THE MOST BEAUTIFUL STREET IN SERBIA! - Springtime in Northern Serbia

.........our last post was from Amman, capital of Jordan, where we spent some time exploring Roman ruins and chilling with sheesha!......

Unsure whether to write a blog post about our happy travels since we returned to Europe from the Middle East, we decided it might be a pleasant little update, albeit missing the exoticism of the early part of our year!

Wizz Air got us back to Budapest without fuss, something of a miracle, and we spent a short couple of days recovering and resting before the next part of the trip. As seen on previous visits to the city, we are not the biggest fans, although we always find something stimulating to do, and it may just be growing on us!

There's no denying, Budapest is a beautiful city in Springtime

Hungarian architecture of Vajdahunyad Castle

With ten days or so to spare before we had to be in Belgrade, we found an appealing series of random trains to small towns in the mostly agricultural Vojvodina region of northern Serbia. It's an area we had appreciated before, with an obvious link to a Austro-Hungarian past in the architecture, and many towns having a large population of ethnically Hungarian people. Being a farming region, it was also a perfect place for us to take advantage of the myriad of fresh fruits and vegies we loved in Serbia. Particularly exciting was the ongoing plentiful and cheap strawberry season. The fresh markets were saturated with the tasty and juicy fruits, and we were in heaven!

Ongoing works with the Hungarian and Serbian trains at the border make it slightly easier every time we travel through this route, and this time, we were effortlessly able to cross all the way from Budapest to Subotica, in Serbia in an easy day. Having visited Subotica a couple of times before, this time we were happy to wander the beautiful streets, admire much of the Art Nouveau architecture and relish the street cafe culture we had missed so much. 

Serbian cats with attitude, Subotica

Classic Subotica, Serbia

Zastava car, an oldie but a goodie!

Three more towns followed - tiny Senta, Kikinda and Zrenjanin. Streets cafes with strong Serbian style coffee and local rakija sat beside rustic pijecas (markets) with little piles of seasonal homegrown goods. Rivers were high with rain and central parks sparkled with that bright green that comes with spring. 

Kikinda was probably the highlight, with an absolutely charming little town center, plenty of classic Yugo architecture and what was touted as the most beautiful street in Serbia! 

Shady streets of Kikinda, Serbia

Elaborate decorations on Kikinda town buildings, Serbia

Fountain in Kikinda town center, Serbia

Orthodox church in Kikinda, Serbia

Funky style war memorial, Kikinda, Serbia

Daggy garden at our Kikinda accommodation

Could it be true?!

General Drapšin Street was definitely lovely, Kikinda

A deserted train took us to Zrenjanin, a larger place, and quite different from other Serbian towns we have visited. There was quite a run down and rough feel to much of Zrenjanin, but also some kind of alternative edgy vibe at the same time. We weren't sure what to make of it, but loved the contrast. An absolutely enormous weekend flea market saved the stay for us, and we spent most of the morning poking around and not buying anything, as per usual!

Calm inside an orthodox church, Zrenjanin, Serbia

Slightly underwhelming spomenik, Zrenjanin

Had to have just one šampita to celebrate being back!

The best part for us, of course, was riding the small lines on Serbian trains, always on time and clean and cool. The trains are slower than the buses, but we love the scenery and the comfort. Rows of bright green crops stretched into the distance, and ramshackle farmhouses sat amongst fields of bright red and purple poppies. Rich even spotted the odd hare, pheasant and deer with his eagle eyes. 

Cute little Senta railway station, Serbia

Inside great Serbian trains

Waiting for train to from Kikinda to Zrenjanin

Having reached Belgrade, we stayed a week on our way down to Montenegro, mostly hanging out and catching up with friends from the wonderful Sun Hostel, a favourite of ours on and off for five years now. We finally set out on a day trip Sal had been desperate to do for years - Avala mountain, a gorgeous green area close to the city. Taking advantage of the currently free buses in and around Belgrade, we spent about one hour to reach the bottom of the mountain. There were a multitude of small paths leading into the forest immediately from the bus stop, and we quickly found ourselves in wonderful nature. The walk to the top and exploring was a bit of a slog for our bodies, after all our quiet time in Amman, but we loved the fresh air, birdsong and quietness of the woods.

Trails around Avala mountain, Belgrade

At the top there were various monuments and buildings from Yugoslavian times, and earlier, and we loved the Grecian style 1920's Monument To The Unknown Hero and the intriguing monument to the friendship and teamwork of Russian soldiers during World War Two. Avala TV tower was also worth the trek. Bombed by NATO in 1999, it was rebuilt exactly in replica years later as a defiant "F**k you" signal to those who thought they could destroy the spirits of the Belgrade locals. A quintessentially Serb gesture. The tower can be seen at a great distance from many parts of Belgrade and it very symbolic to much of the population. 

Strange Art Nouveau style monument at Avala

Monument to Russian fighting friendship, Avala, Belgrade

We love a good spomenik

Avala TV tower, a symbol for the city

After a relatively quick stay in Belgrade (for us!), we were looking forward to heading to the coast for our beach stay in Montenegro for the beginning of summer.

Smiles on our faces, back in Serbia

.....what's next? Some beach time in Montenegro, and travels through Republika Srpska....