Belgrade - definitely recommended for the next city trip!

The more time you have to prepare for a trip, the more intensively you read and imagine what it will be like. Since the preparations for the entire year of time off and especially the important temporary farewell from all my loved ones took some time, I didn't really think much about what Serbia would be like. What did I expect? That you somehow feel the Balkans. Socialism and war were not that long ago... However, the first few days teach me otherwise. I don't really feel like I'm outside the EU.

On the one hand, the city is characterized by quite stately buildings, you can tell that Belgrade was also the capital of the large multinational country of Yugoslavia at the time and there was a great need for administrative buildings and representations. On the other hand, there are still many places that show that there was a housing shortage or rather a lack of space and that socialist buildings were built upwards. Just like I know it from East Berlin, where it still exists, just a little less beautiful.

However, there are also modern buildings and beautiful corners in between, where you can consume international coffee specialties or dishes in a very stylish and cozy way.

In the city, you can get by with English for self-sufficiency. Many people are helpful and if the right word is missing, they will help you further with gestures. However, for intellectual enrichment, there is often a lack of English text panels in churches, museums, etc., which would make it easier for visitors to understand the country and its people. It becomes difficult when there is only Cyrillic script. Then you just shrug and leave after a brief glance around the room. Too bad.

However, for planning activities, you can find free WiFi on every corner, in old trams, in every fast food restaurant, and in accommodations.

Like in all big cities, there is also a free walking tour in Belgrade, where the city tour is based solely on a tip basis. I always enjoy this because you don't have to register in advance. You are simply there when it fits into your daily plan. Besides, there are always good tips for the following days. The guides always make a great effort because they are paid by tips at the end of the 2-3 hour tour. With the group, we reach the picturesque Bohemian Quarter with its cozy restaurants, learn a lot about the former rule of the Ottomans in the Balkans, and about the main attraction, the fortress, which gives the city the name 'White City' due to the light stone used in its construction.

In retrospect, I would have liked to ask why Belgrade is so crazy about dogs. In every park, there are special dog parks, similar to playgrounds for children. In addition, I have never seen so many dog groomers, veterinarians, or even animal pharmacies before. At the same time, I didn't encounter more dogs than in other cities.

The most famous son of the city is Nikola Tesla. In the associated museum, it was vividly and impressively explained with electrical experiments what visionary ideas he had already had 150 years ago. Even though his credibility waned a bit because of more outrageous ideas in the end, it is a brilliant example that for every revolutionary idea, the right time must come and society must be mature enough for it. He was, for example, intensely concerned with wireless energy and data transmission, which is more relevant today than ever before. Of his approximately 350 sketched ideas, only a few were implemented, so today, you actively search his records for solutions to today's problems.

The nightlife, of which I only saw a little, mainly takes place on the water. On both sides of the Sava River, there are beautiful opportunities to enjoy food and drinks or to party extensively. In our eyes, favorable prices (beer 0.5 l for about 2 EUR) fuel the exuberant party atmosphere, which only really takes off when Ines is already on her way home at 12 o'clock.

I spend the hot Sunday like all other residents of the city at the city beach. Here, my ideas of Lake Balaton finally get a real picture. People lie close together on the pebble beach or directly on the asphalt of the promenade. There are incredibly many people, even though there is plenty of space on both sides of the Sava Lake (actually, it is an island in the river, but it is more like a lake due to the boundaries).

That's enough for a first impression of the city. Next, I'm going west by car with my camping equipment. There should be wonderful nature there....