Serbia pictures 2013

Pictures from my Serbia trip in September. We only went to Belgrade, I'd like to go back one day and see more of the country. Belgrade is a nice city but it is not set up for tourism like other European capitals. Most of the museums are entirely in Serbian, which limited my enjoyment of them, and there were very few tours available in English, if any. Any tours of the sights I was interested in were not in English. I'm not one of those people who expect everyone in other countries to speak English, after all, its their country, but having the tourist attractions entirely in one language which is not a common language does hinder Belgrade's tourist appeal. It also meant I didn't need much time there to see everything there was to see. I spent 4 days but really only needed 2 days to see all I wanted to see. But I still enjoyed my time there and here are some of the pictures I took.

Belgrade pedestrian area. It is lined with shops, restaurants and the many coffee shops. Coffee is a main pastime in Belgrade and we spent many hours sitting outside drinking delicious coffee and eating fantastic desserts. 

Belgrade Fortress, one of the main attractions in the city. Its a beautiful area with views over the river and lots of parkland. Worth a half day visit at least. 

View from the wall of the Belgrade fortress. 

Walking through the fortress area. Lots to see. There is also a museum within the fortress area about the Serbian military history which was interesting. 

Another area of Belgrade, the old historical centre of Zemun, we found after walking along the boardwalk beside the river on the way to Gardos Tower.

Views from the top of Gardos Tower, also known as Millennium Tower in the Zemun fortress. 

Gardos Tower. 

The History Museum of Yugoslavia which houses the House of Flowers where Tito's grave is located. The House of Flowers also contains relay batons given to him every year on his birthday when relays were run throughout Yugoslavia and the final runner presented the baton to Tito.

Temple of St. Sava



Bosnia 2013 pictures

I loved my time in Bosnia. Its a beautiful country that has survived so much and the people are amazing. Here are some of the pictures of Mostar and Sarajevo.

The bridge in Mostar. It was destroyed in the war but rebuilt. People stand on top and collect money to jump off the bridge, apparently they have been doing it for years. The river isn't very deep and apparently the impact can crush your lungs. No one jumped while we were there but a few were collecting money. The bridge itself is really slippery as you walk over. It is a beautiful spot. 

 Another of the bridges in Mostar. It is a great town to walk around and an easy trip from Split or Sarajevo. The old town feels like you are walking through the Ottoman empire (if you ignore all the shops selling tourist stuff). The newer areas were built during the Hapsburg rule.

View from the Mostar bridge over the old town. 

Old town Sarajevo.  My favourite time to walk around was at night. It could have been 1500 in the Ottoman empire. Within the old town every major religion in the world is represented. There are great restaurants and shops. One street, the copper street, has been there for hundreds of years and still sells copper goods.

The view over Sarajevo from  Bijela Tabija, the White Fortress. The hills surrounding Sarajevo were used during the war by snipers to terrorize the citizens. It is amazing how Sarajevo has been rebuilt but there are still buildings that are in rubble or covered by holes from sniper shots, grenades or bombs.

This was the house used as the start of the Sarajevo Tunnel under the Sarajevo airport which was used to smuggle in goods and weapons to the citizens during siege of Sarajevo in the war. 

Sarajevo Roses. These are spots where a grenade fell, leaving the mark in the concrete, and killed a Sarajevo citizen. These marks were filled in with red resin and remain as reminders of the horrors of the war and what the citizens of Sarajevo survived.

 

Pedestrian street in Sarajevo

 

The copper street in old town Sarajevo.

 



Croatia trip 2013 pictures

Its been awhile since my last post but I am finally able to post pictures from my last trip. Here are some views from Croatia.

 The main Roman square in Diocletian's Palace in the old town of Split. The steps are part of the coffee shop and you can sit and have coffee and people watch.  There is a Roman show each day under the arch at the end of the square.

 View from the Fortress on Hvar over the town. Hvar is a great day trip from Split with lots to see and many spots to sit and suntan or swim in the beautiful water.

 

 The clock tower in Split and bronze statue of Grgur Ninski at the Golden Gate. Rub the big toe on the left foot of the statue  for good luck.

 

 Trogir, another great day trip from Split. It is on a small island connected to the mainland by a bridge. Beautiful town surrounded by water with a long boardwalk along the outer wall. This is a picture of the clock tower in the main square.

 

Island of Brac. Another great day trip from Split where you will find beautiful beaches and interesting towns. From the beach there is a lovely walk through the trees and along the coast into walk into Bol. Supetar is the other main town and boats from Split typically land here.