Looking west from Senjak

Look at all the chimneys in this photo, looking westward from a hill in the Senjak (SEN-yak) part of town. Though this photo looks down on Belgrade's hippodrome, several dilapidated factories and post-war high-rises, most of Senjak (behind me when I took this photo) is a wealthy neighborhood consisting of beautiful mansions. (Be patient...) The area got its name long ago when farmers used to keep their hay all around Belgrade, and fires were quite frequent. It was then made mandatory that hay had to be kept in one place, and so Senjak was chosen. (The Serbian word for hay is seno.) After WWII when the communists took over, Senjak shared the same fate as another nearby posh neighborhood, Dedinje. They declared almost all well-off residents as state enemies and forced them out of their mansions, and they and the military elite moved in.... Often drastic measures were used to remove the upper class, and many fled the country for their lives, while many unfortunate ones were taken into a nearby forest and shot. Their bodies lay for decades in unmarked graves until they were discovered by construction workers clearing trees for a new soccer field. Nowadays, many ambassadors' residences and several international schools are located in Senjak.

Monument to Victims of Belgrade Concentration Camp

In 1938, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia held an international fair on an area in New Belgrade now known as the Staro Sajmište, or "old fairgrounds," for larger ones have been built since further down the river. In 1941 Germany and its allies occupied and partitioned the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, taking over the entire region known as Srem (including the left bank of the Sava), and made it formally a part of the Independent State of Croatia where a puppet regime had been set up. The Gestapo took over the Sajmište, surrounding it with barbed wire to create a "collection center," i.e. prison. It eventually became a concentration camp where until May 1942 the Germans exterminated Jews, gypsies, and Serbs from Belgrade and other parts of the Kingdom, and liquidation of captured prisoners lasted as long as the camp existed. Around 48,000 people perished inside the camp. The monument seen in this photograph, honoring Sajmište victims, was unveiled on April 21st, 1995, a day before the 50-year anniversary of Hitler's defeat. You can see part of Old Belgrade across the river.

Anchors away!

This anchor (no idea where the ship has gone...) is located on Belgrade's largest river island, Ada Ciganlija (Ah-da Tsee-GAHN-lee-ya), an 8-acre recreational area in the Sava river, which boasts a recreation center, including a golf course, tennis and basketball courts, soccer field, playgrounds, and so on, in addition to its 4.2 km beach, which attracts thousands of sun-loving Belgraders in the summertime. The lake (located on the other side of the island from this photo) features a 140 water-jet geyser, too. There's also a nature reserve where you can stroll and find various kinds of wildlife and trees, some of which are protected species. The island is sometimes referred to by foreigners as "gypsy island," since "cigan" (TSEE-gahn) is the local word for "gypsy," but the word actually comes from an ancient Celtic word for "submerged land". In the distance in this photo you can see the part of Belgrade near which yesterday's photo was taken.

Houseboats on the Sava in New Belgrade

Yet another "around Belgrade" scene, this time on another part of the Sava River in New Belgrade. I love to walk my dog here. In this photo you see small houseboats, used mostly by fisherman, with one of Belgrade's river islands, Ada Medjica, in the background. You can check out this site for a fairly decent map of Belgrade that will show you where this photo was taken: http://solair.eunet.yu/~rabotic/map.htm I took it from the New Belgrade side, a bit down from the "S" in the river "Sava" that you can see! The word "Medjica" is an old word for "border", since this island was once located on the border between the Ottoman Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire...Belgrade has a turbulent history; more to come! "Ada" simply is another word for "island." Along the quay from where I took this photo, there are many floating restaurants and cafes (splavovi), for which Belgrade is also famous. Photo forthcoming!

From Zemun looking toward Belgrade

No fear--I will soon be posting photos from Belgrade itself, but want you to get a feel for what surrounds the city. This is another picture of Zemun. During WWI in 1914, Zemun changed hands between Serbia and the Austro-Hungarian empire, finally ending up in Serbia in 1918 and became part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, and then later Yugoslavia. So if you had visited Zemun from Belgrade prior to 1914, you'd have been abroad in just a short trip. This photo is taking from a hill above Zemun. Yesterday's photo would be a bit down the Danube to the left, and the city you can just see in the distance the actual city of Belgrade. We're getting closer! Belgrade offers excellent river tours, too. I love to go at sunset.

Sunset in Zemun

Here's another one of Belgrade's 17 municipalities, situated along the right bank of the Danube on marshy land, with its main settlements built further from the river. Zemun (ZAY-moon) itself was built right on the bank, 100 meters above sea level. It's wonderful to walk in just about any season along the river (sidewalks being upgraded into an even lovelier riverside walk). You can enjoy the view, have coffee, a drink, lunch or dinner at one of numerous cafes and restaurants (outdoor terraces are open as much as possible!) There are several great fish restaurants in particular.

New Belgrade Skyline

Here's a twilight view now from one of my windows looking toward part of New Belgrade. New Belgrade, or Novi Beograd, sprang up around 1952, and is the most populous of the city's 17 municipalities, with with over 200 skyscrapers and 600 apartment buildings, and is a city within a city. It's Belgrade's biggest residential area as well as a place of lively economic activity, and is divided into "blokovi," or blocks, which is usually how its inhabitants refer to where they live, e.g. "I live in Blok 24."

Under Branko's Bridge at Night

Although I won't be always taking classic shots of Belgrade like those you can find by Googling, I chose this image as an introduction to my blog. It's a hand-held shot (little blurry!) of the city's second largest important bridge, Branko's Bridge, that connects old Belgrade with New Belgrade, across the Sava River. It was built in 1957, and is officially called Brotherhood and Unity Bridge. However, it's commonly referred to as Branko's Bridge because the large street it connects into on the old city's side is named for Branko Radicevic, a Serbian romantic poet. This photo was taken from New Belgrade looking toward the old center of the city, with the tower of the main church in view.