Pump 'em up!

Buildings (see yesterday's post) aren't the only things that need a lift sometimes. The sign above this bra says, "with a pump," and sure enough, if you click on the photo, you'll see the little pump that comes with this piece of lingerie. It's an imported item, or so it seems, since the instructions are in English...

Traces of the past

Belgrade's face bears the traces of its history, just as wrinkles on our faces reveal much about our lives. Though proud of its past, it's apparent from building and renovation going on all over that the city wants to give itself a face lift, a little nip/tuck here and there. In this photo you can see three different styles. Modern may be functional and slick, but I still like the detail that used to be given to facades, and the flowers that were added here as a bit of "make-up."

Sister soul

While out walking the dog and scouting for photos yesterday, I came across this lady walking through a field in New Belgrade. Veronika explained that she photographs "everything," and is especially interested in graffiti, which unfortunately covers just about anything here that doesn't move. Yesterday though, she was photographing wildflowers and taking home the small bouquet that you see here. I told her about my blog and all of our blogs, so she may be checking you out. How nice for me---she let me take her photo without my having to resort to a "belly shot." Thank you, Veronika!

Still good for more kilometers

It's the shoes, I think, that are still good for some more kilometers, not the baby carriage that's seen better days. See anything you like? :<)

Two for one today!

I just had to post both these photos today. The first one is one of my "belly shots," taken waist level so the subject won't know I'm snapping away. This little lady is selling violets and a vegetable that I don't know the name of in English, so if anyone does, please tell me! (It's not spinach and it isn't chard.) The poster reads, "Kosovo is Serbia." I bought all her violets and all of the "zelje," (ZEL-yay) as it's known here, which is good steamed, and then you add crushed garlic and sour cream; yum. I persuaded her to let me take her portrait, but as soon as I pointed the camera at her, she put on her mug shot expression. The man selling shoelaces next to her managed to tease her so I could get a smile! (I took his photo a bit earlier on through another "belly shot"!)

"I do, I do, I do, I do, I do, I do......"

Who doesn't love to see a happy bride? Yesterday in Belgrade you could have seen 400 happy brides (and grooms) at the capital's 10th Collective Wedding Ceremony, a tradition started during the 1999 NATO bombing as a message to young people that love can triumph over hate. During the last 10 years, couples from Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Canada, the USA, Sweden, Denmark, and China have exchanged their vows together. If you're planning a wedding, you have time to sign up for next year! (Notice the gypsy trumpeters in the background. No wedding should be without a gypsy brass band; they're great.)

Some "doo" and some "doo" not.

Belgrade has a number of really beautiful parks, large and small. Retired people on benches soak up the sun, lovers kiss in the shade of a tree, mothers keep a watchful eye on their children playing nearby. You can walk or sit on the grass too, if you dare. Up until fairly recently, there was no scoop law, and even now, strolling over the grass requires as much concentration as making your way through a mine field. You're more liable to soil your shoes in a small park; less grass for dogs to go on... The girl on the left is "doo-ing" her duty by picking up after her dog. Some "doo" not, as seen on the right.

Sign? I didn't see any sign!

This is the side entrance to the market where I took the "Treasures..." photo posted April 29th. Aside from the obvious "No dogs allowed," this sign reads "No selling of old things," which is exactly what the men on the other side of the fence are doing, laying their wares out on newspaper or just on the stones. In this way they avoid paying a fee for a real stand, like the one where my treasures were offered for sale, but they risk a fine if the inspectors come along.

Once upon a time there were two friends...

Earlier on in my posts I'd mentioned Vuk Karadžić (Vook KA-ra-jeech) 1787-1864, a language scholar and the father of Serbian folk literature who reformed the Cyrillic alphabet for Serbian use, and created one of the simplest and most logical spelling systems. Vuk also wrote down many folk tales and proverbs that up until then had only been passed on orally. His German friend, Jacob Grimm (1785–1863), liked these tales so much that he learned Serbian in order to read them as well as Serbian epic poetry in the original. He then translated them into German, and they were so popular in his homeland that they sold out as quickly as they were published. This street sign reads "Brothers Grimm street," named for him as well as his brother (who never learned Serbian, but who helped his brother preserve some great fairy tales...)

I WAS A BILLIONNAIRE ONCE! (And so was everyone else.)

Numbers is the theme today, and the astonishing denomination of this note - five hundred billion dinars - bears witness to the economic chaos that can follow political upheaval. After the collapse of Yugoslavia in 1991-92, the newly-independent republics began issuing their own notes. Inflation and spiraling prices forced the government to issue notes for unimaginable sums. People find this hard to believe, but at that time if one was lucky enough to have foreign currency to change, one did so JUST for the amount needed right then and there, since a few hours later the dinars' value had gone down. No kidding. If you visit Belgrade, you can buy one of these big bills for around 100 dinars (now about $2.00), or buy it online for around $22.95. None of the currency featured is in use anymore, except the coins. By the way, the man on the bill is Jovan Jovanovic Zmaj (YO-vahn Yo-VAHN-oh-veetch Zm-eye) 1833-1904, known as the father of Serbian children's literature.

Where's Waldo?

I hadn't started this blog when it was theme day for wall art/graffiti, but I like this photo, so I'll post it now rather than wait until the same theme comes around again. It reminds me of those "Where's Waldo?" books, which are sold in Serbia as "Gde je Gile?" (Guh-DAY yeh GEE-lay)