Some final thoughts from Belgrade

  

Stopping to rest by the Salon of Contemporary Art

I've spent three weeks in Belgrade, and there's been a lot to take in. In my earlier posts, I've looked at walkability, cycling, the transit system, the fantastic pedestrian-only zone, and coffee. There's more to see, and much more to learn, but it seems it's time to return to our regular programming.

If this post isn't long enough for you, check out the delightful miscellany in Belgrade Bites by Netherlander Yvo Kuhling (cited below). I discovered this book while writing this piece, when it was lent to me by my colleague Dennis Barnett. Kuhling provides sympathetic commentary from a non-Serbian (Dutch) perspective informed by long-term residence.

1. Small businesses. 

Small shops along Maksima Gorkog

The number of small establishments on any given street is staggering. How do they all stay in business? There are so many places to buy pre-made sandwiches, coffee, pop, slices of pizza, or pharmaceuticals, or place a bet on a sporting event, all within easy walking distance. To paraphrase a local saying, "If we have that many apoteke, it's because we need that many apoteke." I guess.

2. Radno vreme ("open hours"). 

Along with that is the number of places that are open late--not just bars. The other night walking back from the theater we passed a barbershop where a guy was getting a haircut. In my town I can't get a haircut or buy flowers or get a cup of coffee at 9:45 pm. Here I can.

3. The porous language barrier. 

My brain is picking up some Serbian phrases, but it is not as spongey as once it was, and the Cyrillic alphabet gives me the fantods. I am humbled that so many Serbs I meet in this international city not only speak English but are fluent.

Ljuobomir Davidovic plaque on Njegoseva

I do try to use my phrases (hvala lepo=thank you very much, pivo tamno=dark beer) but my knowledge of Serbian is not functional. Very quickly the Serbs and I resort to English, or if that fails I'm pointing at what I want. I'm not proud of that, but it seems to be okay.

4. Smoking.

Cigarettes are common here, more like the U.S. 40 years ago than now. Restaurants routinely provide ashtrays on each table. It's not permitted on the transit vehicles, though I've seen vaping there. "Do not come between a Serb and his cigarette," warns Kuhling. "On the street, in the hospital, at work, at the gas pump, in the clothing store, anywhere really" (2014: 49).

5. Dining al fresco. 

Adventure Caffe 2 in the pedestrian zone

In a city of 1.3 million, it can seem that as many as 800,000 are dining or drinking outside at any one time. As people take advantage of the lovely weather and plenteous outdoor seating, they amplify the vibe of the city.

6. Building to the street, but... 

Voivode Dragomina, Belgrade

As you can see from this picture of our block, central city residences typically are built to the sidewalk, but for privacy's sake pedestrians are confronted with a series of screens or outright walls. I was particularly struck by the difference in Novi Sad when we did a field trip there...

Strosmajerova, Novi Sad

No porches, but a lot of windows--Eyes on the street everywhere, at least in the parts we visited. Same goes for Zemun. Those towns are on the historic Austro-Hungarian side of the Danube, while we're staying on the Ottoman side, so maybe it relates to that?

7. Produce! 

Strawberries at Kalenic Green Market

Speaking as someone from a northern land, the Mediterranean climate is miraculous. The biggest miracle of all is the produce, available daily in green markets (pijace). We landed at the peak of strawberry season, and they are everywhere in abundance. Price range 200-300 per kilo ($1-1.50 per pound), and each one is perfect. 

8. Free Wi-Fi Zona.

Throughout the city we can intermittently find the helpful municipal WiFi, which we've come to think of as a friend. It can be cranky--signing on four times in three minutes is not unheard-of--but it's free, and its coverage area is wider than I'm used to. 

9. The three trgs.

Trg Republike, with the "the horse" and the National Museum to the right

Our movements through the central city, though bookended by Kalemegdan and Cuburski Parks, are usually defined by three well-known squares (trgs) that serve as the basis for all navigation.

Trg Republike is centrally-located and functions as a starting point. Matt Willis (Eyewitness Travel: Serbia [Dorling Kindersley, 2016: 51]) calls the Trg Republike "the city's main focal point" It is spare, open, punctuated by the 1882 statue of Prince Mihailo Obrenovic II called by Kuhling (2014: 203) "the meeting point par excellence ('Where?' 'At the horse.' 'Okay.')". It has the National Museum on one side, the National Theater on another, and a third abuts the pedestrian zone.

Studenski Trg (Google Street View screen capture from Nov. 2014)

Less than half a kilometer away, Studenski Trg is tree-lined and relaxing. Located near some of the University of Belgrade facilities (biology, chemistry, mathematics, philology, physics) it is ideal for hanging out between classes, on a work break, or while waiting for your next travel adventure. The Ethnographic Museum and Yugoslav Film Archive are nearby.

To the south, Trg Slavija boasts a musical fountain that I have never heard because I have no desire to hang around this hellscape, even if you offered to pay for a subscription to this blog. Eight streets come together in a large roundabout, all of them deeply resentful of the others. A lot of bus and tram lines come through, too, but with transfer points several minutes' walk apart. Dennis's favorite burek place is here, though, so all is not completely lost.

Thanks for reading! Signed, 

БРУДЕ НЕСМИТХ

SOURCES

Yvo Kuhling, Belgrade Bites: Reflections on the White City (Uitgeverij Ubique BV, 2014)

Matt Willis, Eyewitness Travel: Serbia (Dorling Kindersley, 2016: 51) 

SEE ALSO: "Letter from Washington (VIII): End of Semester," 15 May 2018

Coffee and community in Belgrade

Cappucino on the patio at the Villa Allegra hotel

There is a lot of coffee in this neighborhood, more within a mile radius than I could possibly survey in a three weeks' stay. It is served at restaurants and bars, and a plenteous variety of small shops. (Starbucks looms near the primo shopping areas, but we need not speak of them.)

I've had to learn about cappucino and espresso, because coffee here rarely comes in the vats I've been drinking in the States. Locals call what I drink "drip" or "filtered" coffee, usually with the sort of tone that accompanies talk of narwhals. (They don't have those here, either.) And don't even ask about free refills, though at these prices...

Coffee menu at Topolska 18

...you would be far more churlish than the average reader of this blog if you did. Coffee is served with large glasses of water, or for additional charge your choice of juice, soda, beer, or the potent local liquor rakija.

Prices and offerings vary little outside the city center, but it's good to know what kind of food you can get: croissants, sweet rolls, cake, sandwiches, salads, or none of the above might be found, sometimes not until you're seated.

Local favorites

La-La Kafe, Cara Nikolaja II 83. Small shop on a main drag that doesn't show up on the map, but well worth the stop. The first time I came here Andrej the barista was playing the piano and chatting (in English) with two visitors, including a singer from Sicily. I sat in the window seat, and easily joined in, and then a woman tried to give me an order (in Serbian) through the window. The second time I had to wait a little for my croissant, but it came hot and delicious fresh from the oven. Decor is LPs, 45s and album covers, with a preference for 1960s/70s R & B. Good mix of baked offerings and coffee concoctions. Cedar Rapids comp: Kismet, for the personal stamp the owners put on the place.

Topolska 18, Topolska 18. Signs on the street direct you to the interior of the block, where this shop serves coffee, pastries and sandwiches in a lovely courtyard. This was the first place I went where I didn't take away, and the staff gently schooled me in the local customs of ordering at the table not the counter, and paying when you leave. Good to know. Snack items tend toward the very rich; for my birthday I tried the vocna torta (fruit cake), which was very good. One room in the cafe is the deciji kutak, or "children's corner." Cedar Rapids comp: Cafe St. Pio, which has neither outdoor seating nor deciji kutak, but is certainly child-friendly and has the same attention to aesthetic.

Chains

Kafeterija Cubura, Makenzijeva 81. Kafeterija shops are found all over Belgrade but concentrated south of downtown. This was the first place I found "filtered" coffee, so of course I got some, but at $7.35 for 500 ml (about 17 ounces) it was a one-time treat and a rare example of a higher price in Serbia than in the U.S. Extensive outdoor seating is exceedingly pleasant though the shop is on an important intersection one block from Cuburski Park. Car noise is buffered by parked cars, trees, and the surrounding conversation. Wide variety of food offerings. Cedar Rapids comp: Brewhemia, also at a busy intersection but without the buffer.

Caffe Soul, Cara Nikolaja II 67. This is a small chain, with one other location near downtown. Outdoor seating at their Vracar site is buffered from the busy thoroughfare with this wooden latticework, yet it's open enough that it enabled me to watch the city come to life on a quiet Sunday morning. Interior has more of a bar feel, with beer signs, English-language cutesy coffee signs, and cigarette smoke.

Pekara Lulu, Maksima Gorkog 4b. Local chain of bakeries that serve coffee. The nearest one to here is an outpost with takeaway only. Not bad, not particularly memorable, except that the first time I went there I ordered what looked like a baguette but had a hot dog enclosed. The Serbian name means "hot dog roll." Every day is an adventure in another language! Cedar Rapids comp: Lightworks, which is currently takeout only, although I can't promise they'll have hot dog rolls.

Other Finds

Bozidaric Cafe, Radoslava Grujica 3. In the back of a building, off a street filled with children going to school. They seem to attract plenty of "regulars." No food, though. Cedar Rapids comp: Uptown or Veritas, both of which are carved out of spaces with other primary uses.

Kafe Posejdon, Maksima Gorkog 47. A tiny shop with no food and only three tables; the other two were occupied by locals in vigorous conversation. The hostess didn't speak English, but we managed. It felt like the real Serbia. But as you can see from the picture, shortly after I visited they were shut down for non-payment of taxes! Cedar Rapids comp: Coffee Emporium, for the shop size and loyal clientele, but which does regularly pay all applicable federal and state tax obligations.

029, Gracanicka 3. This handsome shop is located between Cuburski Park and the iconic St. Sava Temple. Nice but not excessively so, and the prices are the same as everyone else's. Cedar Rapids comp: Dash Coffee Roasters.

Away from home

Costa Coffee, Kneza Mihailova 40. This way station on the pedestrian walkway turns out to belong to a British-based chain. Oh well. I found a New York City-themed coffeehouse, with a dwindling supply of baked goods by the time I got there late in the morning. Signs advertising WiFi and palacinke (Serbian pancakes) but no way of getting either.

Padrini Gardos, Njegoseva 51, Zemun. The class stopped here on a trip to Zemun. Plenty of cappucino and a pleasant outdoor seating area between the Danube River and the Gardos Tower, though without a view of either. An Orthodox church, Hram Svetog Oca Nikolaja, is nearby, too. Their Instagram page shows a variety of food offerings, but those of us who ate on this trip got ice cream from Tio Gelato across the street.

SEE ALSO:

"Letter from Washington (V): Coffee on Capitol Hill," 2 April 2018

"Coffee in Cedar Rapids," Before Holy Mountain (2011)

Addison del Maestro, "Coffee Shop Kind of Day," Deleted Scenes, 24 May 2022

Alex Fitzpatrick, "Now Sailing: Your Morning Brew," Axios, 25 May 2022

The Knez Mihailova

One section of the pedestrian-only Knez Mihailova

In 2013, when New York City announced plans to close Greenwich, Vesey, and other streets around the World Trade Center site to unauthorized vehicle traffic, I expressed concerns about the viability of pedestrian-only streets in the United States. But seriously, with up to 15,000 people per hour using the busiest block before the pandemic (Dobnik 2014), New York's probably going to be okay, and the success of pedestrian zones in university towns has also been encouraging. 

A recent Tweet from Florence by Lava Sunder...

Car-free street in Florence

Thoughts and prayers to all the businesses suffering because of this decision pic.twitter.com/GYLUnkWGnk

— Lava Sunder (@LavanyaSunder) May 11, 2022

...produced reports from Belgrade (my picture above), Bologna (on certain days), Brussels, Buenos Aires, Copenhagen, Mexico City, and the entire town of Pontevedra, Spain.

The 750 meter long pedestrian-only street in downtown Belgrade known as Knez Mihailova--named for a chieftain in the early 19th century--is the spine of a no-car zone including all streets that lead into it from where it splits off from the busy boulevard Terazije until it ends at the Pariska highway across from Kalemegdan Park, and including portions of parallel streets as well. The souvenir shops along with some of the restaurants and other attractions may be more oriented to visitors than residents, but either way there's always a crowd--even on the Monday midday when I took these pictures.

The Knez Mihailova begins where it splits off from the Terazije:

Southern end of the Knez Mihailova

It can also be accessed from the landmark Trg Republike (Republic Square)...

the Knez is past the big building on the left

 

...and from the lovely Studenski Trg (Students Square) by the University of Belgrade:

Alley access from Studenski Trg 

Buildings along the Knez Mihailova are just the right height to provide enclosure, and there's just enough bend in the street to provide intrigue.

Looking northward

Blocks are anchored by historic buildings, like this one which houses the Institut Francais de Serbie:

Zmaj Jovina 11

Fancy hotels like the Indigo give it a touristy feel:

Kneza Mihaila 20

Geca Kon's bookstore is the oldest bookstore in the Balkans

Kneza Mihaila 12

Al fresco dining is widely available:

Adventure Caffe 2, Zmaj Jovina

While commerce is dominant, there are obvious signs of a residential population:

Akademski Plato 35

Not all apartments are that fancy, though probably the primo location allows for premium pricing:

Down Dure Jaksica

Portals add intrigue to your walk, even if this one goes to a parking lot:

Kneza Mihaila 48

Another portal leads to a Handmade Market:

Entrance to the market

There are museums in the district, including the Zepler Museum of Contemporary Serbian Art:

42 Kneza Mihaila

Street musicians rotate at what seems to be a designated spot. Not all have rabbits.

Intersection with Nikole Spasica.
Steakhouse behind her (Kneza Mihaila 49) advertises halal food

There are wayfinding signs...

Intersection with Kralja Petra

...maps with 5- and 15-minute walk radii...

Wayfinding sign with 15-minute walks from Trg Republike

...and for the globally-minded, a latitude-longitude marker:

a.k.a. Kneza Mihaila 36

Toward the north end of the Knez Mihailova, there is... a mall? Really? It has a Starbucks, WiFi, restrooms, and an information booth that testily stresses it is not a "park ranger" i.e. is only for mall shoppers.

Kneza Mihaila 54

At the approach to the Pariska highway and Kalemegdan Park are two landmark buildings. On the west (left) side is the Salon of the Museum of Contemporary Art, built in 1937.

Pariska 14

Between the Salon and the Pariska, poet and government official Milan Rakic (1876-1938), a native of this very street, tends his garden:

Park Milana Rakica

Across the street is the Belgrade City Library, built in 1867 for a hotel:

Kneza Mihaila 56
(formerly Hotel Srpska Kruna, built 1867)

It has books...

Familiar titles in an unfamiliar alphabet

...and art!

Work by Tamapa Zderic is on display through May 30

The Knez Mihaila ends at the busy boulevard Pariska, across which is the entrance to Kalemegdan Park. 

Wait for the green! The Pariska is wide and cars move fast

Transit in Belgrade

 

Electric trolleybus: From our first trip!

Public transit accounts for 40 percent of daily trips in Belgrade ("Towards a Transit Oriented" 5); the bus system is extensive and for the most part easy to use, even for a foreigner. Reliable and frequent bus service is essential for sustaining life in the city.

Belgrade Transit consists of buses, well-integrated with trams and trolleys. All run on surface streets, interacting with auto traffic and stop for traffic signals. Buses run about every five minutes during the day, with trams and trolleys about every fifteen minutes. Frequency declines after about midnight. Between them they carry about two million passengers per day, with the lion's share to the buses ("Towards a Transit Oriented" 6). 

Tram near St. Mark's Square

Routes are easy to find and plan on mapping apps. However, you only get the scheduled times for buses, not real-time tracking, so it's possible particularly with lower-frequency routes to spend some time at the station or platform wondering. I was particularly aware of this when waiting with our students one evening event as a thunderstorm was approaching more noticeably than our tram was coming.

Waiting for a tram downtown

There happens also to be a very small subway, begun in the Communist era but only extended to one town on either side of the city center, that claims to carry about 29,000 passengers per day. It's probably important to those passengers, but doesn't add much to the system, other than being an obvious target for budget shifting.

Transit tickets and passes can be bought and loaded at certain of the numerous traficka kiosks around the city that also sell soft drinks, newspapers, and candy. Purchasing a card and loading that card are separate operations, as we discovered when we first bought 16 unloaded cards and were eventually found out by the transit police. Card balances can be checked on the bus, and reportedly at the kiosks, though when I tried I got charged 11 dinars for no information.

Diesel bus: Newest models provide very pleasant rides

Fare is 89 dinars (roughly $.89) per ride, including unlimited transfers within 90 minutes. They are paid by card on board using automated stations at each entry door, typically three per bus, that are not observed by the conductor. So it seems rather easy to board without paying. Transit police occasionally ride along, and they do check cards with the authority to eject non-paying passengers. Members of our group have had two unpleasant run-ins with the transit police, the first time--before we realized the cards were unloaded--being required to pay 5000 dinars (roughly $50.00) and the second time for unknown reasons before our students were rescued by the fortuitous appearance of one of our cycling guides. 

What we would have been riding 120 years ago

Interior of an older bus

There is no way to request a stop, which is not important since they make every one. Given the crowds on the buses, it has been rare that I have seen no one get on or off at any stop.

Very crowded #26 bus mid-afternoon

Although Belgrade residents make only 20-25 percent of trips by private car--more than Budapest or Paris, but less than Berlin or London, says the World Bank ("Towards a Transit Oriented" 4-5), cars are everywhere in the central city. Central districts have lost population for several decades ("Towards a Transit Oriented" 2) but remain densely-populated and active at all hours. My observation is that driving in traffic is highly improvisational and, if the amount of honking is any indication, extremely nerve-wracking--yet auto drivers are more aware of, and more accommodating to, pedestrians than they are in most areas of the United States. Still, the Vracar district, the densest in the city, lost a third of its population between 1961 and 2011; if that were to rebound much it would really strain it some infrastructure.

Getting a handle on car traffic, then, is critical to Belgrade's future if it is to be financially and ecologically sustainable, much less to retain its bustling urban character. That requires inducing demand for transit by making it more attractive while reducing demand to drive private cars. That's not easy; people are probably already making the choices they want to make given the options before them, so if they were somehow convinced to leave their cars and free up road space, other drivers would likely take their places. 

This tram looks like a relic from the 1940s

In spite of that, and with due humility since I've barely been here a week, I could stand to see:

• preferential treatment for transit vehicles. They should be able to use technology that allows them to switch traffic lights so they don't have to wait. 
• more bus capacity. Particularly at rush hour they can be jam packed, and most vehicles are older and not air conditioned. A more pleasant ride would be encouraging.

Gas station on Bulevar Mihaila Pupina in New Belgrade

• These wonders could be funded by:
• higher gasoline prices. I was all over this idea when I saw what was posted at the stations, which appeared to be about half the U.S. price until I realized it was per liter not per gallon. So current prices are actually $6.19 per gallon, which is considerably higher than current U.S. prices that are going to lose the Democrats control of Congress this fall. They are close to the cheapest prices in Europe, though, and if this many people are driving at current prices, I could go another dollar a gallon higher. I'm not running for office, in America or Serbia!
• streamlined fare collection. I don't know how much revenue is lost under the honor system, but it can't be zero. Couple it with fare cuts if that will salve the indignity, and maybe help to sell it. More fare collection equals better busing!!
• blowing up the subway. I apologize to the riders, but it's a money pit.

Escalator to the subway

Finally, I would like to see better regulated behavior of the transit police. Our ignorance of the system may have contributed, but an international city shouldn't make it difficult for even Americans to catch on.

Swiped from ontheworldmap.com

SOURCES:

John William Bills, "A Guide to Using Public Transport in Belgrade, Serbia," Culture Trip, 3 January 2018

World Bank Group, "Towards a Transit Oriented Development Approach for Belgrade," 3 September 2018

Okretnica Medakovic Park: Trolleybus route 29 ends at a fruit market!

This recent video, by garethtrooper, shows the variety of transit vehicles in rather typical traffic around Trg Slavia, 1.2 km from our hotel: