Travel Day to Belgrade, Serbia

A Sirbian Village we passed while on the train

Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come,
Or a plane to go, Or the mail to come, or the phone to ring...
 Everyone is just waiting! - Dr. Suess

Our time in Bulgaria was amazing but we're ready for Sofia today! Originally we had planned to stay all day and take a night train tonight that would leave at 8 pm and get in at 4 am. But after seeing the mountains from the plane we decided to hop on an early train to see the country side.

Our decision might have also been effected by the description our friend the Canadian Tazmanian Teacher, Matt, gave us of his night train experience from Belgrade to Sofia. Apparently from all the stops you end up continually sliding about on the mat in the sleeper cars, which to us didn't sound pleasant at all.

This morning we woke up, got ready, and repacked our bags. Here are a few entertaining and interesting moments from preparing to leave and the actual travel on the train today.

1.) Choosing a souvenir...
One of the best things to ask when speaking to fellow travelers is what do they  keep as an icon or trinket from each city or country they visit. Some people buy postcards, some buy patches, others buy pins or spoons. The reasons for doing this are different for each person. Some want to display to the world where they have gone and others seek a daily reminder of the places they've seen and experienced.

Today at breakfast we sat with our new friend Jo, I (Morgan) told her how I needed to find a patch before leaving Sofia as it was a tradition my sister had started and I'd had continued. Jo then took out her necklace and told us how in each city she added a piece to her chain. There were rings, pendants and even a coin from Turkey. No one else can tell where each item was from but she wears them with pride; a daily reminder of Vietnam, Turkey, Ireland, and many more.

2.) Natalie gets hit with the shopping bug...
When we got to Sofia we did not realize Bulgaria uses the Leva not the Euro. We decided to take out just enough for the two of us to pay the hostel, buy tickets to Belgrade, get a nice lunch at a traditional Bulgarian restaraunt, buy some souvenir patches and snacks for the trains. We figured we would go back for more if we found something we really wanted.

So come this morning, we have 21.80 leva and leave in 3 hours. Which is just enough to buy 2 patches, some water, snacks and a sandwich to split for the train.   After buying the patches, Natalie gets the shopping bug. We'll be talking about one thing and then all of the some Natalie stops right in her tracks! It seriously was like me in a grocery store when I'm (Morgan) especially ADD. Those that know me will get this. It was just hilarious because 20 minutes before this she was talking about how she doesn't believe she will buy anything in Europe besides postcards, patches and a wine stopper. Then she see's a fidora, some purple butterfly shoes and a shot glass! If we'd actually cashed in some Euro for Leva to shop, she would've been looking pretty shnazzy in some new kicks, a rockin hat while pulling a shot from her new Bulgarian shot glass. And all the while I (Morgan) am there thinking to myself FOOD.  Let's get some food. 8 hours on a train! Food. FOOD.

3.) Serious power walk to make our train...
Basically, I, Morgan, made an error in estimating the time we could chill at the hostel and still make our train on time if we were walking to it. Right as we were getting ready to leave, I went to the bathroom and Natalie went to ask the front desk how to read the ticket. The desk girl said "By the way, you need to get going NOW to make it." First thought when Natalie told me this "oh crap!" and so essentially I spazzed out and started power walking down the street. After about a block I look back and see Natalie is about 20 feet behind me. After 25 minutes of walking, we make it to the station. A man comes up to Morgan and asks if we are going to Belgrade. From previous Europe experience, I (Natalie) knew he would ask us for money once taking us to our train. Morgan followed him not knowing, but he took us to the train and would not leave unless we gave him money. Good thing we had no money, other than 2 British pounds!

4.) Natalie stain removing...
When I (Natalie) decided to get up from my seat to take a picture of the country side, my butt area of my pants was exposed to Jo and Morgan. Apparently, I'd sat in something! Morgan broke out his Tide To Go pen and I preceded to stand on my chair to look in the mirror and clean away. Not the most attractive thing to do in front of friends and an old Bulgarian woman but it had to be done. The Bulgarian woman I'm sure was thinking these crazy English speaking kids. Oh, well :)

5.) Serbians sat next to us on the train...

Jo, Natalie and Morgan and their new Sirbian Friends!

View of another village from the train

It began with an old man walking in our compartment to see three open seats. A woman and young man followed his lead and sat down. We helped them put there bags up above and then continued about our own business. When we stopped at a city, a large group of children entered on the train. The younger man immediately closed the door and pushed his foot against it. The woman began trying to explain that they were gypsies by tapping her fingers together above her head, as if she were clicking tiny symbols. None of the Serbians spoke a wink of English, so pictionary and maps were the only ways to get across simple info such as our names, age, & where we were traveling. It was all very entertaining & enjoyable.

After nine hours on the train, we'd finally arrived at what we thought was the Belgrade train station. However, it was not! We were nearly 20 feet off the train, when Serbs started yelling at us to get back on. We hustled back on, waited two more stops till our actually exit! Our next obstacle was finding a taxi and exchanging money. Serbia uses the Dinar not the Euro. At every train station in Europe there are VERY corrupt cabs. Thankfully, an older Serbian saw our dilemma. He spoke fantastic english and rung us a cab. He spoke to the cabbie in Serbian and told him to give us a good rate, which he did. We have been incredibly blessed with the amount of helpful Serbs today.

We arrived at our hostel around 930pm. The hostel is amazing, with wonderfully colored walls, artwork, hardwood floors, and a GIANT shower. The front desk is incredibly informative. They helped us look up trains, buses, food, and tours. Four others arrived and we introduced ourselves. The group is incredibly diverse: Bosnians, French, Swiss, and another American. We then all took a shot of the traditional Serbian liquor: Rakia. Our Rakia flavor was grape, but the most traditional is plum.

There is a new law in Serbia that says bars can no longer serve alcohol after 1030pm. It was past 1030pm, but someone knew of a bar that would serve us. It was about 15 minutes from our hostel. We each had the local Jelen beer and talked about everything imaginable: literature, yugoslavian languages, how Morgan and I know each other, sexuality, education system, politics, and much more. English was the intermediate language, but periodically couples would break off speaking in German, French, Spanish, and Serbia. Morgan attempted to join in the Spanish conversation, but we won't talk about that.

Natalie: On the walk to the bar, I spoke with Mary, who just finished her residency and is beginning her fellowship in July. I was really blown away, the a young doctor was actually traveling. She said she'd disliked medical school very much and took time off between her second and third year to travel to South America and Cuba. During that time she'd learned Spanish, which is incredibly helpful she says. She was very downtown to Earth and I really enjoyed talking to her. I'd always hoped for the ability to travel during medical school and she gave me hope. At the bar, I am completely in awe with the subjects of conversation. It's difficult to have a worthy conversation about politics, education, etc. with an american, let alone Serbians, Frenchman, and Swiss. For one person to know 5 languages fluently (while I know only one), makes me feel incredibly incompetent. Maybe this experience will light a fire under my ass to learn a language.

Morgan with a girl from the Hostel

On the way back, Morgan was starving so he bought some local drunk food. It looked like a fried chicken sandwich, but it was not! There was a massive hair in it but it was still good he says.

Overall, even at night, Belgrade, Serbia is completely different than Sofia, Bulgaria. The streets are actually lit, people are everywhere, buildings are not crumbling, and everyone says it is a very safe city. We look forward to our boat cruise around the city and traditional fish soup tomorrow!