We had no problem getting to Belgrade until we got to our building. Even though our host had given specific instructions, they weren’t good enough. We knew we were close but did not see anywhere to stop the car, nor did we see any signage for the building. We drove around the big block on a busy street past nearly identical looking new buildings. Jim finally pulled over while I went on foot trying to find something that matched the host’s description. Finally I found the reception area, showed our passports and were given the fob for the garage and key for the door (#407). The garage and its spots were a little bigger than we usually see here. It was less than half full but many of the cars were high end, including 2 Bentleys, Range Rovers, Audis, Mercedes, an old Cadillac, and a car with Texas plates. More on this later. It took us a while to find the elevator but we finally made it to our one bedroom apartment. The space (high ceilings) was fine but quite ordinary and in contrast to the shiny new look of the outside of the building, our unit was clean but finished with cheap furniture and poor workmanship. But it was comfortable and in theory had a nice view, or will someday. A huge several story upscale shopping mall is across the street just slightly south of us. Currently there are several large high rise buildings directly across the street under construction. Work continues 24/7 and it was very dusty even inside the apartment. Luckily they did a different kind of work at night so it was not unbearably noisy. There was a balcony but it held no appeal while we were there because of the construction noise and dust.
What was a 35 minute walk to the old part of Belgrade took about 45 because Google did not alert us to closed roads and detours (due to even more construction projects). But we didn’t mind the walk. Belgrade is a fascinating city with no shortage of sights to take in. It reminds me of New York City in its vitality and variety, but with a Euro-Balkan flavor. In this busy city people are less intense than in NYC, and seem more connected with each other.
We met Nikolina (44), my cousin, Lud’s cousin’s daughter, at a restaurant we had eaten at before with her, called Proleće (it means Spring). We had a nice long interesting chat with her, as always. She is a highly intelligent, creative woman who runs her own business, although currently she is in the midst of changing her focus because one of her main clients dumped her for AI. She recently started posting informational videos on social media. Her first one got over a million views. It was about the new EU laws created supposedly to reduce packaging waste but poorly conceived. It used to be that small businesses paid an EU fee for doing business involving shipping to other countries. Now they must file online with every country individually and pay a fee to every country. For small businesses with low numbers is now prohibitively expensive and many business owners have already closed their businesses.
We talked about her work, politics, history, and her visit with Lud in Dayton last fall which she cherishes. While there he took her and her dad to the museum of flight. One of the planes was the one the Serbs shot down in their last war. She said the shooter and pilot became friends. She was eager to get a selfie in front of the plane. She loves America but also loves Serbia and is proud of this show of strength and skill.
She talked a lot about the corruption of the government and about how bad Vučić is (and Trump). She, like Damjan and others, talked about the elections being rigged. She is actively collecting signatures to get the still unselected Student movement candidate on the ballot. During dinner she got a call from a woman asking her to meet to pick up a petition to collect more signatures. She was suspicious. She knows Vučić has people creating fake lists that are not truly part of the student organization. Later she researched the number and found indeed it was fake.
When talking about politics Nikolina acknowledged that some of her ideas could be considered conspiracy theories. But that doesn’t stop her from believing them, or at least believing they are possible.
She spoke again about the difficulties of being a refugee (forced from their home in Croatia and settling in Serbia) as a young girl. She was surprised by how cruel her fellow Serbs here were to Serb immigrants from Croatia. She told a story about a reporter standing in front of Serbs escaping Croatia on foot and saying some untrue and condescending thing about the Serbs. A Serb woman slapped her on the face on camera. Years later Nikolina heard the woman who slapped the reporter speak and went up to her afterward and thanked the woman. She said she would have done the same thing if she had a chance, even though she does not condone violence as the best way forward. She also spoke about Srebrenica in similar ways we have heard other Serbs talk about it. Yes, both sides committed atrocities, but in that particular case she does not believe it was genocide by the Serbs. Yes, many people were killed, but it was a war and people kill each other. There is much more to the story that is never in the western media.
We also talked about Orthodoxy and the Church and spirituality. Her parents grew up in the Communist era and are not religious. Nikolina’s grandma secretly taught her about Orthodoxy when she was a kid which she is now grateful for. She does not believe all the dogma but does believe in Something all pervading and bigger than us, and she uses religion to inspire her to be a better person. When I told her the nun at the monastery near Krupanj said I should get baptized she said, “why not? It’s a good idea.”
She reiterated what she has said on past visits about probably moving to Slovenia some day to be close to her brother and his family. She does not expect Serbia’s future to be good. But she is devoted to her parents and will continue living here for now, close to them.
When we paid for dinner and were scrounging for small bills to leave a good tip she scolded us and said not to give so much. It is not expected here to pay a certain percentage of the bill.
We parted, all expressing our hope that we will meet again, whether back in Belgrade or in the U.S.
Rain had been predicted so we had brought our raincoats. It drizzled very lightly for a few minutes on our way home but that was it, sadly. All of Serbia desperately needs more rain.
We walked home in dark. We just happened to pass a Starbucks so went in and bought two mugs for my niece who collects them and had written in advance asking if we might get her one.
Belgrade is busy! Traffic is crazy, of course. In the old part of the city narrow hilly streets wind between old stone buildings. Roads meet at odd angles. Street signs are hard to find. Most people get around on foot. Sidewalks are usually falling apart and or blocked by cars parked on them so often people must walk in the street. Some of the larger intersections have traffic lights but many don’t. People of all ages walk in the city even late at night. Crime is minimal. The biggest threat are pickpockets but no more so than in any city.
Belgrade has sprouted new McDonalds in recent years, including at gas stations on the toll roads. And it is the only city to have a couple Starbucks shops. There are some regional chain stores, especially grocery stores, bakeries and gas stations. But by far most businesses and shops are small independent entities, much like how it used to be in the U.S.
I love the architecture in Belgrade, or at least in the older parts. There are many once grand buildings with interesting stone work and bas relief sculptures and ornamentation. It’s not just the buildings themselves that grab my attention but also the signage (mostly in Cyrillic, but also in the Roman alphabet, occasionally in English, and sometimes an odd mash up). In addition I love seeing window displays and the unexpected assortments of things sold in the shops. And I like how various types of businesses, and various conditions of buildings are intermingled. One part of a building might look run down and sketchy while next door is a renovated shop with higher end items. Barbers, dentists, doctors, lawyers, etc also have offices sprinkled in among the shops. Small cafes and restaurants are tucked in alleys in addition to fronting on the streets. And one is never far from a bakery or market, often with produce displayed on the sidewalk. And there are the ubiquitous kiosks in every town and city in the Balkans. They sell SIM cards, cigarettes, gum, candy, magazines, small toys, pop, ice cream bars and an assortment of items that require little space. Jim and I wonder if they are franchised or independent, and if they are lucrative.
What I like about this city, and any older city that hasn’t been shined up and gentrified is its functionality. People can walk to do almost any errand on their list. People know their neighbors. People express friendly affection openly, including men with each other. If I had to live in a crowded dense busy noisy city, Belgrade would be a good choice. But I am grateful I don’t need to. All the sensory stimulation wears me down after a couple days.
Back in the new Waterfront area all charm has been eliminated. The buildings would fit in any modern city. There is no hint of being in Serbia aside from the flags. Few of the shops and restaurants use Cyrillic for their signs. It is clean and pleasant but not very interesting. The one nice feature of this part of the city is the new very long pedestraian walk way along the Sava river. But even this was marred by soulless commercialism. The streetlights had projectors that shined images on the walk way of idealized pictures of future life in this part of the city. Most of the restaurants, cafes and apartments that face the river are not affordable for typical Belgraders. Every local person we talked with said it is common knowledge that this Waterfront district is a money laundering project, in no way helping the city or citizens. There are so many pressing needs for infrastructure improvements in the city that continue to be ignored.
Back in our apartment we watched from the window workers across the road carrying on with construction. The tall weird shaped Marriott owned high end hotel had lights covering one side of the building that displayed various changing images. Luckily we had dark curtains we could close to shut out the bright outside lights.
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