Novi Sad, Serbia-- August 23rd through 29th -- Town on the Danube (80 km. north of Belgrade)

 Following the suggestion of my friend, Mukti, and because I had 16 days to "kill" in Serbia before my exodus from Europe, I decided to explore a bit more of Serbia... hence, the trip out of Belgrade to Novi Sad. 

It was a good choice. The town's historical center was quite charming, as is typical; I  enjoyed a music festival at the famed fortress on the other side of the Danube river over the weekend; I ventured out on one very hot--but great-- excursion to the monasteries in the Fruska Gorda National Park; and finally, indulged in numerous swims in the river itself (it was BLAZING hot there in that town!!!)

I finally got lucky in terms of an Airbnb stay, thank God! Which is also why I decided to spend an entire week in Novi Sad. I procured a room in the apartment of Vladislava, a woman about my age. Her place was gorgeous--nicely furnished, spacious and comfortable, with a well-equipped kitchen. She was home a lot, but was respectful of my space, while at the same time being extremely helpful regarding tips about the city. I would venture to say that we became friends of sorts... and all in all, it was a very pleasant stay. I deserved this break, if I dare say so myself!!! 




Incredibly, this was the view out of my window at the Airbnb! It looked out over the Danube at the famous fortress on the other side. This was taken on my last morning; the prior days were virtually cloudless, and VERY hot (high 30's, celcius) and I would not have survived if not for AC in the room, and the blessed river to swim in!!


Part 1: Historical center, including the various churches and wonderful old buildings...always my favorite part of any European city! 


City hall


A lovely central park... great place to take a break and get out of the heat!





Central cathedral in the town






A nobleman's palace


The synagogue... the Serbian Jews are a minority, of course, but they are still here.. unfortunately, this was undergoing major construction and I could not go inside. 


Ahhh, blessed reprieve from the heat, not to mention, SO great to be able to SWIM!!! 




Part 2: Night scenes of Novi Sad-- quite magical! 


Night view of the city from the Fortress... so, this is looking out over the river back at the center of Novi Sad. 


From the Airbnb again, this time, looking toward the fortress across the river.


Taken from a high point of the fortress


Back in the town center: it came alive at night and was quite crowded, as it was finally cool enough for a comfortable stroll! The streets were filled with people walking, eating, gathering in groups... 




Nobleman's palace, beautiful when lit up! 


Ditto, for the magnificent city hall! 


Part 3: A day in the Fruska Gorda National Park, visiting monasteries with three lovely Serbs who took pity on me (hiking the trails in the heat was killing me!!!) and drove me around... was really great!! What a boon!





















Yours truly, with the 2 lovely women I met... the husband of one of them is taking the photo. Of course I have already forgotten their names--Serbian names are SO difficult to remember/pronounce!




I loved the looks of this old priest, in the typical garb of long black robes, long gray beard, and black cap. The ones I saw were cookie cutter look-alikes, except for an occasional young one! 







































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