Crossing the border into Serbia felt more serious than the other border crossings. The guards looked at us suspiciously and checked our passports meticulously. As soon as we crossed the border it was clear that Serbia was a lot poorer than Croatia. The roads were in terrible condition and a lot of the buildings were ruined. It looked like people were living in the ground floor of 2 storey houses and leaving the upper floor to fall into disrepair, with boarded up windows and missing roof tiles. Another shock was the dogs who were ferocious. They chased us, barked and growled. To begin with we recalled away feom then as fast as we could then we found that stopping was better and they usually left is alone. I tried out my dog dazer, which scares them off by releasing an ultrasonic noise. It worked brilliantly (thanks very much to Dazer for the sponsorship).
All in all the entrance into Serbia was a bit intimidating but very quickly I began to love it. The people here were fantastic. They were so welcoming, every time we stopped people approached us. The best time was when we sheltered under a garage forecourt and the guys who worked there invited us in for a coffee. It was very sweet but a welcome break from the rain!
We cycled past Novi Sad and on to Belgrade. Both cities are pretty ugly to be honest but Belgrade was great. Loads of floating bars and clubs on the Danube and lots of character. Concrete tower blocks from Soviet times dominated the skyline but the city centre was pretty. We stopped to ask a guy for directions and he couldn't have been more helpful. His name was Dragan and he showed us a cheap place to eat that evening. He said if we waited a couple of hours we could stay at his house, he was busy until then. We wanted to accept but we were too tired and the lure of a showed in a cheap hostel was too much. Also we had heard that they can fine you 100 euros when exiting the country unless you have a card proving you have stayed in some accommodation there (we needed it on the way out). Anyway - we arranged to meet Dragan at the restaurant. He told us the traditional Serbian dishes. I had meat rolled in cabbage, which was delicious.
The next morning, we met Dragan again and he showed us around the new orthodox temple in Belgrade. I say new, it's actually been under construction since 1914 I think he said. Lack of money and changing politics have stalled its construction but they've recently finished the outside. The inside will take another 10-15 years because the aren't many people who can paint the frescos on the walls in the traditional way.
It turned out Dragan was a bike fanatic and he owns 6 bikes. He showed us his Hercules, which is 60 years old and still going strong! It was fantastic. We cycled out of Belgrade with Dragan who left us near the edge and pointed the way out.
A day and a half of riding along the river brought us into the beautiful national park on the border with Romania. The river flows through a narrow gorge with cliffs and wooded valleys. We explored a massive castle built by the Hungarian when Hungary stretched this far. A huge face of the last king of Romania was carved into the rock face. A park warden joined us while we had our lunch and proudly foos us about his job and showed us his motorbike which was ancient. We camped in a closed campsite with stunning views of the river. They had left the toilets open and the water and electricity on so we enjoyed a night of luxury!
The next day we cycled out of the national park to the iron gate, a large hydroelectric power plant which has a road over to Romania on it. We said a fond farewell to Serbia and crossed into Romania, skipping past the que of cars at customs!
Romania next, I wonder what it has in store...
All in all the entrance into Serbia was a bit intimidating but very quickly I began to love it. The people here were fantastic. They were so welcoming, every time we stopped people approached us. The best time was when we sheltered under a garage forecourt and the guys who worked there invited us in for a coffee. It was very sweet but a welcome break from the rain!
We cycled past Novi Sad and on to Belgrade. Both cities are pretty ugly to be honest but Belgrade was great. Loads of floating bars and clubs on the Danube and lots of character. Concrete tower blocks from Soviet times dominated the skyline but the city centre was pretty. We stopped to ask a guy for directions and he couldn't have been more helpful. His name was Dragan and he showed us a cheap place to eat that evening. He said if we waited a couple of hours we could stay at his house, he was busy until then. We wanted to accept but we were too tired and the lure of a showed in a cheap hostel was too much. Also we had heard that they can fine you 100 euros when exiting the country unless you have a card proving you have stayed in some accommodation there (we needed it on the way out). Anyway - we arranged to meet Dragan at the restaurant. He told us the traditional Serbian dishes. I had meat rolled in cabbage, which was delicious.
The next morning, we met Dragan again and he showed us around the new orthodox temple in Belgrade. I say new, it's actually been under construction since 1914 I think he said. Lack of money and changing politics have stalled its construction but they've recently finished the outside. The inside will take another 10-15 years because the aren't many people who can paint the frescos on the walls in the traditional way.
It turned out Dragan was a bike fanatic and he owns 6 bikes. He showed us his Hercules, which is 60 years old and still going strong! It was fantastic. We cycled out of Belgrade with Dragan who left us near the edge and pointed the way out.
A day and a half of riding along the river brought us into the beautiful national park on the border with Romania. The river flows through a narrow gorge with cliffs and wooded valleys. We explored a massive castle built by the Hungarian when Hungary stretched this far. A huge face of the last king of Romania was carved into the rock face. A park warden joined us while we had our lunch and proudly foos us about his job and showed us his motorbike which was ancient. We camped in a closed campsite with stunning views of the river. They had left the toilets open and the water and electricity on so we enjoyed a night of luxury!
The next day we cycled out of the national park to the iron gate, a large hydroelectric power plant which has a road over to Romania on it. We said a fond farewell to Serbia and crossed into Romania, skipping past the que of cars at customs!
Romania next, I wonder what it has in store...
I am so glad you had some good time in Serbia. Unfortunately, you have just passed by Belgrade. I hope the next time we will have some more time to explore those clubs you have mentioned :)
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