Belgrade

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Here I am, in Serbia, and I seem to recall laughing uproariously with Rachelle about the idea of travelling to Serbia (or was it Bulgaria... either way, Serbia: who’d have guessed it?).

This morning I missed breakfast, so I bought a burek sir for the road (greasy-as). The bus from Vukovar to Belgrade was supposed to come at 10:45 but it didn’t arrive until 11:15; I was afraid I’d pulled another Slavonski Brod! Why is it that the towns I enjoy the least are the ones that give me so much trouble leaving? Maybe it’s a sign that I haven’t stayed long enough to understand them. Or maybe my first impressions of them were right, and they’re annoying bastards. Either way, I was happy when it arrived, even though it meant I was leaving Croatia, which is never a happy occasion. But there was enough to keep me occupied and not get too sad, such as when I turned on Sasa’s phone and saw that he texted me yesterday saying “you missed me” (which I’m guessing means “I miss you”). Also, just outside Belgrade, I passed a massive shanty town that was as shocking as anything I’ve ever seen. There was so much trash lying around, clothes, furniture, linens, garbage, and in the middle of it were adults sitting and smoking, and kids running around playing.

The bus ride was a quick three hours, and then the walk to the Three Black Catz hostel was the longest hour of my life. I took the scenic route, I think (I still have no idea how I got there in the end, because I can’t read street signs or the map!). I finally had to ask the Tourist i where the hostel was, and they directed me to it; it’s right off the main square, which I didn’t even know I was standing in when I was in it! I’ve decided to stay in Belgrade for a few days and take day trips from here, because I can’t be bothered to lug all of my stuff around the country.

There’s some pretty sweet shopping here (Zara and Morgan de Toi almost made my mouth water!), and I had to take out money before getting amongst it. I took out 10,000 dinars; I’m not exactly sure what the dinar is worth, so hopefully that’s a normal amount to withdraw in a day!). I spent a blissful hour shopping, decided it was well and truly time to buy some new shoes so everyone will stop looking at my sandalled feet in horror. Then I went into a park, lured by the surreally pink and purple sunset over the Sava (I realized that gorgeous haze is actually smog, but nevermind), and I ended up discovering the fortress. I walked around there for a bit, then headed back to the hostel and decided tonight will be my last night there. The guy who runs it, Mladen, is quite nice, but it has that unfriendly European-vibe that I hate and I felt a little uncomfortable there by myself when everyone around me was speaking in different languages. I’m going to go out for dinner tonight and then find a new place to move tomorrow.

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