New Belgrade - Blok 70

The entrance of the buvljak of Blok 70

Blok 70 is well known for a couple of reasons:

Documentary

Like for Blok 45, in the 70's it was popular among artists to live in this block and a documentary film was made by its construction firm to promote the pleasurable life in Block 70: Naselje sunca - Blok 70 (1974).


Buvljak

The flea market ("Buvljak" or "Otvoreni Tržni Centar") located in Novi Beograd (New Belgrade) has been reorganized a few years ago and now hosts stands selling everything from bicycles to house appliances and to clothing to footwear. The Blok 70 shopping mall is today dominated by small vendors from China.
This however is not so well seen by block residents, as they see chinese as dirty, crazy and uncultivated (Rapper Ajs Nigrutin made a song about it, here the text). The problem is probably that their cheap merchandise levels down prices for serbian goods.....

Graffitis


A lot of artsy graffity are displayed at walls and gates (for more see here)

Novi Beograd - Blokovi and Art

The "blokovi" acted also as inspiration for some artistic offsprings.

In the 70's it was kind of popular for artist to live in the blocks (like Blok 45 and Blok 70) Now blok 45 stands e.g. for the artsy group around "anarxija 45" and some scenens of the movie "1 na 1" were shot in that blok.

From the 90's till now also the belgradian Hip-Hop scene gets its inspiration from the "blokovi" where it's kind of standard to choose the blocks as a location for videos.(see for exemple "Struka feat. Demian - 1001 plan")

Another rap artist got his name from the blocks and made is record label (carski rez) there: Blokovski. His entire image is built around New Belgrade's Blocks!

Tara National Park in Western Serbia

Milutinović Ratka, Fotografska radnja "ERA" 31250 Bajina Bašta

Recently I saw the movie "Zavet" by Serbian director Emir Kusturica. He shot the movie in Uzice and in the area of Tara National Park (in Western Serbia).

If you plan to visit this beautiful place you will be rewarded with a picturesque scenery (hills in dense forest and grass vegetation, spots with beautiful view, waterfalls, rivers and the wonderful Drina canyon with its impressive vertical cliffs)
and natural rarities - e.g. endemic species like the monumental Serbian spruce (Picea Omorika found by Serbian botanist Josif Pancic).

scene from the Kusturica movie

You can reach the National Park from little town of Bajina Basta, and on the way to tara is one of the most attractive cultural-historical values of this region: the Raca Monastery.


Interior of Kafana in Bajina Basta

To get in mood for this wonderful place, see Kusturica's movie and download the beautiful presentation of Tara National Park. More information on the english Tara Site here.

Tara National Park in Western Serbia

Milutinović Ratka, Fotografska radnja "ERA" 31250 Bajina Bašta

Recently I saw the movie "Zavet" by Serbian director Emir Kusturica. He shot the movie in Uzice and in the area of Tara National Park (in Western Serbia).

If you plan to visit this beautiful place you will be rewarded with a picturesque scenery (hills in dense forest and grass vegetation, spots with beautiful view, waterfalls, rivers and the wonderful Drina canyon with its impressive vertical cliffs)
and natural rarities - e.g. endemic species like the monumental Serbian spruce (Picea Omorika found by Serbian botanist Josif Pancic).

scene from the Kusturica movie

You can reach the National Park from little town of Bajina Basta, and on the way to tara is one of the most attractive cultural-historical values of this region: the Raca Monastery.

Interior of Kafana in Bajina Basta

To get in mood for this wonderful place, see Kusturica's movie and download the beautiful presentation of Tara National Park. More information on the english Tara Site here.

Hotel Petrus in Paracin

Another fascinating Hotel that was formerly state owned is Hotel Petrus in Paracin.
The hotel is closed down at the moment.


It’s already privately own but it seems that it’s on sale again. The reason might be that a allover renovation is needed to make of a n out-dated 2-stars Hotel a comfortable 3-star classy Hotel.
It’s probably worth the investment because its top quality location (the hotel is situated in the center of lovely Paracin in a peninsula following the course of the Crnica river) and Paracin is a good stopover for travellers from Western Europe to Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria.


The Hotel looks like a enormous ring-cake and the restaurant has barrel vault arch roof. Characteristic are the seventies style ornaments.