The little travelogue from Belgrade
Friends, from the 20th to the 23th June, our spiritual father, main illustrator and author of our upcoming book Jan Hachran, visited the serbian capital Belgrade. On our Facebook page a small travelogue was published in the form of individual posts, which we would like to present to you also here on our website. Unfortunately, Jan Hachran's visit in Serbia was very short, so this article is only something like a smaller summary of Belgrade's most interesting sights. However, we will go to Serbia in the future, because we also discussed the exhibition of our gilded graphic with the theme of slavic nations, which (if everything goes well) should take place there next year.
P.S.: We left the narrative in the "ich" form.
P.S.: We left the narrative in the "ich" form.
1. The Cathedral of Saint Sava, visited on the 20th June
"One of the first places I had to visit in Belgrade is one of its the most important monuments and one of the largest orthodox temples in the world, namely the Cathedral of Saint Sava. It is interesting to note, that its construction began in the first half of the 20th century and it is still under construction. Unfortunately, I can not visit its interior, because it was closed in that evening time, when I was there, but I still had a beautiful views of this majestic building, which I had to immortalize for you in the photos."
2.The Ethnographic museum, visited on the 21th June
"During the second day of my journey through Belgrade, I stopped at the local Ethnographic museum, which documents the traditional life in Serbia in the past and present. There are many folk costumes from different regions of Serbia and from serbian communities in neighboring countries, as well as an exhibition of folk architecture and rural life in the serbian countryside. I liked the exhibition very much, and it was very informative for me as a person, who amateurish deals with ethnography."
3. The Kalemegdan fortress, visited on the 21th June
"One of the most famous landmarks of Belgrade, Kalemegdan Fortress, became the next stop on my journey. It stands on the place, where the remains of a settlement from celtic times were found, and where later were roman, byzantine and serbian fortifications. For some time it was held also by Hungarians. In the year 1521 it was conquered by the Turks, from whose language is derived today's name (kale means fortification, megdan means fighting), and who occupied it (with the exception of several tens of years in the 18th century, when it was in the hands of Habsburg troops) until 1867. After Serbia liberated itself from ottoman rule, it continued to serve as a military object until 1890, when it was officially handed over to the city. Even before the World War I, the border with Austria - Hungary, which then owned Vojvodina, took place near Belgrade, so the fortress had strategical meaning. When you stand on the walls of Kalemegdan, so that you look towards the confluence of the Danube and the Sava, on which, like on the city, is a beautiful view, you will see a large island called Veliko ratno ostrvo (Great war island in english), part of which then belonged to Serbia and part to Austria - Hungary. Over the island can be seen from Kalemegdan one of the towers of today Belgrade's quarter (formerly a separate town), Zemun, which was already in Austria - Hungary before World War I.
Today the situation is different. Vojvodina is for long time a part of Serbia and Kalemegdan already became a park at the end of the 19th century, later also a museum and a recreation center. There are many sports facilities at the fortress, including tennis courts and basketball courts, as these sports are quite popular in Serbia and many famous sportsmen in these disciplines come from Serbia. The park is large and has a very pleasant atmosphere. Many local people come here to spend their free time. In addition to military architecture, parks and sports facilities, the fortress also features a military museum and you can also see the ottoman mausoleum or the typical Balkan house, in which currently seats the Belgrade authority for monuments and cultural heritage."
Today the situation is different. Vojvodina is for long time a part of Serbia and Kalemegdan already became a park at the end of the 19th century, later also a museum and a recreation center. There are many sports facilities at the fortress, including tennis courts and basketball courts, as these sports are quite popular in Serbia and many famous sportsmen in these disciplines come from Serbia. The park is large and has a very pleasant atmosphere. Many local people come here to spend their free time. In addition to military architecture, parks and sports facilities, the fortress also features a military museum and you can also see the ottoman mausoleum or the typical Balkan house, in which currently seats the Belgrade authority for monuments and cultural heritage."
4. The Cathedral Church of St. Michael the Archangel and the Patriarchate of the Serbian orthodox church, visited on the 21th June
"When I was returning from the visit of the famous Kalemegdan fortress, I stopped in the Cathedral of Saint Michael the Archangel, otherwise also called Saborna crkva, the beautiful temple, in which serbian and later yugoslavian kings were crowned, and where the famous writer and linguist Vuk Stefanović Karadžić is buried. Opposite to the temple is another building, which is quite significant for Serbia, because it is the seat of the Patriarchate of the Serbian orthodox church."
5. The statue of the prince Mihailo III. Obrenović
"During my visit in Belgrade during the walk on Republic square (Trg Republike) I came across this beautiful equestrian statue of Prince Mihailo III. Obrenović, located next to the National theater. The statue dates back to 1882 and at that time it was the first equestrian statue in Serbia. Its authors were Serb Konstantin Jovanović and Italian Enrico Pazzi.
Prince Mihailo III. Obrenović during his reign between 1860 and 1868 forced the Turks to leave the country and thanks to that he completed the process of gaining serbian independence, which brought him great popularity. He died in 1868 by the hands of the assassins..."
Prince Mihailo III. Obrenović during his reign between 1860 and 1868 forced the Turks to leave the country and thanks to that he completed the process of gaining serbian independence, which brought him great popularity. He died in 1868 by the hands of the assassins..."
6. The Palace Albania
"I was staying in the center and not far from the famous building, which is located on the corner of the busy Knez Mihailova street and Republic square (in serbian Trg Republike) and bears (from today's perspective a bit paradoxically) the name Palace Albania. This name is derived from the popular restaurant of the same name, which stood here from the 19th century to the 1930s, when it was demolished and the palace building grew in its place in record time of one and a half years. The authors of the design are artists from Zagreb Branko Bono and Milan Grkalić, who were inspired by the interwar american and german architecture and this inspiration is visible on the building. It is interesting to note, that at the time of its completion just before World War II it was the tallest building in the Balkans and the usable area of all rooms and spaces together give a respectable 8000 m2."
