, and just started asking. We walked around the stadium and saw a man, not dressed in white, leaning on his car. I, Natalie, asked him, "Carte? Koliko?" (Ticket? How much?) He said 100 Euro. We had bought the tickets for 60 Euro, and I said no our friend only had 70. He said no, and I asked 80?! He thought about it, then said eh, ok. So we had a ticket that we thought was legitimate. We met a group of Serbians to talk to. They were fairly wasted, so we moved on. While in line for the stadium, a girl said I looked like Britney Spears, so I started talking with her. I met all her friends, who were our age, so we tagged along with them for the entire concert! 

The Serbians are absolutely wonderful! They loved the fact that americans are coming to Serbia. They continuously asked us what we thought of Serbia and if we were having a good time. Their english is impeccable, and were so excited to practice speaking it with us! They wanted us to understand that Serbians are not violent, savages caught in wars but loving people, who are extremely proud of their country. They cannot wait for us to tell our family and friends about the wonders of Serbia and for us to come again. It's not just the young serbians we've met, but every age group that wants us to have a wonderful time in their country. Serbians are truly one of a kind.

So we finally got the security, where Morgan and I walked through. However, Ed did not!! His ticket did not scan, and he was told his ticket was fake. We felt awful! Our new Serbian friends, said he would find a way in, but if he ever found us in the crowd of 20,000 people it'd be a miracle. We went down the stairs to the bottom of the arena to get easy for the opening ceremony. The stadium is a basketball arena, and it was surreal to see so much white. The stage was one of kind with balloons, jellyfish, water fountains, and models. The ceremony opened with fireworks, light show, and introduction of the first DJ. I was bracing myself for my ears to be blown, but I could still here and speak/yell to the others around me. The bass was not as loud as raves I'd been to before but it was still very intense. After listening and jumping around for an hour or so Ed shows up!! He had found us!! Or rather he'd found a short, blonde with a poof in her hair (me) in a crowd of 20,000 people!

Ed has one of the most unforgettable concert stories know to man. After being turned away by security, he found out thousands of people had been turned away because the stadium's computer system crashed for specific types of tickets. So being the brilliant, savvy concert man he is, he walked around the stadium looking for the wealthiest looking serbians he could find. Though EVERYONE in serbia dresses and looks like supermodels, he found an exceptional looking groups of Serbs. He went straight to the oldest looking woman of the group. He told this gorgeous looking Serbian grandma his story, and she said wait a moment. She called over her supermodel-esque daughter and granddaughter. They picked up their phone to make a call. Within minutes, a security guard walked over to give Ed a VIP wristband and neck pass! Ed had met the owners of the stadium!! He was taken to their VIP sweet to mingle with wealthy Serbians and drink to his hearts content for free!! He left to find us, and somehow, against all odds, saw me in the crowd! The man is insane.

So after a few beers, more DJs, dancing, crazy pictures, Serbian language lessons, and continuous signs of affection like hugs and Serbian one cheek kisses, we finally decided to leave. The concert went on until 6am, but we left at 2am because we were all leaving very early in the morning for our next destination. This night will live on in countless stories for years to come.

Natalie: Belgrade is an absolutely amazing city. Only in a certain part of the city do you see a few bombed buildings that still have not been repaired since the 90s. Overall, the city is alive and very modern, with little to no aura of a communist, war torn country. The streets are busy with traffic, the sidewalks packed with pedestrians, and shops exploding with avid shoppers. There are beautiful parks, and grand old buildings that have been excellently renovated. Serbians are also the tallest and most beautiful people I have ever seen. There is truly something in their water, because it seems they have hit the genetic lottery. The women are statuesque and the men all seem to be basketball players. At the rave, I couldn't see a man under 6 foot in site. At the rave, I was taught the countries hand sign that is holding up the thumb, pointer finger, and middle finger. It is supposed to represent the three stripes on their plane.

Overall the Serbians are amazing, friendly and very concerned about our opinion of their country. We wish we had a other day here, but Bosnia is calling our name. Their is beautiful countryside to be seen, food to be consumed, wine to be drunk, and people to meet.