Cruising the Danube from the Black Sea to the North Sea
April-May 2023: Day 12

Belgrade, Serbia

Introduction

Belgrade is an old city, today the capital of Serbia. It had been part of Yugoslavia after 1945 but when Tito (the Communist leader) died in 1980 the amalgamation of Balkan states began to fall apart. A military officer (Slobodan Milocevic) who had been Tito's deputy tried to sieze power but throughout Europe the communist states were falling apart. A bloody war ensued, ensnaring Serbia, Croatia etc. The war only ended when NATO forces began to bomb all the military installations in Belgrade. Today several of these buildings still lie in ruins a reminder of what NATO did.

Belgrade

We arrived in Belgrade during the night and tied up at a jetty on the Sava River, a tributary of the Danube. We departed the Scenic Jade at 0900 for tours of Belgrade. This being Easter Sunday in the Orthodox Church most places were shut, including Tito’s Palace, so we walked around the central city with guides. We spent most of the walk touring the Belgrade Fortress that dominates the hill overlooking the Sava River, then the central city shopping mall.

Welcome to Belgrade, capital of Serbia

Departing the Scenic Jade

Memorial to waterfront workers

The Embassy of france

Atop the embassy

Entrance into the park surrounding the Belgrade Fortress

Traditional costumes on display for the festive day

Monument of Gratitude to France

Tennis courts where Novak Jokovic started his tennis career

View over the Sava River to the "new" Belgrade

Street scenes in Belgrade

Serbian Army HQ after the NATO airstrikes.

Belgrade trams - new...

and old.

Back down the steep steps

to the river front

and our Scenic Jade.

St Sava's Church

After lunch back on the Scenic Jade we travelled by coach to the central city for the church of St Sava where we were entertained by a choral recital in the crypt.