Upon leaving Budapest (where with recent news briefing, I now understand the bands of refugee families I saw living in the subway stations next to our fairly luxurious Best Western hotel), I once again entered into the state of Solo Traveler: perhaps my favorite state of being. Next stop--Belgrade, Serbia. Now this had never been part of the plan but that is the beauty of traveling on your own: you can do what you want, when you want and don’t even have to have an explanation as to why. Curiosity will suffice. Now, I do take risks, but I make sure to be calculated about them (Asian-Jewish-New Yorker speaking). And so on recommendation by a fellow American solo traveler, I headed to the Balkans!
The political and social history of these nations and cultures is wrought with terror and distress into which I will not ensnare my blog post. I was going to see the Belgrade of today--which turned out to be quite pleasant.
Belgrade itself is an attraction to many of those who are seeking the party. I somehow ended up in a hostel located in the center of town, right above a strip club, accompanied by a Spanish Mariachi Band and for one night was the only woman sleeping in a full hostel of 20 other men. But I never felt uncomfortable. Everyone was welcoming, accepting and kind. The city is gritty--buildings are dirty, streets are full of cars and loud noises, but there are beautiful quiet pockets along the way if you choose to explore by foot.
As someone who thrives on learning about new cities by going for early morning runs, I found that at 7am, when I was starting my day, the parties would still be raging from the night before on docked yachts all along the river dividing Old Town from another area called Zemun. These boats are known for $2 drinks, dance club scenes with no cover. The party can be continued all night by migrating boat to boat to check out all of the various parties’ participants.
This seemed entertaining, but my personal interest is always farmers markets! And I found a beautiful one on Saturday morning with apples, peaches, figs and berries to my hearts’ desire. I indulged on fresh bread, which they had in varieties of buckwheat and corn, local honey and olive oil from Montenegro. Later in the afternoon I trekked over to an area of the city much quieter with only low, small buildings, cobble stone streets and stray cats. The area called Zemun is just past an island that is used as the city’s beach getaway. Young and old mingled in the low tides on this VERY hot summer evening, over bbq and beach volleyball and was a pleasant escape from the inner city.
After a few days of exploration, my general consensus is this: stay for a night or two if you are in the area! It is incredibly cheap. You can get a multi course meal at the finest restaurants for under $10 and whether you love to drink and party, or just sit in coffee shops and watch everyone else get after it, the energy and attitude of the city is delightful.
