Naturally…

A Free Walking Tour

Obviously the free walking tours are free as the name suggests, but they work on tips so when you take a free walking tour be sure to have $10-$20 dollars or more to gift the guide. They are after all giving you a guided tour of the city you came to see.

Today I did the free walking tour of Belgrade. The guide was a very funny guy and told us some great stories about this magical place.

First of all the tour was about 2.5 hours and we walked a loooooong way. My feet were so sore when I got home I had to put on socks for the extra padding. LOL. In fact, as I write this the following morning, my feet are still sore. That’s when you know you walked a long way, when you can’t walk on your feet without extra cushioning. hahaha.

RePublic Square

Let’s meet at the horse

We started in Republic Square, a very common meeting place in the city. Apparently if you are going to meet friends or family everyone always says “I will meet you at the horse” because of the Statue of Prince Mihailo on his horse. When the guide asked us, myself and two couples from Bulgaria, if we knew the story behind the horses leg position…and me being super proud of having learned this information in Panama, I said “4 legs down means the person died of natural causes, 2 legs up means the person died from wounds on the battlefield, 1 leg up means the person died from battle wounds after battle.” 

Well, well, well….the Balkan countries apparently have a different version for what it means when the horse has a single leg raised. It means the person was assassinated. Well then! So Prince Mihailo was assassinated. And we were just getting started…

Tricycle

The ‘real’ James Bond

We passed by Duško Popov’s house, a famous Serbian double agent and we learned why his code name was Tricycle (you will have to google it for yourself).  He is the inspiration behind the James Bond character, not only for his spy characteristics but also very much for his playboy ways, as is represented in the James Bond character.

Silicon Valley

Not what you think you know!

Then we carried on down the street to the Bohemian district, Skadarlija, and my home for the next month. As we passed through this area we headed into the Dorćol district and towards the Silicon Valley of Belgrade.

The Silicon Valley of Belgrade, it has nothing to do R&D, microchips or IT and everything to do with Silicon, curvy injections and the money that promenades this neighbourhood. It once was the neighbourhood where those that got rich fast lived and it became known as the Silicon Valley for the gold diggers looks for their sugar daddies.  There were 4 P’s that were required to be worthy of living among these elite. A Pistol, a Porsche, and a Plavuša (a blonde LOL) I apologize I can’t remember the 4th P.

MBajrakli Mosque

The last one standing

Then we went to the Bajrakli Mosque, the only surviving Mosque from 200 mosques that once existed in Belgrade. It has a very interesting history.  This mosque is actually the oldest religious building in Belgrade, which is very interesting because the percentage of Muslims is 1.9% in Belgrade.  Built in the 1600s during the Ottoman Empire, this stone mosque features a octagonal dome & minaret. Today the minaret is made of a different construction because when the Astro Hungarian’s arrived they converted this Mosque into a Roman Catholic Churches and tore down the original minaret, but when the Ottoman rule returned the minaret was restored.

Kalemegdan

The Park and the Fortress of Belgrade

Right in the middle of the city is a giant open park. If you know Vancouver, you know we have Stanley Park right in the middle of the city, this gorgeous wooded playground.  Well, Belgrade has one similar. An expansive park with the historic fortress, a museum, a zoo, walking paths & river views.

The name is derived from two Turkish words: Kale which means fortress and megdan which means battlefield.

Cathedral of San Miguel

Holy Archangel Michael Orthodox Church

The city’s main cathedral, built in the 1830s, has a grand altar & houses relics of Serbian saints.

Buried in the church are Prince Miloš Obrenović, the leader of the Second Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Turks and the founder of Obrenović royal dynasty, and his son Prince Mihailo, one of the key figures in Serbian history, assasinated in 1868, Knez Mihailova street was named after him, and an equestrian monument errected at Republic square, in front of the National Museum.

Kafana Culture

The oldest restaurant in Belgrade

“?” is the oldest traditional tavern in Belgrade. The building is nearly 200 years old and is one of the city’s best known landmarks serving traditional Balkan cuisine.

Why name a restaurant “?”? Well, it was first known as “By the Cathedral”, but in 1892, the church authorities forbid the kafana to be called that, so the owner decided to temporarily name it ? (question mark). But the temporary name was never changed and it still remains the name today.

_{Please note that I have not received these products for free or at a discounted price in exchange for my opinion.  There may be links that are affiliate links but at the time of posting this review, I have not received any monetary kickbacks.}