Beograd Boogie

*Travel*

The land between Zagreb and Belgrade continued pretty well flat, and frequently cultivated, with occasional hills in the distance. The border formalities were'nt too onerous - my passport got checked by outgoing Croatian Customs and Border police, and by Serbian Border police (who read my name into their radio). The Croatian and Serbian Customs simply asked if we had anything to declare. Another uniformed guy popped his head into the compartment and said something, but neither the French girls nor I could be bothered to ask what he'd said.

On arriving at Belgrade station I make my first "cultural learning" - everything is in Cyrillic writing, occasionally with Latin (ours) underneath. Fortunately, the numbers are the same. It seems that very few people here speak any English - worse than I expected after working for years with so many former-Yugoslav colleagues. The guide book explains it's age-related, with younger people much more likely to speak English.

I fruitlessly looked for an ATM, then changed my remaining Kunu (apparently, plural of Kuna) and £80 into Serbian Dinar. As I write, it occurs to me I could have taken a photo of my Croatian notes - I'll do these. The exchange rate is 114RSD:1GBP, so I get over 9000 Dinar. As before, I'm just guessing how much money I'll need for my time here.

Next job is to book my onward journey. The lady on the International Travel desk speaks good english and I settle for one person in a "sleeps two" on tomorrow night's train to Sophia at a total cost of about 1850 Dinar. I don't know if anyone else will be in the other bed - I didn't ask, but what is life without mystery?

Next, I couldn't find any decent maps of Belgrade on the internet, so I buy a paper one at a news stand. At stations here they have 3 or 4 news stands, right next to each other and looking identical. They have a fairly small opening in the middle of the front, surrounded by merchandise. Sometimes you have to stoop to see the person inside. Something else I suppose I should have photographed - D'oh!

Being brave (?), I ask the news-seller how I should get to my hotel. He sends me (by sign language and written-down numbers) across the road to catch a tram number 9, selling me a ticket. When, 20 minutes later, when trams of every other number have passed, I return to plan A and get a taxi. When I arrive at the hotel, I note the absence of tram tracks in front of the hotel and thank the taxi driver with extra warmth.

The hotel room is lovely, actually a suite with separate sitting and bedrooms, and a really large bed. I also have wired internet - luxury! This is a complete change from the expensive cupboard I stayed in in Zagreb. All I can see from my window and balcony are the woodlands surrounding the hotel.

The hotel seems so nice, especially after today's journey that I feel like staying here all evening. But I've travelled so far to see Belgrade that'd be stupid. So I ask the receptionist for old town bars and restaurants, and she directs me to for Skadarska (street) and calls me a taxi, which arrives in 2 minutes and costs 470 Dinar into town (about £4).

Skadarska is on a slight hill and ranged with bars and restaurants, all with chairs outside and several with musicians to serenade the diners. I choose a nice place, but the maitre di declines to seat me because I am alone.

A waiter at the next place down welcomes me, but he's obviously over-busy and makes lots of mistakes, starting off by taking my food order and leaving me for 20 minutes before taking my drink order. Make me wait any time for food, but don't leave me sitting without a drink!!!

First bread and then starter arrive before I have a plate. He brings a bottle of white wine, but I manage to catch him before he opens it and he fetches a bottle of red - chilled, but maybe that's the custom here. Then the mineral water is sparkling instead of still. Fortunately the food tastes nice; a grilled mushroom starter and an main course called something like "uncle Vanya" Fillet, where the steak has inside cheese (strong-tasting but not blue) and some salty form of bacon. The portion is huge and I guess the waiter forgot to tell the kitchen that, although from the "Two Deers" (two person?) part of the menu, the dish is just for one. Just one plate though, so maybe...

When I'm stuffed,I decide to go for a walk. The map shows Republic Square at the end of Skadarska, so I head off. Somewhere beyond that is the last night of the local Beer Festival, which sounds fun if I get that far. I can't see anything "squarey", blame it on the map and walk further. Soon I'm in dark side streets, wondering around lost-but-I'm-sure-I-could-retrace-if-I-wanted-to.

I see a kebab stall and walk up to a customer, asking him to point where I am on the map. It turns out that Republic Square is at the uphill end of Skadarska, and the taxi driver dropped me at the middle walking outward, rather than the opposite as I'd assumed. Hence I'm now in the middle of nowhere.

I ask where I can get a taxi and the stall-holder telephones one for me, again arriving in 2 minutes or less.

Safely back at the hotel I have a couple of beers in the bar. The barmaid has that whole peering-out-from-under-a-fringe thing going on, very early-lady-Di.

Next morning I spend too long typing this. I want to book my room ahead in Sofia, and Best Western will do that for me here, but I need to know where the hotel will be. I need to know whether Belgrade station has left luggage (I forgot to check yesterday) and the must-see St. Save Church, the largest Eastern Orthodox church in the world is well outside the town centre, so I need to know how to get out there and back again. Isn't this relaxing!