Travel tips for Serbia 2013

When I decided to travel to Serbia for the first time (that's quiet a long time ago...) you could not find ANY advise for travelling there, but just recomendations to NOT go to that area of the world. The war was over, the NATO agression fresh in the back an internet was not yet sharing many links regarding that area.

Today it's easier, tourism is wide spread also in Serbia and even less informed people know that the entire Balkan region is not only of a stunning beauty but also a safe place to explore and makes it also a good and cheap place for simply spending a vacation.Of course you can just jump into a plane and land in the middle of Belgrade and have a perfect stay without even knowing where you are. 

The advise I'm giving here, is for a traveller like me, the one that enjoys the preparations and getting inspired for the journey as much as the travelling itself!

If you wish to have the best of the Serbian experience, here my advise:

Preparations for visiting Serbia


1. read something about serbian history

Serbia is a country with an important history and everything you see is loaded with history! So I suggest to read at least this historic summary, that will put the things you see in the right historic contest.

2. learn the serbian cyrillic alphabet

Learn to read cyrillic characters or at least print this cyrillic alphabet out and carry it with you. Most of the signs are written in cyrillic, however in Belgrade and where big communities of hungarians (in northern Vojvodina province) or albanians (in Kosovo and Metohija province) live, you'll find a lot written also in the latinic alphabet.


3. learn about serbian cuisine

The Serbian eating style is something that delights tourists the most: it's absolutely fantastic! In this overview about serbian food you find an explanation to all the dishes served in restaurants, a good guide to drinks and eating habits. (For vegetarians, well what to say? if you decide to eat meat once in your lifetime, do it in Serbia...)

Since the food is so good you might come back from Serbia and have the wish to cook the nice things yourself. So here my 4 favorite links to serbian recipes:
astal - Vera's recipes from the Vojvodina region
palachinka - serbian food in stunning nice pictures
mezze - my favorite cooking magazine from Serbia (my favorites are the ethno recipes in each issue)

moje grne - The vaste recipe collection from Dragana from Bor

Љубав на први залогај - the recipes from Dragana from Belgrade

kad ja kuvam - Irena from Montenegro has good recipes with great pictures

Formal matters for Serbia

Here some general information to get the administrative things right when entering and leaving Serbia. It's not complicated, but it's nice to have it here all in one place:

French embassy in Belgrade (vis-a-vis Kalemegdan)

1. Here a list of all foreign embassies in Serbia (listed by countries)


2. Here is an overview for Visa regimen with the list of countries
Foreigners should register their arrival in Serbia (if you're staying at a Hotel, they will do that automatically for you) with the competent authorities (according to the place of residence of the foreigner - the police department). It's not a big deal and it doesn't cost much (a couple of cents for the papers).



3. It's never a bad idea to check border customs (here an overview) As a tourist you shouldn't have any troubles with customs officers. Be just sure to get an "Entrance to Serbia stamp" in your passport, that will avoid troubles when travelling out of the country again.


That's what I usually bring out of Serbia! 


General advise for Serbia

1. It's forbidden to take pictures of any military facilities.

2. Don't panic if you read some bad facts about Serbia.It's still some anti-serbian propaganda going on, and whatever unpleasant happens in Serbia is displayed as a big thing in western european medias (there are however some sites, like at de-construct and Serbia's Ambassador to the world oposing against that). Remember that statistically it's more likely you happen to get harassed in a western european city that somewhere in Serbia. Be respectful and you get respected!


3. Stay out of politic debates and go easy on spreading your opinion about themes like Balkan Wars, religion, Kosovo and gay-parades.
In the entire balkan region people are still very sensitive about war themes and if you're not part of them you can not 100% understand it. So keep the good advise for your diary and not for the table at the local Kafana. If you are interested in following politics in Serbia (and it's really entertaining) here an overview of the political parties, their leaders and their ideas.After these more general links, the next few posts will be about 4 itineraries to discover Serbia.After these more general links, the next few posts will be about 4 itineraries to discover Serbia.

With these basics you just need to get your itinerary and depart!

Ideas for itineraries in Serbia:

Travel tips for Belgrade
Travel tips for Kosovo and the Raska region
Travel tips for Tara National Park and Kopaonik
Travel tips for Ethno Villages in Serbia
Travel tips for Fruska Gora Monasteris

Stara Planina (the old mountains -heart of the balkan)
Vranje (the city of Bora Stankovic)
Sremski Karlovci (beautiful town at the border of Fruska Gora National Park)
Zasavica Nature Park (Nature, Ethno, Food, Culture)

Architecture of Bus Stations in Serbia

Central Bus Station in Niš (picture from wikimapia)

I got inspired for this post by Yomadic's blog entry: http://www.yomadic.com/bus-from-belgrade-to-nis-serbia/ and his beautiful picture of the Niš Bus station.

Since in the Balkans, particularly in Serbia, Railway travelling was never so popular like traveling by bus, some Bus Stations got a lot of architectural attention when they were built.

I found pictures from some interesting Bus Stations and hope to expand this collection soon!


Niš Bus Station

Entrance of the Bus Station (picture wikimapia)

One of them is the Bus Station in Nis (Ниш) built in 1977 and one of the most modern Bus Station of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia with 18 platforms. Nis-Ekspress AD was the main investor.

Ćuprija Bus Station

Bus Station in Čuprija

A lot of inhabitants of Ćuprija work as "Gastarbeiter" in Western Europe, so really lots of Bus Lines serve this little town. That explains the big Bus Station at the entrance of the town.
A close up shows the lamellar structure of the roof supported by precast columns arranged in a semi-circle.

Novi Pazar

A postcard from the 70's of Novi Pazar's Bus Station

Another interesting Bus Station  is the one in Novi Pazar built in the 1970's. The first time I visted Novi Pazar I was fascinated by it's frivolous architecture (read it in my post about Novi Pazar).

A newer picture on autobusi.net

The Bus Station fits in that style, and though it shows signs of age and people complain about its flaws it still looks charming.

Loving this combination: the bus station and his "soliter" a stand alone highrise building (from autobusi.net)

Zrenjanin

Zrenjanin Bus Station (from autobusi.net)

In Zrenjanin the Bus Station has a relief-like Fassade like in Niš. It/s not a big station, but with this detail it looks almost like an airport.

Communist Style Hotels 2

Hotel in Kolasin (Montenegro)

Last summer I posted about communist style Hotels in the Balkans with good example of state own Hotels built in the communist past. 

To the list of Hotels I'd like to visit I will add also these 6 eye-catcher:

Bianca Resort & Spa in Kolasin (Montenegro)

Bianca Resort in Kolasin: Jumbo Alpin Architecture

The Hotel also featured in this old postcard get my thumbs up for its appereance! (The main picture is from here) 

Hotel Merkur in Vrnjacka Banja

Vrnjacka Banja a Spa town in Central Serbia has a couple of cool buildings to offer. This is just one of it.

The garden side of the Hotel (Picture here)

The street side of the Hotel

Hotel Zubor in Kursumljska Banja

This building from 1982 is actually empty, as the country can not keep up with maintenance costs. 

Hotel "Žubor" in Kursumlijska Banja (picture from here)

Hotel Internacional Zenica (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Hotel International Zenica (picture from here)

A masterpeace of a Hotel...and it still looks good today!

The Hotel today (picture from here)

Hotel in Vranjska Banja in Vranje

Unfortunately this one never got finished, started in 1973 it was about when the economical crises stroke the south of Serbia.

Just 50% completed (picture from here)

And at the end a little interior detail of a bathroom in Hotel Slavija in Belgrade

tile paradise (picture from here)

Links to other posts about interesting Hotel Architecture in the Balkans:

Hotel Donat in Rogaska Slatina (Slovenia)

Hotel Sirmium in Sremska Mitrovica

Hotel Petrus in Paracin

Hotel Palas in Mojkovac (Montenegro)

Hotel Srbija in Vrsac

Interesting Architecture in Rogaska Slatina (Slovenia)

Hotel in Rogaska Slatina (street side)

Rogaska Slatina is a well known Spa in eastern Slovenia. Usually touristic pictures from Rogaska Slatina show some belle epoque clinics and wellness centers and would not really grab my attention. But when I ran into this old postcard from the 70's of Hotel Donat I became curious....

An new picture from Hotel Donat (garden side) from here

The Hotel still loos like a huge concrete boat and the brutalist facade was preserved. Just added housing technology and sunshades were added on the roof. Also the interiors have been renovated and is now a wellness Hotel (Grand Hotel Donat)

Cultural Center of Rogaska Slatina from here

Also the Cultural center of this Spa town got my attention: a cluster of octagonal buildings with mint green facades!  Rather daring but interesting!

A floor plan of the complex

In the Spa complex the medical center with the drinking hall (Rogaska Slatina is wellknown for its magnesium rich spa water) are another interesting buildings.
The overhauled condition of the structure needs a renovation but the starting situation is good: a neat modernist ensemble.
Maribor based architects from Styria Arhitektura d.o.o. made an inspiring suggestion in 2011 for a make over. A pergola and outdoor pools will be also added. I like that the existing vibe of the architecture will not be lost, it will be just slightly adapted.
What follows are the before/after pictures of the Styria architects (from the architects website):

Medical Center Rogaska Slatina today

Medical Center Rogaska Slatina proposition

See also a good renovation of a mid-century hotel in my post of Hotel Avala in Budva (Montenegro)

Stara Planina Mountains

 

Stara Planina

The Stara Planina (that means old mountains) is a part of the Balkan mountain range and lays in Eastern Serbia on the border with Bulgaria. The Balkan range runs 560 km from Vrška Čuka Peak on the border between Bulgaria and eastern Serbia eastward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea.

The Stara Planina is remarkable for its flora and fauna, and also with steep cliffs, the highest waterfalls in the Balkan peninsula and lush vegetation. 

Geologically, the Balkan Mountains is a 'young' part of the Alp-Himalayan chain which stretches across most of Europe and Asia. 

It can be divided into two parts: the main Balkan Chain and the Pre-Balkans to the north, which intrude slightly into the Danubian Plain. 

On top of the Serbian part is this rock called "Babin Zub" (Grandmother's Teeth).

The surrounding are part of a ski recreational area in winter and full of nice hiking trails in summer.

I just took a few pictures while cruising around. I arrived by night at Babin Zub's Hotel after a drive through dark roads and the navigation telling that theres nothing further along. I really had no idea were I landed. 

The next day I was surprised with a nice scenery while driving to see the newly errected just opened Hotel Stara Planina.

Also the new Hotel was a pleasant surprise, instead of an overstated giant facility with no relation to the surrounding, the building looks solidly adapted to the rough mountain setting from the outside and the interior is appropriately stylish.

After visiting the area in summer, I now would like to visit the area in winter. 

Eastern Serbian mountains are as beautiful as the Western Serbian mountain (I wrote about those mountains here in my posts about the unique National Park Tara "Best travel tips for Serbia - TARA/KOPAONIK" and "Tara National Park in Western Serbia", the Ethno Village Sirogonjo "Etno Selo - Sirogonjo", the posts about the Zlatibor region: "More Ethno in Zlatibor", "Mokra Gora" and Ethno Village Mecavnik "Kusturica made it!".