SKYWATCH--NIGHT CLOUDS

 Loved the unusual contrast of these white, fluffy clouds against the dark sky.

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RESTRICTED ENTRY

 And there I stood. No ice cream, no hamburger, no cigarette...just me and my dog....and my camera, so I couldn't go in, so I did the next best thing: Click!

RIPPED

 I know it's  been the fashion for some time now, but I still don't 'get it'.  This girl's jeans are a moderate version of the 'more holes than jeans' I see more often.

NAPTIME

 Been awfully warm...if this fellow is like me, sudden increases in temperature make me sleepy...

AN URBAN STILL LIFE

 Quite often I come across urban still-lifes.  This one I liked for the composition and the reds and grays. Taken down by construction of Belgrade's new neighborhood Belgrade on the Water.

THE DAY AFTER...AND THE DAYS ONWARD

Last evening, March 24th in 1999 at around 7:41 p.m. the NATO bombing of Serbia began. I was here the whole time, not alone. My friend Marianne Neufeld-Djordjevic today photographed siren that emitted the twin sisters Šizela and Smirela that announced the beginning and ending of the curfew. Their names come from two verbs meaning 'to go crazy, panic and to calm down.

Want to listen to what we heard every day for 78 days?

Click here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n58kUN-TJJY

SPRING

 Like the new green grass around him, this fellow looks like he's growing new hair.  I remember how happy I was to see my own new growth after my chemo in 2005. Not sure that's the reason for his short hair.

SAD NIKOLA TESLA

 Nikola Tesla's statue at Belgrade's  NIKOLA TESLA AIRPORT appears a bit sad here. It may be because my daughter, who was here for a short visit left this morning.

His doleful appearance might also be due to the fact that the airport renovation seems to be taking an awfully long time, but again, it's a big job.

COVERED WELL?

 Not well-covered, but covered well. Or maybe this old, old well is well-covered. In fact, I asked around if people really knew what this is but most did not, and guessed a well. I see now that there is a plaque on the stone wall, so next time I walk by, I'll check it out.

UPDATE I found out that this is a sebil.  Wikipedia says: "A sebil or sabil is a small kiosk in the Islamic architectural tradition where water is freely dispensed to members of the public by an attendant behind a grilled window."

FIRST DAY OF SPRING....

 The first day of spring was yesterday and that's when I snapped this photo of many crows' nests, very visible since there are no leaves on the trees yet. 

When I googled crows' nests, I was surprised to learn this:  Crows return to the same nest territory year after year, often a few weeks before they start building. If a small group of crows remains in a particular area day after day, this may signal that nest building is about to begin. Many larger twigs that form the base of the nest are broken directly off trees."

MONDAY MURALS--MILUTIN MILANKOVIC

 This mural shows Milutin Milankovic, a Serbian astronomer, climatologist, geophysicist, civil engineer,  and popularizer of science. Quite a guy.

If you want to read all about him, just CLICK HERE.

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PARK STRAYS

 These two strays have hung out in Belgrade's Kalemegdan Park for a long time. I love the pose of the white one. They have collars showing they have been spayed/neutered. They also are well fed, since locals look after them.

SKYWATCH--not quite spring yet

 Today as I type at 7:45 a.m.it is -1 degree centigrade. Today it will reach 11 and in the upcoming days will go even higher, to 21 on Thursday. Wacky weather. You can see that the leaves have not started to show this season's green quite yet. 

Oh, and yes, HAPPY SAINT PATRICK'S DAY.

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MOTHER AND DAUGHTER?

 I see these two women nearly every morning in the park. The younger one helps the older one walk. I am only assuming they're mother and daughter, but of course the helper could be just that: a caretaker.

TAKING A BREAK

 This man is taking a break to read his phone and for a cigarette....smoking is alive and well in Belgrade.

ACCESSORIZE!

 Not sure whether this fellow accessorized himself at the shop behind him, but he caught my eye today.

GAVRILO PRINCIP

 Wikipedia says this about Gavrilo Princip, the persona behind this mural on a street of the same name:

"On June 28, 1914, one event changed the world. A Bosnian-Serb youth Gavrilo Princip, aged only 19, shot and killed the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir apparent to the Austrian throne, and his wife Sophie as their motorcade passed by on the streets of Sarajevo."---the shot heard about the world.

See other murals on MONDAY MURALS.

ONWARD AND UPWARD

 There are several underground passages below major streets. It's best to take them instead of trying to dodge traffic. They are however, poorly maintained, but not dangerous. I have always been intrigued by the disabled person mobile chair on the left. Just about every passage has one, but I would never, ever try it out.

HANDSOME

 A handsome Serbian Orthodox priest passed in front of my lens the other day.

HAPPY HOLI

 Happy Holi to all!  It shouldn't be hard to find me in this photo taken in 2019 with my wonderful Indian 'family'.  I was planning another trip early the following year, but COVID stepped in. I hope to go back for next year's Holi.

If you're not sure what the celebration is about, click here AND READ ABOUT HOLI.

STALKED? NO, NOT REALLY....

It would appear as if former statesman NIKOLA PASIC is being stalked by two ladies from the Middle East, but no. Only two folded cafe umbrellas.

MONDAY MURALS--no longer with us.

 Belgrade has quite a few of what I call "Murals of the Deceased".  Most of the time these people are of dubious nature, and who died young. I do not know who "Deni," the person picture here, is.

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WEEKEND IN BLACK AND WHITE--ENVY?

 Envy was my first thought on seeing the older woman's expression, but perhaps she is just thinking that the girl looks nice and is recalling her own youth.

See other black and white photos on WEEKEND IN BLACK AND WHITE.

BIRDS OF A FEATHER....

 ...flock together. A host of sparrows, Belgrade's official bird, gathers in a downtown park. And yes, a 'bunch' of sparrows is called a host. I didn't know that either, but you can impress your friends with this IMPRESSVE LIST OF TERMS OF VENERY. Click, read, and learn!

I LIKE LICHENS.

 I really do like lichens (pronounced LIKE-nz).  I came across this arrangement by Mother Nature yesterday in the park.

I had to look up lichens to learn more, and here is what I found:  Lichens are a complex life form that is a symbiotic partnership of two separate organisms, a fungus and an alga. The dominant partner is the fungus, which gives the lichen the majority of its characteristics, from its thallus shape to its fruiting bodies."

They come  in many colors, too!

THEME DAY--MARCH--COMFORT FOOD--Which one(s)?

 When your birthdays are at the far end of the double-digits, you probably have tried many foods that could classify as your comfort food. This is even more true, perhaps regardless of your age, if you have lived for any extent of time in another country.

Such is my case. Here in Serbia my comfort food has become grapevine leaves with meat and rice (sarma).  When I spent time in India, I sought out hot, crusty samosas and accompanying sauces whenever I could.  Those or momos. And of course when elsewhere and 'tired of' local food spaghetti Bolognese does the trick.

However, if all of the above were placed side by side with the macaroni and cheese in the photo, the mac and cheese would win hands-down.  Nowadays, I enhance it with hot sauce of some sort.

Waiting to see your comfort food/s.  

See more on THEME DAY.