The last trip that I took in 2018 was to Serbia. I had been traveling extensively in the Balkans in the months leading up to this trip. My focus was on going to a lot of countries that I hadn’t yet visited in the region. The main reason for picking Belgrade was the flight deals. This is usually how I pick where to go on specific dates. I had been connecting in Belgrade Airport on a few trips already. I figured I’d get out in Belgrade and explore the city for a few days too!
FRIDAY, December 7th
Once again I used Air Serbia to fly from Zurich to Belgrade.
The flight started boarding surprisingly early, which allowed a punctual departure. We flew parallel to the Alps as the sun was setting.
We landed on time in Belgrade. I walked right past all the haggling taxi drivers upon leaving the terminal. I found a bus going to the city center instead. It was just a fraction of the price of a taxi, and I had plenty of time anyway. Traffic was pretty bad, and the drive took longer than I expected.
I met up with the Airbnb owner to check-in. I had wanted to see the Sveti Sava Temple, but it was too late. Instead, I tried the Historical Museum of Serbia. Their ticket office had already closed a few minutes prior, a full hour before the museum itself would close.
Just a couple of blocks away, however, was Belgrade’s Museum of Automobiles. It wasn’t high on my list, but I walked over to visit it anyway. I knew the museum would still be open. When I opened the door I almost startled the guard who was half-asleep. It was clear that I was the only visitor.
Inside Belgrade’s first-ever public garage is a collection of cars and motorcycles. Most of them are vintage, very old models.
The collection was surprisingly good, although it wasn’t vast. There was a vehicle from the 1890s within the collection, and several unique models.
There were even some racecars on display.
The highlight was a couple of limited edition cars that used to belong to Josip Tito, the longtime leader of Socialist Yugoslavia.
After I had finished walking around the garage, I still had time for one more sight. But it was too late for museums, as most of the museums in the city close around 8 PM. It was almost 7:30 PM, but I figured Belgrade’s Holy Archangel Michael Cathedral would be open still. It was a slightly longer walk, but I made it there with plenty of time to spare. The church was indeed still open for visits.
The church was very quiet late at night. It was a good opportunity to take photos inside without disturbing anyone. It was pretty dark though.
The darkness made for some unique pictures with the chandeliers, the 19th-century icons, and the interior.
Afterward, I walked back east towards the city center. My plan was to have dinner in a small BBQ restaurant named Te Jo To.
On the way to the restaurant, I passed some Christmas markets in downtown Belgrade. It was a pretty atmospheric spot with plenty of locals visiting the markets.
The specialty at the Te Jo To restaurant was cheap, Sarajevo-style Cevápcící (kebab). That was exactly what I ordered for dinner.
Then I walked back to my apartment to relax and shower, before going out to experience some of Belgrade’s nightlife.
SATURDAY, December 8th
After waking up, I got some breakfast in a nearby café. Then I walked to the Kalemegdan Fortress, north of the city center. It has been in place for over 2,000 years and has been the site of over 115 battles. The fortress was even destroyed 40 times! Today it no longer serves a military purpose.
Kalemegdan has a museum detailing the history of the Serbian and Yugoslavian militaries. Outside is a range of tanks and artillery on display, most of it from the late 20th century.
Inside the museum, there are extensive exhibits about the local militaries throughout history. It begins with some medieval weapons, as well as items dating from the Ottoman Empire.
One display case shows weapons used by rebelling Serbs during Ottoman Empire rule. These rebels were known as Haiduks, and were particularly active in mountain regions in the 18th century.
The exhibits go into much more detail regarding World War I and II. There’s a large collection of original weapons on display throughout the museum.
There are a few photos from movements of the Serbian Army during the First World War as well.
The WWI section ends with Serbian flags used by the soldiers’ units.
Regarding the Second World War, there are some photos of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia’s forces at the beginning of the war.
In addition to this, Nazi atrocities in Yugoslavia during the occupation are also explained. These photos include graphic documentation of executed civilians, which I won’t show. Belgrade was bombed by the invading Nazi German military in 1941.
A particular focus is on the rise of the Communist Partisans, led by Josip Tito. The Partisans essentially liberated Yugoslavia on their own, with a little outside help.
Tito became the leader of communist Yugoslavia after WWII, until his death in 1980. Some of the weapons used by the Partisans are included in the museum collection. Notice the communist insignia on one of the rifles.
Some Yugoslav citizens who had managed to flee the country before the invading Germans assisted the Allies. One of the most notable examples of this was an American B-24 Liberator bomber operated by an entirely Yugoslav crew.
They took part in several bombing raids alongside the American forces throughout Europe.
The Kosovo War of the late 1990s is also mentioned, including pictures of civilian casualties from NATO bombing on Serbian cities.
There is also a piece of wreckage from an American F-16 fighter jet that was shot down, and parts of the pilot’s uniform.
After having explored the military museum, I went back outside to walk around the fortress.
The western ramparts are supposed to have a nice view of New Belgrade. The New Belgrade district is the parts of the city located on the western bank of the Sava River.
Had it been a clear day, I probably could have enjoyed the view too. It was raining and thus a bit foggy, which limited visibility. I continued walking towards the northern parts of the fortress, home to the Orthodox Ružica Church and a watchtower.
The Ružica Church was actually a gunpowder storage during the Austro-Hungarian Empire control of Belgrade in the 18th century. In 1867 control of the fortress was handed over to independent Serbia. The former gunpowder magazine was converted into an Orthodox church later that year. The walls are now covered in pretty Orthodox icons.
The inside of the watchtower had some video screens with random facts about the tower and the castle.
However, the views were much more interesting, particularly looking back towards the fortress itself.
After having had a look inside both the church and the watchtower, I went back south through the Kalemegdan Fortress to have lunch in a neighborhood nearby. I went to a restaurant called “Question Mark”. It is one of the oldest restaurants in Belgrade, with a traditional interior. Serbian BBQ was the specialty on the menu, and I ordered a mixed plate. It was quite tasty.
After lunch, I took the bus towards the Museum of Yugoslavia in southern Belgrade. It originally opened in 1962 as a place to showcase Yugoslav President Josip Tito’s gifts from other heads of state. The museum has been expanded since. At the time of my visit, the main building was under renovation until the beginning of 2019. An older museum building was still open though.
The exhibit inside this building began with some regular household items produced domestically in Yugoslavia. It continued with a few items related to the beginnings of Yugoslavia. The country was known as the Kingdom of Yugoslavia between the world wars. Without really mentioning the Second World War itself, the exhibit transitioned into the period of Socialist Yugoslavia, where Tito was President. However, World War II was covered in other rooms.
A book about JAT Airways, the flag carrier of Yugoslavia.
Brochures for the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, which was part of Yugoslavia at the time.
Josip Tito was mentioned often throughout the exhibit. It could almost seem like a personal museum at times, although certainly it’s not all about Tito. The history of Socialist Yugoslavia can’t be covered without referencing Tito however.
A desk set containing photographs of prominent Yugoslav communists. Josip Tito is in the middle.
The charismatic leader held together the ethnically diverse country, which consisted of six constituent republics. After Tito passed away in 1980, ethnic tensions grew in Yugoslavia, culminating in independence wars in the 1990s.
The coat of arms and flags of the six constituent republics that made up the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, with the national coat of arms on top. From left to right they are: Montenegro, Slovenia, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, and lastly Macedonia.
Exhibited inside the museum were some gifts that Tito received, including numerous relay batons given to him by Yugoslav citizens.
These were made by schools, factories, worker’s unions, military divisions or sports associations. The gesture of handing relay batons to Tito was repeated every year on his birthday. It was a symbolic way of connecting the regular people to their president.
Several dozen medals and awards offered by foreign heads could also be found in the museum.
Not only was Tito presented with honorary medals, but he was also awarded honorary keys to several foreign cities. One of the most eye-catching is the key to the city of Los Angeles.
One of Tito’s greatest legacies was his unique, Yugoslav version of communism. It caused a great dispute with the Soviet Union, who actually cut off most relations with Yugoslavia during the Stalin era. Because Tito’s partisans liberated Yugoslavia without much help from the Red Army during World War II, Tito believed that he had the right to decide Yugoslavia’s path on his own. He maintained good relations with countries on both sides of the Cold War. One of the examples of this is a family photograph with a handwritten note from US President Richard Nixon.
After having seen the museum exhibit, I continued to the House of Flowers, also at the Museum of Yugoslavia complex. It was built in 1975 as an indoor winter garden with rooms for work and relaxation.
After Tito died in 1980, it was turned into a mausoleum. Yugoslav citizens regularly went to visit his grave.
Even today, citizens of former Yugoslav countries, particularly older generations, consider it special to visit Tito’s mausoleum. When his wife Jovanka passed away in 2013, she was buried beside Josip Tito.
Off to the side in the House of Flowers was another large collection of custom-made relay batons. It was presented in a way that showed the symbols and insignias of the various groups who made them.
There was also a photo-collage of the interior of the Blue Train. The Blue Train was a luxurious train that Tito used to travel around Europe and parts of western Asia on state visits.
After having visited the Museum of Yugoslav History, I went back to downtown Belgrade to visit the National Museum of Serbia. It had been closed for almost 15 years up until earlier in 2018, the year that I visited.
The museum received a multi-million euro makeover, and I would say it was money well spent. The bottom floor of the museum focused on archaeology. The items on display included some of Europe’s first sculptures. These were crafted by the Lepinski Vir culture, which lived in the Bronze Age over 8,000 years ago.
Also within the exhibit was a chariot and golden jewelry from about the 2nd millennium BC.
Another find which was interesting consisted of pieces belonging to a soldier’s belt. They were found in Tekija in northeastern Serbia, near the border with Romania. These pieces dated from the 1st century AD.
On the bottom floor were also two vaults with thick security doors. One of them holds European military medals from throughout history. Most of these are shaped like coins.
The other vault contains historic coins and currency used in the region. It was interesting to see a difference according to who was the ruler of the Serbian lands at the time. Some of the oldest coins were from the Roman era.
A more recent banknote from a foreign ruler in Serbia was a 100 Kronen note from the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
It should be pointed out that this note was issued in 1912 when Serbia had long been independent. However, the Austro-Hungarian Empire controlled Serbia during the 18th and 19th centuries.
Yugoslav money was especially noteworthy, including some older notes issued by the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. This was the initial name of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia after World War I.
After most of Socialist Yugoslavia became independent in the early 1990s, only Serbia & Montenegro remained in a union together. Outside of these countries, they were referred to as exactly Serbia & Montenegro, but they continued to call themselves Yugoslavia. The Yugoslav Dinar remained largely unchanged as well.
With wars for independence going on with other former member states, the Yugoslav economy experienced hyperinflation in 1992. It spiraled out of control to the point that in late 1993, a 50 billion dinar note was issued. Its value was around 12 USD at the time. Just one week later, a 500 billion dinar note was released, pictured on the bottom left. In January 1994, the Yugoslav National Bank introduced a new dinar, pegged 1:1 to the German mark. These notes are shown on the bottom right.
The second floor of the National Museum was devoted to mostly Serbian art from the Middle Ages until the 19th century.
In addition to religious icons, there were also some medieval archaeological findings on the second floor. The items below are all from the 14th century.
Objects from the 20th century onwards, also mainly art, were displayed on the third floor.
A painting of the burning of Saint Sava, one of the most important persons in Serbian history. Saint Sava was a Serbian prince and archbishop of the independent Serbian Orthodox Church in the 13th century. He also founded Serbian laws. He was buried peacefully after his death in 1235. However, during an uprising against Ottoman Empire rule in 1594, Serbs used images of Saint Sava to symbolize their independence spirit. In revenge, the Ottomans dug up Saint Sava and burned his remains.
A painting of the post-WWII construction projects in New Belgrade.
A little further down the street from the National Museum of Serbia was a privately-owned art museum open until 10 PM. I picked up a local type of hot dog on the way, an appetizer for dinner if you will.
I usually don’t focus on art museums. However, with such late opening hours, I figured I’d have a peek inside the Zepter Museum anyway. Nothing else was open at the time.
Other than a few select paintings, nothing inside the museum was really exciting in my opinion. I’m sure an art connoisseur would see that differently.
By now it was certainly time for dinner, so I decided to head for central Belgrade’s Skadarlija district. On the way, I passed Trg Republike. While I was inside the National Museum earlier, I heard loud screams and people banging on drums. It was evident that a demonstration had taken place on the square outside. As I crossed the square in front of the museum again, there were several police cars blocking the side street. I even saw a local TV crew preparing a live report. But the demonstrators were gone.
I continued across the square towards the Skadarlija neighborhood, an area full of restaurants and bars. It turned out that I would actually have trouble finding a place to eat. The first restaurant I visited, known for its traditional Serbian food, had “no table for one person”. But there were several free tables. Okay, I figured they just had a weird seating policy. A restaurant a couple of minutes down the same street let a group of three in. I followed and asked for a table for one. The waiter said nothing was available without reservation.
I walked across to the other side of the street. Once again, “we have nothing for one person”. At this point, I was starting to get furious. It was evident that it wasn’t a matter of being fully reserved. Rather, the restaurants wanted to fill all their tables. I understand that the restaurants earn more by seating two or more people at the same table. Personally, I would be fine with sharing. Some restaurants in other cities have long tables and just place single diners or small groups at whichever seats are vacant.
The next three restaurants also refused me, all with several completely empty tables. I have never experienced anything like this. But apparently Belgrade’s restaurants have all agreed to discriminate against single guests. It was frustrating and made me quite angry. For well over half an hour, I kept walking around and got refused at so many half-empty restaurants I lost count. Obviously it was a Saturday evening, but still. Eventually, I made it inside of a fast-food kebab grill, but that was a bit too simple for me. I decided to continue the search. At least I knew I could always go back there.
One thing I have always experienced while traveling is that most high-end restaurants or hotels don’t turn you away unless they are either 100% reserved, or your attire is well below the dress code. But if neither of those is the case and you have the money, they’ll serve you. Doesn’t matter if you’re alone or a group of 8. I found an up-scale place closer to my apartment called Klub Književnika. I went inside and asked if they had a table for one. The greeter/receptionist answered “of course”! Completely different atmosphere. In Serbia, the prices were still cheap compared to what I would pay at home in Switzerland.
The food was tasty, but I noticed on the menu a “cover” charge was listed as a menu item. This included bread, dressings and wet towels. In some countries, it’s common to put bread on the table, but only charge the guests if they used it. I figured it was the same idea and didn’t touch it. When the bill came, the cover charge was included. When I asked why this was charged, another waiter, who spoke limited English, explained which items are being charged as a “cover” fee. All he listed were things I hadn’t touched, which I mentioned to him. He repeated the list of things, and a manager who overheard the conversation assured me I didn’t have to pay. Fair enough, it was like 2 USD more, but it’s a matter of principle.
Without the cover, the bill was 1690 Serbian dinars, roughly 16 USD. I had exact change for 2690 dinar, so the restaurant could simply give me back one thousand. Instead of a single 1000 note, I got a large stack of bills back, and only 990. At this point, you could forget about tipping. I asked for the remaining 10 dinars. Yes, that’s equal to 10 USD cents, but again, that’s a matter of principle.
After all this fuss, I returned to my apartment to relax and freshen up. Then I went out to a few nearby bars for a couple of hours.
SUNDAY, December 9th
Sunday was my last day in Belgrade and I thus had to check out of the apartment in the morning. But my flight wasn’t until 8 PM, so I needed somewhere to deposit my bag for the day. Online I had found a baggage storage service at a café in central Belgrade, a 15-minute walk from the apartment. I sent a booking request but never received a reply. I decided to go there anyway.
Once I got there, it was evident why my booking request hadn’t been answered. The café was closed for Sunday. Fortunately, the main train station was just a few blocks away. They definitely would have some options for storage.
Indeed, there was a manned luggage storage open until late in the evening. I dropped off my bag and went off to see some more of the city.
My first stop for the day was the Sveti Sava Temple. On the way, I passed some noteworthy buildings. These included the partially damaged Army Headquarters. It used to be the Yugoslav Ministry of Defense, and was therefore targeted during the 1999 Kosovo War by NATO bombers.
To keep a memory of the attack, only parts of the complex were rebuilt. There’s a large banner promoting the Serbian military on the side of the building.
Further along the way, I came across the National Bank of Serbia, a futuristic-looking shape with lots of glass.
Eventually, I arrived at the Sveti Sava Temple, which is the world’s second-largest Orthodox church. The biggest is in Romania. The temple is one of the city’s most recognizable landmarks.
The Sveti Sava’s interior was being reconstructed and although it was possible to enter, only a small corridor remained open. The rest was hidden behind tarps, which was a bit unfortunate.
At the end of this corridor was a staircase leading to the downstairs crypt. It was open, so I went down there. It quickly became evident that the crypt had already been rebuilt.
Everything seemed shiny and new, and the frescoes looked like they had been painted recently. It was all quite impressive, although obviously the temple from 1935 wasn’t built yesterday. Thus, the shiny glow of the crypt seemed a bit over the top. It made everything seem perhaps a bit unauthentic.
After Sveti Sava, I wanted to visit the Nikola Tesla Museum. It was open, but an English-language tour wasn’t offered until 1 PM. It was possible to visit the museum exhibits without a tour. However, the price was the same, and the tour includes demonstrations of some of Tesla’s inventions. The staff highly recommended that I go with a tour. I left the museum and planned to return at 1 PM. There were other tour times later in the afternoon as well.
At the time of my visit in 2018, it was 100 years since the end of World War I. This meant 100 years since the creation of the union that later became known as Yugoslavia. Although it was well beyond the exact date, the Museum of Yugoslav History had opened a special exhibit to celebrate the anniversary, called “Yugoslavia 100”. The unique exhibit was located in the Palace of Serbia. This building used to be the seat of government during the era of Socialist Yugoslavia.
The Palace of Serbia is located in New Belgrade, across the Sava river. By now I had used public transport several times, but always without a ticket. The driver didn’t seem to sell tickets, as the driver’s cabin was usually completely sealed shut from the passenger area. There were zero ticket machines at any of the stops. Onboard was a card reader for topping up a subscription card, but you couldn’t buy single tickets on board. I had also asked a couple of newsstands adjacent to bus stops. They always told me to get the ticket “on the bus”. When you make it that complicated to buy a ticket for a single bus ride, you’re not getting my money. There never seemed to be anyone checking tickets anyway.
I arrived at the Palace of Serbia, a rather large complex of buildings surrounded by parks. I asked regarding the exhibit inside the first entrance I found. The entrance to the exhibit was a different one, on the side of the building. The staff there asked if I had booked a ticket in advance. I hadn’t, and this was the only way of entering the Yugoslavia 100 exhibit. It was too late to book a ticket for the same day. There was no other option than to go back to central Belgrade. However, I walked around the neighborhood a little bit first. Across the street was an interesting contrast to the communist-era Palace of Serbia. A group of business offices housed in glass buildings, with modern architectural designs.
I caught a bus back across the river and decided to spend my time in the History Museum of Serbia instead. I arrived too late at that museum Friday evening. Obviously this time around it was open.
Their exhibit focused on the impact of World War I on Serbia. There was also some information about how the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes emerged from it. It was this nation that later became Yugoslavia. Part of the exhibit was designed such that you walked through a First World War trench. Pictures from battles were on both sides.
Propaganda posters from the end of World War I.
A few pictures also included wounded soldiers, but these are rather graphic, so I won’t show them. The exhibit was a lot shorter than I expected, although it was still substantial in its own right.
The walking path through the museum finishes at rooms full of military medals from WWI.
It was quite realistic that I could still get to the Nikola Tesla Museum before 1 PM, the first of several English tours that afternoon. I finished the visit to the History Museum with that in mind and set off. It was a slightly longer walk, but I needed to hurry up. Otherwise, I was only going to make it there exactly at 1 PM. I was actually told to be at least 10 minutes early.
I arrived at the Nikola Tesla Museum a few minutes before one o’clock, and it was plenty early. A large group had already gathered for the tour, but I still got a ticket.
The tour began with a video about Nikola Tesla and his life. It mentioned key facts about his rise to prominence. The video also described some of his key inventions, but certainly not all 300 of his patents. After the video, the tour guide made a few demonstrations and experiments.
Among other things, Tesla’s induction coils were shown in small and large versions. The magnetic field from the largest coil was enough to provide electricity for light tubes held by volunteers at a distance from the coil.
Shown above is a neon display that lights up when an electric charge is applied to a small disc. This closes the electric circuit of the machine.
A remote-controlled boat built by Tesla was also shown. It worked by sending signals with pulses of energy that either activated or cut off its electric circuit.
The tour guide then gave a brief overview of the rest of the museum exhibit, including personal effects of Nikola Tesla. Also on display were some of Tesla’s patent documents.
The highlight of the museum exhibit’s corner with personal effects is a golden ball placed on a pedestal.
The golden sphere is an urn containing the cremated remains of the world-famous inventor.
After having visited the Nikola Tesla Museum, I had checked off all the must-see places in Belgrade. I pondered visiting the tower on Mt. Avala south of the city, particularly because it was a beautiful, sunny day with clear skies. But it’s over an hour one-way to get there by public transport. If I went there, I would have time for nothing else. With the infrequent public transport connections, it was quite optimistic to get there and back before I needed to leave for the airport. All this including lunch somewhere along the way. I decided to skip going to Mt. Avala, and went for lunch near the Nikola Tesla Museum.
To keep it simple and to heighten my chances of getting in, unlike dinner the night before, I settled on a kebab restaurant a couple of blocks away. It was quite popular as there were plenty of locals there. I had a portion of cevapcici for lunch.
Because I dropped going to Mt. Avala, I suddenly had plenty of time on my hands to explore more of Belgrade.
The St. Mark’s Church was not far away, so I went there to have a look inside. The church was built during the 1930s, on the site of a former church from the 19th century.
The much smaller and slightly older Russian Orthodox Church right behind St. Mark’s Church was also of interest. It was closed though.
My next stop became Topcider Park south of the city center. I took a tram to get there.
The park has some traditional royal residences, but these were all closed. I had to make do with some statues and a walk around the park, which wasn’t all that colorful in December.
I returned to the city center by tram as well, and by then it began getting dark. Back in downtown Belgrade, I passed the former Yugoslav Ministry of Defense again. This time I saw its Kosovo War damage from a different, much more revealing angle.
My next stop became the Yugoslav Film Archive. It looked to be open, but they were having some special event which was reservation only. I wasn’t able to see any of the exhibits. This felt very much in style with the rest of Belgrade. Never have I come across a city that is so bureaucratic, where you have to reserve everything ahead of time.
Be it nightclubs, restaurants or museums, it seemed as if every other place you wanted to visit in Belgrade required booking and reserving in advance.
My last stop in Belgrade became a mosque that happened to be just a few blocks away from my apartment. It wasn’t all that exciting and definitely wasn’t high on the list, but I had nothing else left on the sightseeing list.
From there I walked towards the train station, in order to retrieve my bag at the train station’s luggage storage. I picked up a burger at the Trg Republike Christmas market to eat on the way.
Just before reaching the train station, I crossed a small park that was full of migrants, seemingly all from the Middle East. Because Serbia is on the border with EU countries, the migrants can’t travel any further towards central Europe, at least legally. So they sleep just across the street from Belgrade’s train station. It’s sobering to compare the freedom of travel that I enjoy to how stuck these migrants are.
I picked up my bag from the luggage depot. Then I walked in front of the train station to catch a bus to the airport. It was a bit confusing because it wasn’t signposted anywhere. However, I knew there would be a bus from the train station to the airport. Eventually, the bus appeared and I simply walked over to where it was parked.
I arrived at Belgrade’s Airport with plenty of time to spare. I bought a sandwich with some of the last Serbian dinars I had, enough to satisfy my hunger for a few hours.
My flight back home to Zurich with SWISS was punctual. The on-board service was a nice upgrade in comparison to all the Air Serbia flights I had been taking lately.