No smoking, PLEASE!!!

Yugoslavia (all of it) used to be ranked third in number of smokers in Europe. I'm not sure where Serbia stands, but there are still lots of people puffing away....but not in this photo. The 'smoke' is actually mist that is sprayed to cool off diners on this restaurant on the Danube. I took this photo while on a river cruise. I must say I did a double-take before I zoomed in on this scene. I thought it really was smoke...

Stinging Nettle Soup

I can't even count how many times I used to walk through a field in France and get stung by nettles. I finally learned how to recognize them. None of my French friends made nettle soup, but it's quite popular here in Serbia. Above is nettle soup, served with thick yogurt and warm bread. I've ordered a side of grilled hot peppers, too....

A recipe for nettle soup can be found here.

SUNDAY BRIDGES--the one not used

This may not be a bridge in the true sense, but it did help something get across an area to another space. I believe it is a 'bridge' that swiveled, allowing containers from ships to be loaded and unloaded. This building down by Belgrade's river port on the Danube has been abandoned for years, but I was able to photograph this side of it during a recent river cruise.

Check out more bridges, real ones and perhaps others, on Louis La Vache's Sunday Bridges.

REFLECTIONS WEEKEND-the sky off the pier

With my 'kids' and their spouses, I took a little trip north of Belgrade (2 1/2 hours' drive) to Palic," a popular resort about 18 kilometers from the Hungarian border.

I liked the reflections on the water off this pier.

See other reflections at James' Reflections Weekend.

SKYWATCH--the big orange moon

This big orange moon hung over Belgrade a little over a week ago...

Check out other skies on SKYWATCH.

Entomologist needed

I have no idea what this bug was (it is now deceased, though it appears to have just passed on while on my curtain; I had nothing to do with its demise) and so I am appealing to all you (?) entomologist bloggers out there.

In any case, I liked the patterns on its wings, which resemble those on the curtain.

ABC Wednesday--"C" is for 'controller'

They say there's no such thing as a free lunch, but for many people in Belgrade, there has been a free ride. For a long time, many commuters risked their luck (read: cheated) by not punching or even buying a bus ticket. There were plain-clothes 'controllers' who occasionally confronted passengers and fined them, or at least attempted to, but this was often unsatisfactory and unsafe for the controllers.... Now new controllers are on the prowl, clearly identified with their fluorescent green vests and traveling in pairs if not packs.

It looks as if the gentleman on the left was thinking, 'Thank goodness I had my ticket', but he's really just wiping his face from the heat that plagued Belgrade when I took this photo.

See other C's on ABC WEDNESDAY.

A ride in the country

Nothing like a ride with your sweetie in a convertible on a hot summer day, just the two of you...and your cell phones.

(Don't worry...the driver was stopped at a red light...)

126

This old mailbox on a garden gate in a town not far from Belgrade caught my eye. The number 42 seems to have been painted/etched on three times, hence the title for this post.

Theme Day - Bright Colors--Painting the poles

This fellow is painting white poles with red stripes on Venecija (Venice), a restaurant in Zemun. I think he'd have done well to use some masking tape...

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Normally I'd be posting a bridge today for Louis La Vache's Sunday Bridges, but it is Theme Day. Check out Louis' blog anyway!

Reflections Weekend--three glasses

Taken during a lull in the conversation....

Check out more reflections on Reflections Weekend.