My Visual Travel Experience: Belgrade

I lived in Belgrade from 1983 to 1985. My father was posted there as the Indian Ambassador. It would be no exaggeration to say that those were the 2 happiest years of my life. I loved the beautiful house we lived in (it was the erstwhile hunting lodge of someone from the country's nobility, and had beautiful sculptures, stain glass panels, and paintings on the ceilings of the drawing room), I really liked my school (International School of Belgrade, which was then a small school with just 165 students - I did my Grade 5 and Grade 6 there), and I made some close friends. The only bummer was that back then, the school was only up to Grade 8, which meant that my 2 older sisters stayed back in India and went to boarding school at Rishi Valley.

At school, I had amazing teachers like Mrs Miletic (my Grade 5 homeroom teacher), Mr Doneski (my Grade 6 homeroom teacher, who got me really interested in chess, something that I pursued with passion in later years), Mrs Obradovic (my strict Maths teacher with a kind heart), and Mrs Jovovic (my good natured English teacher). The teachers were very approachable (something that I didn't find with most of my teachers in my earlier school in Delhi), and made learning a lot of fun. I found myself doing well in academics, and I started enjoying my studies and my school like never before.

My best friend in Belgrade was Peter Vanderwal, my classmate and the son of the Australian Ambassador, who was our next door neighbour. We just had to jump across each other's fences to visit one another. Peter was in and out of our house very often. He started enjoying Indian meals at our place, and soon puris and meatballs were his favourite. His home was warm, but extremely formal. The first time I dined there, I was overawed by everyone being dressed formally, the butlers on duty, and the sheer number of plates, spoons, forks and knives on offer. Back then, a meal meant eating with my hands, and when chicken was served, I looked left and right to see how everyone was eating. Of course, everyone was using forks and knives. Peter saw me looking uncomfortable, and he dug in with his hands. Immediately, his mother, Susan, said "Peter, that's not the way we eat around here!" I somehow managed my chicken using my cutlery that night, but I made a promise to myself that I would learn how to eat with a knife and fork. There was no looking back after that, and within months, I was very adept at the skill and just got out of the habit of eating with my hands. Even now, well over 3 decades later, I have my puris, parathas and dosas with a knife and fork, much to the amusement of most people in India! Peter and I met again in India in 2015, after a gap of almost 30 years, thanks to Facebook.

My other friends in Belgrade included Peter Pudaite (whose father worked at the Indian Embassy), Shankar Narayan (whose father was also with the Indian Embassy), Greg Wilde (a jolly, friendly Australian classmate), Manish Mansukhani (he and his little sister Karishma were kids of a gentleman who worked with Air India), and Nandi Ahuja (who had an Indian father and Yugoslavian mother; he was straight from Vogue magazine in terms of his fashion sense!) to name just a few. Very fond memories of that phase of my life! My next international school after Belgrade was in Vienna. That school was much bigger, and had far superior infrastructure and some great faculty, but I didn't quite find the same warmth that I found in Belgrade, and though I did make some friends there too, I was unlucky to be at the receiving end of some very nasty racist bullying, something I took years to recover from. No such unpleasant memories from International School of Belgrade.

In 2009, I visited Belgrade after 24 years. I packed in a lot of sight seeing, I visited our old house and I went to my old school (where Mrs Pat Andjelkovic was kind enough to show me around, though I didn't know her from earlier). I stayed with Renu Rajan, who was a family friend who has stayed in touch through all these years. Renu's father worked at the Indian Embassy when we were there. All in all, it was a wonderful and very nostalgic trip down memory lane.

Belgrade is a city having approximately 1.2 million inhabitants. It is the capital of Serbia, and was once the capital of the erstwhile Yugoslavia. Starting in the early 1990s, Yugoslavia split up and went on to become a series of different countries – Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Kosovo. Serbia’s history goes back to the 13th century AD. The best known ruler of the time was Stefan Dusan, who conquered territories in Macedonia and Greece. Serbia withstood the Ottomans in the Battle of Kosovo in 1389, but after 70 years of resistance, it fell to the Ottomans, who were in control for the next 4 centuries. In the late 17th century, the Austrians defeated the Ottomans. In 1918, the Habsburg Empire collapsed and this led to the creation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, later called Yugoslavia. The country collapsed in 1941 when Germany attacked. Post World War II, the country was reunited by Josef Broz Tito, who ruled as President until his death in 1980. In 1991, different regions broke away, concerned at Serbian domination. In 1999, Serbia cracked down on an Albanian insurgency, and this was followed by NATO bombing of Serbia. In the 1990s, Serbia was under the rule of President Slobodan Milosevic, but he was overthrown in 2000 and charged with crimes against humanity.

Kalemegdan Fortress is Belgrade's most popular attraction. The fortress is near the confluence of the Danube and Sava rivers, and the fortress complex has chapels, forts, a Turkish tomb, a museum of armoury and weapons, sculptures and a zoo. It’s easy to spend the whole day exploring all that the complex has to offer! The fortress was first built by the Celts, and then refortified by the Serbs. Further expansion took place under the Ottomans and the Austrians. The complex has numerous landmarks. The Victory Monument overlooks the confluence of the Danube and Sava rivers. The statue was made by the Croatian sculptor Ivan Mestrovic and was built to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the end of World War I. The Chapel of St Petka has a beautiful mosaic work of Mary at the entrance. The chapel was built in 1937 and is dedicated to the patron saint of families. St Petka’s relics were supposedly kept here in the middle ages. The Zindan Gate and Towers date back to the 15th century AD and were used as a dungeon by the Ottomans.

Victory Monument, Kalemegdan Fortress

Chapel of St Petka, Kalemegdan Fortress

Shrine of the Birth of the Holy Mother of God, Kalemegdan Fortress

Despot Tower, Kalemegdan Fortress

Zindan Gate and Towers, Kalemegdan Fortress

Damad Ali Pasha's Burial Chamber, Kalemegdan Fortress

Monument of Gratitude to France, Kalemegdan Fortress

Sahat Gate, Kalemegdan Fortress

Kalemegdan Fortress also houses Belgrade Zoo, which has a wide range of animals from across the world. 

Camel, Belgrade Zoo

Lion, Belgrade Zoo

The National Assembly is an impressive structure built in classical style, which was completed in 1936. It has a large green dome. The Parliament was stormed in 2000 by protesters demanding the overthrow of the then president, Slobodan Milosevic.

National Assembly

Republic Square lies in the heart of the city, and features landmarks like the Statue of  Prince Mihailo, the National Museum and the National Theatre. Knez Mihailova Street, a pedestrian street, is full of restaurants and shops. Beogradanka is a skyscraper in the heart of town that has a large department store spread over several floors.

St Mark’s Church is a beautiful orthodox church in the city centre. It has an impressive Last Supper at the high altar. The church was built in 1940, along the lines of medieval Serbian churches. The church has a 52 meter high cupola.

St Mark's Church

The Russian Church is a very small church housed inside the same complex as St Mark’s Church.

Russian Church

St Slava Temple is a large orthodox church with a huge central dome, and a series of smaller domes. The church is dedicated to St Sava, the father of the Serbian Orthodox Church. The saint’s remains were supposedly buried at the site of the church in 1595. Construction began in the 1930s but was halted during World War II. Work resumed in 1984. As many as 10,000 worshipers can be accommodated inside the large church.

St Slava Temple

The Orthodox Cathedral was built in 1837 by Prince Milos Obrenovic and is dedicated to the Archangel Michael.

Orthodox Cathedral

Ceiling, Orthodox Cathedral

25th May Museum, also known as the House of Flowers, is a museum dedicated to Josef Broz Tito, the leader of the united Yugoslavia, who died in 1980. He played a leading role in building Yugoslavia after World War II. 

25th May Museum

Memorial to Tito, 25th May Museum

Chinese Room, 25th May Museum

Statue of Josef Broz Tito, 25th May Museum

Belgrade may not be as popular a tourist destination as several of the other European capitals, but it is a pleasant city, and can easily keep visitors busy for a few days. I of course have a deep, emotional connect with the city, but even first time visitors would enjoy it.