Reminders of past rulers are everywhere – from grandiose Habsburg boulevards to seasoned cafes that recall the bygone days of Communist Yugoslavia. Throughout its history, Belgrade has endured more than 115 wars and has been destroyed more than 40 times, including being a battleground in the atrocious Balkan wars of the 1990s. Its chaotic, convulsive past is still conspicuous, from Communism’s brutalist tenement blocks squeezed between art nouveau masterpieces, to the mangled wreckage of the Defence Ministry buildings. Nato bombed them 20 years ago and as Trafalgar’s local specialist in Belgrade, Pavle, told me, they’ve been deliberately left in ruins as a sober totem to Serbia’s staunch objection to being bossed around by the West.
Belgrade fully embraces both its rivers — the Danube and the Sava — watery playgrounds brimming with bars, restaurants, and fringed by cycle paths and parkland. Flush with several hundred floating bars, running the gamut from cut and cosy to multi-level swank.
Check out Monza Cafe - with a racing track on its roof! Pavle led us up to the city’s storied roost, Kalemegdan Fortress, overlooking the confluence of the rivers. Destroyed more than 40 times throughout the centuries, much of what stands today is the product of 18th-century Habsburg and Turkish reconstructions. The on-site museum gives you an idea of the long history of the fortress, from Celtic and Roman times to the Ottoman and Austrian empires. A collection of tanks leads you to the Military Museum, which includes a downed US fighter jet from the Balkan Wars.
From there, we headed to the heart of Belgrade under the Habsburg Empire, Stari Grad. The Old Town is a cobblestoned jumble of café-lined streets peppered with neo-classical and Art Nouveau buildings. The pedestrianised main artery, Knez Mihailova Street, constantly hums with life, whether it’s people chatting on café terraces, the performing buskers, or the salty aroma of popcorn wafting from food stalls. I was a little taken aback to notice every souvenir street stall proudly stocked with glory-worshipping t-shirts of Vladimir Putin. The sense of Slavic brotherhood is an unbreakable bond in Belgrade. Stately 19th-century neoclassical buildings frame the boulevard.
I popped into Hotel Moskva for a drink and a nosey. This Art Nouveau icon of Belgrade was opened in 1906 by the King of Serbia himself. While away the evening in Skadarlija street, Belgrade’s bohemian quarter. Cute little houses in cheerful colours and vibrant street art set the stage for atmospheric dining.
Restaurant prices are incredibly affordable and they serve up generous portions of meat-heavy local cuisine. I feasted on cevapi, skewers of minced meat; a pork ‘braid’ with sauerkraut, and ox-cheeks with mashed potatoes. Carnivore heaven! Rising up from Vracar Hill like the city’s crowning jewel, the Cathedral of Saint Sava is the largest church in the Balkans and the world’s second largest Orthodox church. One hundred years in the making and repeatedly delayed by outbreaks of war, its grand white marble and granite facade is topped with copper domes, modelled on Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia. For decades, this colossal Eastern Orthodox church vied with Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia for the dubious distinction of being famously incomplete. But the finishing touches are now done, and its vaulted ceilings glitter with gilt and beautifully painted frescoes. Even more remarkable is that the interior is bedecked in 15,000 square metres of gold mosaics, consisting of 50 million pieces, with the massive central dome mosaic depicting the Ascension of Christ. To give a sense of the monumental scale of the work, Christ’s eyes are three metres wide, from eyeball to eyeball. Over 300 artists were deployed to craft the mosaics, mainly Russian craftsmen and there have been some hefty donations from Russia. Gazprom tipped in NZ$15million for the mosaic work. It’s an extraordinary spectacle and a runaway highlight of our swing through Belgrade.
Trafalgar’s amazing Balkan Adventure is a 14 day tour, spanning seven countries and 13 cities. For 2024 tour dates, prices start from $5,895 per person, twin share. www.trafalgar.com/en-nz/tours/balkan-adventure
