Blogs from Serbia, Europe - page 2

We went out for a traditional dinner last night. Jeff and I had pork stuffed with cheese and then wrapped in bacon with fried home grown potatoes and a salad. I'm not sure I believe the potatoes were home grown, but it tasted wonderful, so who cares. Novi Sad to Belgrade is 93kms. We chose to combine two ride days into one to pick up another day for contingency. Due to the distance we have to cover we decided on a 7:30am leave time. And we did it. Second day in a row we've left on time. Getting out of Novi Sad was busy as expected. We wound our way though the busy peak hour traffic over the Danube and into the suburbs. We had a significant climb today of 4.4kms with 280m of vertical height. ... read more

We walked into the centre of town for dinner last night and stumbled across some Sunday night entertainment. There were street vendors selling their wares as well as a stage set up that had violins, drums and a double bass. It was very traditional music and there were some in particular who were really getting into the dancing in a very animated way. It was a great way to end our last evening in Hungary before heading into Serbia today. It's the last of the super hot days so we decided we needed to leave by 8:00am to be sure we gave ourselves a head start on the heat. We left at 8:20am. At least our trail today was mostly sealed which made for good time. We were back up on the levee which is basically ... read more

Belgrade Airport, named after the Serb inventor Nikola Tesla, is being rebuilt around us. We pick-up a fixed price taxi ticket (€18, pay the driver) and head for the queue. The queue is long and uncovered; it is raining and there are no taxis. Eventually we realise that all the taxis are being hailed further down the road before they get to us. We walk down the road to join in; it is now pouring with rain. At the unofficial taxi stand there is no fixed price. You might pay €20, you might have to pay €50. The rain is now torrential, we pay €30. By the time we get to town the rain has abated and we find our comfortable Airbnb just off the main street. And I find my right contact lens was washed ... read more

With San Francisco's downtown becoming a relative ghost town, what can we expect in the future for tourism? In 2019, the United States had 79.4 million international visitors, a figure that plummeted to 19.2 million in 2020 as the pandemic hit and rose to just 22.1 million in 2021. International visitors spent $239.4 billion in 2019, but just $81 billion in 2019, the Commerce Department said. Before COVID, tourism supported 9.5 million U.S. jobs and generated $1.9 trillion in economic output. San Francisco was hit hard, but mostly downtown where tourists tend to stay. The neighborhoods thrived, while many businesses in the downtown area closed or downsized. My favorite Uniqlo store on Powell, near the cable car turntable is gone. In fact, during the pandemic, the cable cars were also garaged in the cable car barn. ... read more

I am most happy to be home now. Three weeks is just a bit too long, at my age. Two weeks would be perfect. Trip locations: Frankfurt, Athens, Belgrade (Serbia), Cycling cruise on Dalmatian coast in Croatia, Dubrovnik, Montenegro, Paris, and back to Frankfurt before a nonstop to SFO and home. I much prefer to use a Eurail pass, but flights are both plentiful, and cheap. Most city hopping on planes in Europe is not more than 100 Euros!!! But it is a hassle, no matter how you view it. Speaking of which, the dollar has great purchasing power right now, with a Euro running about $1.05. And it was even better in Croatia, and Serbia!! I changed my mind about the worst tourists, as I saw very few Chinese tourists. I think the Brits are ... read more