Serbia's Ambassador to the World

Bringing the truth about Serbia to the world

An American Girl: Serbia Was Far From What I Expected

We’ve seen a bunch of stories lately about Americans enjoying Serbia. The latest example comes from an American girl studying in Greece, Samantha Carlson, who recently spent six days in Serbia, visiting Belgrade and Petrovac na Mlavi, a small town 130 kilometers far from Belgrade.

Serbia is not what she thought it was “Serbia was far from what I expected, but absolutely beautiful.” She liked Belgrade city “a lot of French architecture and beautiful parks” and discovered Serbian hospitality in Eastern Serbia “Petrovac Na Mlavi is where I spent the majority of my time in Serbia, which is a quaint small town of about 10,000 people. It was there that I was treated with such hospitality, far beyond words.” Yet another example showing how Serbia warmly welcomes Americans who know how to appreciate its hospitality.

A US Bank Manager Says Serbia offers Prime Business Opportunities

Kevin Hicks, a manager at RBC Bank (USA), was in Europe for a month visiting Brussels, Copenhagen, Thessoliniki, Leipzig, Berlin, and Belgrade to learn more about issues facing Northern, Southern and Eastern Europe. Hicks wrote up a great article about why there are business opportunities in Serbia. First he talks about Belgrade. He liked the place:

“Looking back on it all, Belgrade was my favorite city. It’s not pretty. Communists don’t have inspirational architectural design. And the country is primarily agricultural. With mules. But it was still the best, the most visceral and real.”

Then he goes on to talk about business opportunities pointing out that Serbia has significant comparative advantages:

“Serbia is trying to position itself as a manufacturing center verses China, and I think it can succeed. Here are the parts of the puzzle: cheap transportation via rail/water into Europe. Educated workforce that all speak English. Cheap labor (median Serb income is ~$400/mth). Transparent court system for B2B issues. And the US Government is putting a lot of time and money into this country. It could be said that for all the problems USAID has world wide, they are absolutely succeeding in Serbia. Yeah, I was surprised, too.”

At the end of the post, Hicks notes that investors should put Serbia on their short list “For those looking for Opportunities, put this one on your radar.” Sounds like good advice for foreign investors to me!

What Did An Australian Enjoy About Living In Belgrade?

Jim Newkirk, a project management consultant and facilitator, was born and schooled (in both the US and Canada) and Australia, where he immigrated in 1975. Newkirk arrived in Belgrade in 2002, with no intention of being here more than a few months, but he’s still here 7 years later, and he loves Belgrade.

I have to admit that I’ve now read Jim Newkirk’s post three times, and I find this post fascinating on a number of different levels. In the post, Newkirk describes his view on Belgrade. He basically points out that Belgrade isn’t Prague, Dubrovnik, or Florence: “Belgrade is Belgrade.” He goes on to talk about the energy of Belgrade, the people, and the places to enjoy life. His post is a great reflection of the love he has for Belgrade and Beogradjani (the people of Belgrade). He also points out that Belgrade is safe for foreigners, and that most people in Belgrade speak English:

“And it is very foreigner friendly, notwithstanding the recent, tragic events. I would describe the city as one of the safest I have ever visited or lived in. I have never, in any section of the town, felt in danger or threatened, and I have walked throughout popular and quiet neighbourhoods and gathering places. It is English language friendly as well, ranking with Sweden and the Netherlands in my own experience as places with high levels of English-as-a-second-language capacity. I still remember the day I was ordering a hamburger from an elderly woman in a small kiosk in Banovo Brdo. I was struggling with the finer details when she simply asked in English ‘would you like mustard and/ or mayonnaise?’ A typical experience.”

The whole thing is great, and is a must read. This seemed like yet another example (in an increasingly long line) of a foreigner who likes to live and work in Belgrade.

Once in Belgrade, It’s Hard To Leave

Lila Miller, an American student participating in SIT study abroad’s program, is sad to be leaving Belgrade. In fact, her first thoughts on entering Belgrade were “yuck”! About a month ago, she thought she was entering a typical example of a war-torn city “So I have made it to Belgrade. So far it is cold, and dirty, and gray.” but she changed her mind. Lila Miller wrote up a great blog post explaining why she’s sad to leave a vibrant and friendly city.

“I am sad to be leaving Belgrade. This was a wonderful month of my life. I have learned so much, and even though we were insanely busy, it was all really fun. This city feels alive, and friendly, and functional. And it is only mildly overwhelming. I feel like I know most of the city now, even though I really just know the downtown area where I live and have class. It’s very beautiful, unphotogenic. I will be walking on this gorgeous street, stop to take a picture and in the end it looks bleak, socialist, and grey. I don’t know how it happens.”

There is one key thing to note in all of this. If your first impressions of Belgrade are negative, they are wrong. Take a fresh look and feel the atmosphere again. Belgrade is more than willing to reveal itself to anyone who truly wants to know it. To know it is to know life.

Czech Girl Says Belgrade Is An Awesome City

Normally Julie Buz, a girl from Prague, Czech Republic, wouldn’t write a blog post describing a place that she travelled to. Hopefully, she put up a blog post about Belgrade to revisit the place again in her mind. The whole thing is great, and is a must read. Here’s one snippet:

The beautiful people

I was most enchanted by the people in Belgrade. Leaving aside the tall, handsome, well-groomed men and the quietly stylish women, I have had the pleasure of being surrounded on all sides by a populace at once extraordinarily friendly, without at the same time being annoyingly subservient. A calm, collected pride oozed out of every single Serb I met, whether the old gentleman in a shabby grey suit serving our dinner at a homey little restaurant on Balkanska street, or the high state officials talking with a quiet passion about their personal investment in the well-being of their battered country. It felt a bit like travelling back in time – to a time when relationships between people may have been different – albeit I fear that time had nothing at all to do with it.

Again, don’t just read this snippet, read the whole thing. Julie Buz goes on to talk about the many faces of Belgrade, the vibrant life that pulses through Belgrade, and about Serbian food “Oh, the food in Belgrade!.” She points out that the food in Belgrade merits a post of its own. I agree with her!

Is Serbia Kid Friendly?

Serbia is not usually considered a family travel destination. However, there are plenty of family friendly attractions in Serbia. Serbian culture includes a special place for children, making family travelers feel welcome in more places than they might expect. Here’s the perfect example. It comes from John Paul Schutz, an office management specialist for the US Foreign Service. John Paul Schutz is working and living in Serbia with his wife Serena, and his 3-year-old son, Grayson. John Paul Schutz put up a blog post pointing out that Serbia is kid friendly. Here’s a short excerpt, but it’s worth reading the whole thing:

“Serbia is just so darn kid friendly. How kid friendly? Even the gas stations here have playgrounds. Seriously! It’s a pretty common thing, especially the farther from downtown you get… but, that being said, there is a gas station with a playground not very far from home. Once you get out of Belgrade proper and start cruising down the highway, it would be abnormal to come across a gas station without a playground.”

Rakija – Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Rakija

Earlier this year, we wrote about aLLeYNe & tEMuS, a hip hop black group from Toronto. Christopher Rudder ”Alleyne” (pronounced ahhh-lean) had a great time in Belgrade. “Belgrade is very beautiful and was an awesome entry into Europe as a first time going. I can’t wait to come back (Next year). The people are amazing!!! The food is amazing!!! (Especially Lamb, the best in the world). Alleyne’s video of Belgrade was amazing. Now, there is another one. It’s all about Rakija. “Rakija” This type of vodka will lower your fever, put hair on your chest and power your car if there isn’t a gas station nearby. LOL.”

Are Serbian Women The Most Beautiful On Earth?

Back in 2007, Rosemary Bailey Brown, an American woman married to a Serb, put up an interesting blog post noting that Serbian women are, on average, more beautiful than Americans… or Germans or Austrians or Hungarians for that matter.” Yup, it seems to be true.

An Indian man from Chennai working in software industry spent one week in Serbia. “Serbia is great, the people are good, food is not bad, night life is excellent, the women are the most beautiful on earth.” He also put up a blog post discussing size zero, noting that unlike in India, size zero is more of a norm here. He went on to say that Serbian women are much prettier than the women in Belgium/France:

“I have no idea whether it is genetic or because they take care of their diet and workout a lot. And it is not just the young girls who have an awesome figure. Even middle-aged women and elderly women are in great shape. In fact I have seen women who must be easily in their early sixties, who still retain the figure of a young girl.”

What is funny is that it was the same guy who claimed some years ago that Indian women were the most beautiful on earth. “Our women are known to be beautiful. In fact, I might not be wrong in saying that they are the most beautiful on earth.”

My take: Before claiming that Indian, French, American, or Italian women are the most beautiful on earth, visit Serbia.

Belgrade Has A Pulse That Energizes The Visitor

Kittie Howard, an American citizen, and her husband called Harry have visited over 100 countries and have lived in Europe, Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and in Macedonia for a couple of years. They returned from a trip to Europe last month, and Kittie Howard put up an interesting blog post talking about the Balkans… and Belgrade. Here’s one snippet:

“Belgrade, Serbia, is now a modern, fast-paced city with high-end hotels, swanky malls, superb museums, and other elements found in a city on the move. Mainly, too, Belgrade has a pulse that energizes the visitor. The scenery outside Belgrade is mostly flat with prosperous farms (major food exports). Again, roads are first-rate.”

Well, don’t just read this snippet, read the whole thing. Kittie Howard went on to talk about food in the Balkans “you’re going to have really bad luck to find a bad meal”, the people “very, very nice”, Croatia’s Dalmation coast, and the city of Ljubljana, Slovenia.

US Photographer: Serbia – It’s Not What I Thought It Was

Earlier this week we came across an interesting tweet from @Daveidaho “Serbia – it’s not what I thought it was” and a link to amazing pictures of Serbia. David Ryan is a Boise (the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon), Idaho based photographer. He has worked as a travel and stock photographer for over 40 years, and is traveling the world taking pictures! Hopefully, he visited Serbia for a week. Sometimes David Ryan’s photos of Serbia tell a story while at other times they are simply pretty pictures. Check out the photos.