Day 10 - Serbia

Today, we are leaving Julie and Chip and their amazing hospitality. We’re so glad we visited Serbia and enjoyed its beauty and culture. I think I was kind of biased in my thinking that this was a former communist country and my friend was a little crazy to pick this place. But after actually visiting and experiencing the country, wow, I couldn’t have been more wrong. The people are so welcoming, hardworking, and helpful. The land is beautiful and the sunsets can’t be beat. This was definitely a wake up to not judge until you have experienced it. The weather definitely helped as it was also beautiful.

Wiki: The Manasija Monastery also known as Resava, is a Serbian Orthodox monastery near Despotovac, Serbia founded by Despot Stefan Lazarević between 1406 and 1418. The church is dedicated to the Holy Trinity. It is one of the most significant monuments of medieval Serbian culture and it belongs to the "Morava school" (an ecclesiastical architectural style that flourished in Serbia in the late Middle Ages),

The rest stops on the main highway (A1) were very nice with gas stations, convenience stores, and public restrooms (free!). There was even a KFC at one - no we did not stop there. We are trying our best to be locals. Diet Coke and massive Snickers bars excluded.

The sunflowers and corn crops are abundant

A one lane bridge that you have to share with the train. No going around those gates.

We made it to Belgrade where we are spending the night before our travel day tomorrow. After google completely missed the hotel entrance, Martha got us there on a not blue dot approved route.

Then on to the Fortress of Belgrade: wiki: The Belgrade Fortress, consists of the old citadel and Kalemegdan Park on the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, in an urban area of modern Belgrade, Serbia.

There is a large park around the fortress and we saw clay court tennis and men playing chess (3 against 1 seemed unfair but maybe I read the bench wrong).

Finally, in case you didn’t know Belgrade is also on the Danube. Wiki: The Danube is the second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest south into the Black Sea. A large and historically important river, it was once a frontier of the Roman Empire. In the 21st century, it connects ten European countries, running through their territories or marking a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for 2,850 km (1,770 mi), passing through or bordering Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, and Ukraine. Among the many cities on the river are four national capitals: Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest, and Belgrade. Its drainage basin amounts to 817,000 km (315,000 sq mi) and extends into nine more countries. I looked up how many river cruises take place on the Danube every year but I couldn’t find that tidbit. In Belgrade the Sava and Danube rivers join up and that’s what I tried to capture in the picture. But I won’t lie, it was hot and I didn’t try very hard, lol.