This morning we arrived in the capital of Serbia, Belgrade. The more I hear of the Balkans countries and the former Yugoslavia, the more confused I get. It seems the Serbs wanted to pick a fight with everyone! Google will be your friend if you want more information!
We are no longer on the Danube, we are on the Sava. Having said that, the confluence of the rivers is only a few hundred metres away, and we will rejoin the Danube when we leave here.
After breakfast we got onto a coach for a short 15 minute drive into the old part of Belgrade. Our first stop was at the Belgrade Fortress, a Roman fort dating from around 2AD. More details can be found here.
On the way to the fort we passed a memorial from the Serbs to the French for their help in WW1
Hiding behind the fence was an old Citroen van
Unlike Canada, flowers bloom here in May
Below are some general pictures taken around the fort
Next stop was Tito’s Burial Place. Having listened to a lot about his life, I still haven’t worked out whether he was a good guy, or a bad guy!!
Next stop was the Belgrade Cathedral or the Church of St Sava. Construction was started in 1935, but stopped in 1941 due to bombings in WW2. A temporary church was erected close by taking just a few years to build
Construction resumed in 1985 and was completed just a few years ago. More details if you want them here
In Serbian Orthodox churches there are no statues, only 2D representations are allowed. All the decorations in the church are mosaics.
There are no seats in the church, the congregation have to stand throughout the service!!!
Off to Croatia tomorrow