Bosnia & Herzogovina Village/Town/City Names Translated to English

 

 

If you are one of the lucky folks who have had a chance to visit the  little Balkan county of Bosnia & Herzegovina, you know how beautiful it is. The rolling hills, untouched forests, crystal clear streams, delicious food, diverse population, historic sites, and friendly people make it a vacationer’s delight.

Bosnia & Herzegovina does have it’s oddities. It has three presidents and is divided into two sections:   Republika Srpska (Majority Serb)is one of two constitutional and legal entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Majority Bosnjak/Bosniak/Bosnian Muslim). The entities are largely autonomous with Banja Luka being the capital of Republika Srpska and Sarajevo being the capital of the Federation.

Enough of the talk, let’s get to the meat of this article. My buddy, Hristof Romanic, made a map of Serbia with funny English translations a few months ago. It went over so well that he decided to make one for his homeland of Bosnia & Herzegovina. It was made to make people laugh and to show some of the funny translations that exist in village/town and city names. We know that more professional translations exist, but this is made for comedic purposes. Grab a coffee, relax and enjoy!

Gornji Smrtići (Upper Death’s People)

Tišina (Silence)

Brčko (Splattered)

Bijeljina (Whiteness)

Ćele (Bald Men)

Bogovci (God’s People)

Brka (Mustache Guy)

Banja Luka (Spa Port)

Pjanići (Drunk People)

Stijena (D. Johnson “The Rock”)

Teslić (Small Tesla)

Tuzla (Here Evil)

Popovi (Priests)

Donja Kozica (Lower Little Goat)

Zavidovići (People Who Envy)

Debelo Brdo (Fat Hill)

Jajce (Small Egg)

Zenica (Pupil)

Ekonomija (Economy)

Motike (Hoes)

Babino Selo (Granny’s Village)

Kakanj (Shi**er)

Smrtići (Death’s People)

Zlosela (Evil Villages)

Dobrići (Good People)

Sarajevo (Sarah Is A Bull)

Rat (War) Ponor (Abyss)

Višegrad (More City)

Pale (Burning) Mokronoge (Wet Legs)

Rujan (September)

Mostar (Brigder)

Kukavice (Cowards)

Male Budalice (Little Fools)

Biograd (It Was City)

Obzir (Consideration)

Mesari (Butchers)

 

 

Do you like me so much that you feel like donating? I do accept tips! 🙂 Everyone has told me for years that I should put a donation button on my blog, but I think it makes you lose credibility. I’ve been talking about Serbia for nearly 7 years and have only done it out of love, but if you are so dead set on giving me a tip, I promise I’ll use it wisely. 🙂  My Paypal is charlesserbia@gmail.com. 

 

Top 10 Things I miss About Living in Novi Sad, Serbia

 

It’s only been two months since I left Serbia, but i’m already missing a few things. I’m spending the summer on the island of Nantucket off the coast of Massachusetts with 8 of my Serbian students to see how they work and to make some money. One of my students from Novi Sad was even featured in BLIC for his awesome  summer experience. My return flight to Serbia is scheduled for Sept 17th when I fly from NYC to Amsterdam to Belgrade. I’ll be back just in time for the world’s largest work and travel conference which will be held in Belgrade. Work and Travel Group is one of the two representatives from Serbia who will be organizing this massive event. I’ll be giving a presentation to over 600 representatives from work and travel offices all over the world.

The boys and I are constantly discussing what we miss the most about Serbia so I thought i’d throw together a quick list of the things that I miss about Serbia. Let’s get started:

10. Srpski Sir

I’m a big fan of cheese and Serbia is home to lots of it! We have a lot of cheeses here, but the homemade stuff you find in Serbia can’t be beat. I know an American who flew to Serbia to do a documentary on cheese. From Pirot to Zlatibor to Sijenica to Vojvodina, they have awesome cheeses!

 

9. Living alone in my $130 mo apartment 

 

I moved into my own apartment when I was 17 and only had a roommate once in my life. It’s very difficult to go from living alone to living with 6 others. I have my own room, but feel so uncomfortable having so many others in my house. You don’t know when you can use the washing machine, bathroom, when you can cook and how quiet you must be. I pay $800 a month here in Nantucket for this accommodation, while my little apartment in the heart of Novi Sad was only $130 a month.

 

8. Pekara

Who would think you would really miss a bakery? Well….. I sure as hell do. In Serbia, you are never more than a few blocks from a bakery filled with fresh burek, jogurt, and bread. You can’t go wrong with a 100 dinar slice of burek on your way to work.

 

7. Trafika

 

We have a lot of 24/7 stores throughout the USA, but not here on the island of Nantucket. The 24/7 trafikas in Novi Sad really had me spoiled. If you needed a soda, chips, sweets or phone credits at 4 am, no problem. The stores close at 10 here so if you forgot something, too bad.

 

6. Ajvar

 

The first time I tried this stuff, I hated it. That was back in 2010 and now it’s one thing that I eat on a daily basis. You will find many Serbians growing lots and lots of peppers. They use them to prepare one of the most delicious condiments on the globe. You can find it in some American stores, but nothing beats the homemade ajvar that my friends bring me each fall.

 

5. Sasa Matic 

Sasa has turned into one of my favorite Serbians.   This man has one of the most beautiful voices I’ve ever heard. It took me a few years to get into the Serbian folk music scene, but i’m there. My favorite songs are : Kad Ljubav Zakasni, Nadji Novu Ljubav, Kralj Izgubljenih Stvari, Samo Ovu Noc, Reskiraj, Poklonite Mi Nju Za Rodjendan and almost anything else that comes out of his mouth. I listen to him each morning and on my IPOD, but miss hearing him in the bars and kafanas. My buddy is going to do his best to meet me with him.

4. Nightlife

 

The USA has some great nightlife in certain places, but not 7 days a week like you can find in many parts of Serbia. They just recently passed an ordinance in Novi Sad that has limited the hours, but it still beats Nantucket. The Serbian people like to party and you will find the bars full  Mon-Sunday. That’s not the case here. I like to go out for a few beers after work, but many of these bars in Nantucket close at 11 or 12. The majority are almost empty after 10pm through the week. The crowds give me a burst of energy and keep me from feeling like an alcoholic. 🙂

 

3. Prices

 

You wouldn’t believe how hard it is to go from Serbia to Nantucket which is one of the most expensive places in the USA. My average meal in a little restaurant is around $40. That usually includes a couple beers and main course. The beer is $7 in the bar that I like to go. A Serb, Macedonian and I went to this little bar by my house the other night. In one hour, we had a bill of $134!!  In Novi Sad, I could go out and have an amazing time on 1,000 dinars. Horus Nargile Bar is my daily hangout. I can smoke a nargile, drink a shot of rakija, two beers and still be under 1000. Living in Serbia with American money, can’t be beat.

 

 

 

2. Serbian summer festivals

Serbia is home to some of the best festivals. They have Belgrade Beer Festival in Belgrade, Guca Trumpet Festival, Exit Festival in Novi Sad, Nisville Jazz Fest in Nis, Rostiljada in Leskovac,  and many many more. There is always something going on during the Serbian summer months.

 

 
1. Rostilj

You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve dreamed of a big mixed meat platter with kajmak. The boys all miss the hell out of their meat. The first thing I’m going to do when I return on Sept 17th is hit up this great kafana in Belgrade for a big mixed meat platter! If you haven’t had Serbian rostilj, your life sucks.

 

 

 

16 Year Old Serb Talking About Uprooting to Indonesia Because of NATO Attacks

 

It’s very interesting yet horrible to hear of the struggle so many Serbians went through during the NATO attacks on their country in 1999. I was fortunate enough to discuss the story of one young Serb student whose family was forced to flee the bombing attacks of 1999. Igor Mijovic was kind enough to share some of his experiences in Indonesia.

“I was born in Belgrade in 1999 just 14 days before the start of the NATO bombing. I lived relatively a peaceful and fun childhood, I was never bothered with my family’s money issues, we didn’t have much but I was happy with the way things were, of course I was unaware of the real state of things with my dad’s job and how it was all falling to pieces. When my parents announced we were moving to Indonesia it hit me like a dagger to the heart. I was leaving all of my friends and family behind, going not only to another country, but to another continent I knew nothing or very little about. For me the worst part was that I would be unable to communicate with other people since I thought my English was way below the level of those kids that went to an international school. At first my months at my new school were awful, everything was so different from what I was used to, and everyone whispered about that tall Serbian guy who came from an unknown land, they could not bully me because I was too big for them, I was just ignored and I kept telling myself that this whole nightmare will be over soon, that I don’t need these new people in my life and that I will be back in my beloved country once again. It all changed though when I met a Canadian guy who spent an evening with me and that’s when it all started for the better. I met people from loads of different countries, shared stories and began to change mentally and emotionally. I realized not everything was as I thought, at this time I found Charles Cather’s first video on youtube and it really helped me fight my nostalgia, I’ve watched every one since. After 4 years I made tons of friends from all kinds of backgrounds, but it was not to last, since I was to move to my country once again. It was my choice, since I was old enough to be semi-responsible, but getting something means leaving something else behind. I had to leave all those dear friends I made and return to those I haven’t seen for years. Honestly living in an international community helped to change me for the better and I decided I won’t hate on anyone before I have a good talk with them and get to know their story. I’m planning on studying history and maybe becoming and international teacher to travel around. ”

Charles:  What were your first impressions of Indonesia?

Igor:  I expected it to be like those Chinese cities you see in movies, lots of tall buildings with flashing signs in unknown letters. I was surprised at what I saw though, the air was humid and hard to breathe, there is a huge difference between lower and high class, with no middle class. There was very little bread and red meat and the way people acted was very strange, I’ve never experienced that much respect and awe of white people in my life.

Charles:  What did you miss the most about Serbia?

Igor: Well for the first year or so it was my friends and my relatives I missed the most until I actually started making international friends. Food was also a pain to get used to. It’s not the usual asian food we eat in the west, lots of rice, many spices we haven’t even heard of, fruits that taste very strange compared to kajsija and shljiva :D. But most of all it was the freedom, I couldn’t walk around and go exploring, I couldn’t hug or kiss my friends in public. It was mostly the staying at home all the time that tortured me the most.

 

Charles: Where the locals respectful of your faith since it’s a Muslim country?

Igor: Indonesians are a very religious people, no matter what religion they are, they dismiss facts and other pleasures of life in order to be that much closer to their god. I myself am an atheist, I did enjoy celebrating my country’s many traditions and festivities, but that stuff was hard to come by. I did get looks of curiosity but sometimes even disgust and hate for not being a religious person, mostly from radical muslims and christians. My first year at school had mandatory religion and they had Protestant, Catholic, Hindu, Buddhist and Muslim, and I couldn’t find a place there, so I went with the protestants (one of my worst decisions since all we learnt about is how only they are right and true and everyone else is false).

Charles: Any similarities between the cultures?

Igor: The cultures are very different. The only things I found similar is the fact that they were under colonial rule for most of the time we were under Ottoman occupation.

 

Charles: What were the biggest differences in culture that you had a hard time adjusting to?

Igor: Indonesians have everything the opposite of Serbia, they are very radical religious, have more than 300 ethnic groups within the country, some even warring with each other. They don’t like to show emotions, believe in ghosts and spirits too much and due to the lack of education (with every school having to be paid for, and millions in poverty having no money for it) lack basic knowledge and intelligence. It also takes much longer to reach to them and get close to them as friends, than it would with a western person. In the end they proved to be just as good and fun as my Serbian friends.

Charles: Had most people heard of Serbia? If so, what were their impressions?

Igor: Most Indonesians didn’t know what I was talking about when I said Serbia, but when I said Yugoslavia they usually nodded their heads and said things like “Long live Tito, Indonesia’s friend!”, I didn’t really feel like explaining to them that he’s dead and that everything changed. People in my school never showed much interest in my country, most thought its a warzone still, laughed at my opanci and asked me to say random things in Serbian. I tried my best to show Serbia in a good light, and how civilised it is compared to Indonesia, for me that was a must when it came to discussing my country.

This is one story of thousands of Serbs who were displaced throughout the 90’s. 

 

Serbia’s British Friend

What is one thing that can be very annoying about having so many Serbian Facebook friends? Having your inbox flooded with the same info and links on anything that is going on in Serbia. That is how I first heard of Kevin Shannon, the adventurer , who was planning to march all the way across Serbia. There were over 20-30 folks who were sending me something from the local newspapers and tv stations about him and his mission. We had connected over Facebook and he asked me to join in on part of journey. I wish I had taken the opportunity to do so not only for my health, but to experience a little bit of his adventure.

We bumped into each other again the “Exit Festival Global Adventures” tourism conference. I was there to giving a presentation on my social network and blog while he was there to present  “Walk Serbia”. I decided to quiz him with some more detailed questions about his time in Serbia.

1. Where are you from and what do you do?

So: my name is Kevin Shannon and I’m from the UK. Currently I run my own small creative design studio called Chips & Gravy studios

2. How in the world did you get the idea to “walk across Serbia”?

 

I originally visited Serbia the first time in the autumn of 2010 whilst on 10,000 km cycling expedition from the UK to the far end of Turkey and then back again. On that visit to Serbia I completely fell in love with the country and made some great friends. During the 3 to 4 months that I spent in Serbia I spend most my time in Belgrade, Novi Sad, Sabac and Nis. When I returned home I realised that I’d only seen a fraction of Serbia and although I had learnt about the country a little there was still Hell of a lot more to see. So I decided that one day I would return to Serbian  and walk the length of the country.

3. What did you know about Serbia before you came here? 

Before I visited Serbia first time I didn’t really know that much about the country. I had simply drawn a line across Europe and Serbia happened to be on that path. I knew the region was obviously famous for conflicts and I had a they recollection of seeing the NATO bombings on television when I was younger, but that was really it. But as I was cycling through countries before I got to Serbia I was warned that Serbian people what do horrific things to me once I crossed the border. Of course I don’t believe this but when your cycling on your own across Europe these warnings do not fill you with confidence.

4. Prior to visiting Serbia for the first time, give me four words that you would used to describe it…

Unknown, War, Scary, New

5. How long did your walk take?

The walk is actually two walks. The first in February 2013 took me five weeks and during that time I walked from the border with Hungary down to the city of Nis. My second walk was in July 2013 and I walked from south west Serbia back to the north of the country, which also took five weeks.
6. Biggest complication.

The biggest complication was issues from walking with such a heavy pack. My left knee became very sore during the first walk, and during the second walk I had horrific blisters on the sole of one of my feet.

7. Funniest situation.

I was in a small village about 75 km north of Nis, feeling very tired and the little homesick and out of nowhere a group of young kids came up to me with pieces of paper and pencils. The oldest had a hand written note in English which said that they were big fans and have been following my journey in the newspapers. Because they knew my route, they knew I would be passing through the village and so had taken it in turns to keep a eye out for me, just so they could get an autograph – they had been waiting for 3 days.

8. Favorite part of your journey.

The end? No, i’m just kidding. It’s actually very hard to pick a favourite part of the journey because so much happened but if I had to say one thing it was the generous hospitality everybody that i met on the road.

9. How would you compare Serbian food to your normal cuisine back in England? 

Serbian food is very rich with strong flavours, and of course there’s a lot of meat. Which is really the case in England. I guess if I had to make a comparison I would say that Serbian food it’s very much like a traditional English roast dinner that is served in most households every Sunday – however in England you have that once a week  and in serbia you have it almost everyday

10. Did you ever feel threatened or in danger?

I never really felt threatened or in danger, even in small Kafanas in the middle of god knows where surrounded by big, burly Serbian guys. The biggest issue with regards to safety to me was the packs of wild dogs. They were always a concern when I was walking in the mountains or sleeping out at night.

11. What 4 words would you use to describe Serbia after walking from top to bottom and back?

Beautiful, friendly, Great food, my second home 

 

12. Will you return to Serbia? What would you say to someone that is considering a visit to this part of the world?

Without shadow of a doubt I’ll be returning to Serbia – in fact I returned earlier this year for a conference where spoke about my was through Serbia. I already have plans to take my fiance to Serbia,  have my stag party there and maybe one day by small house somewhere where I can spend my summers (not walking)

 

 13. You have decided to publish a book about this exciting adventure, right? Tell me a little about the project.

OK, So the project was quite simply to walk through Serbia to try and discover the real Serbia. In my original trip to the country i felt i’d only scratched the surface and was intrigued to see more of the country so i set up Walk Serbia. When you look around the internet looking for more info on Serbia you’re met with a lot negativity (except for a few sites included yours) and i decided that i wanted to create a document of my personal journey to not so much counteract the negativity but give a truthful view of a country. Now, don’t get me wrong, i expected it to be a positive trip due to prior experiences but i was open to negativity also – i essentially wanted to create a truthful account of spending 10 weeks tramping around the country. And this is, i hope, what i’ve done.

I’m still in the process of writing the book – i’ve rewritten some chapters 4 times – but i decided that i would set a date (in my head) for it’s release. So now i’ve set up a website – walkserbia.com – which will be the hub for all things to do with the book including, the opportunity to buy the book, perhaps some videos from the road, exclusive photos and information on speaking engagements and a potential book tour. For the moment i’ve thrown up a very simple landing page which has a small blurb about the book and an area to signup to the newsletter which will give you exclusive updates, a free chapter here or there and an exclusive discount on the final book. I set up the newsletter for the reasons i just mentioned, but something amazing happened when i did – i realised just how much interest there was in reading the book; not just from Serbia but from all over the world. Serb’s from Australia, the USA and Canada and even South Africa have sent me messages to tell me they would like to buy copies for friends, families and co-workers which is exciting…and daunting.

My plan for releasing the book was to self-publish and through friends in Serbia distribute the book there and of course here in the UK. But, with the response i’ve had so far i’m not looking at other options. I’m thinking about getting the book translated into Serbian, i’m going to start looking for distributors in the US and Australia AND if the list keeps growing i could have a great opportunity to promote the book to publishers around the world  which will then (if i’ve done my job right) help to give the world a better understanding of Serbia.

Just like the journeys themselves felt like a community – i had people tweeting, facebooking and emailing to help influence what i should visit and where during the walk – the book is starting to feel the same.

 

 

Mexican Girl Falls for Serbia…..

I had a wonderful young lady contact me over Facebook. She was from the middle of Mexico , the exact state (Michoacan)  that I lived in for 1.5 years . She was nice enough to answer a few of my questions about her experience. I copied and pasted the responses so forgive any spelling or grammatical errors. If you would like to send her a nice little message, here is her Facebook profile.

Q) Tell me a little bit about yourself and your hometown

About me, well, theres not much to say Im a student, soon I will get Mayor in Psychology, next May actually, im 22 years old already, and I still live with my mom and my older sister, I have another younger brother, and he lives with my father and his wife. I loooove food, dance and sleep very well right now, im training crossfit, I really love it, its very complex and beautiful sport . My hometown… Morelia is a very historic place, it could take a looooooong while for me to tell smth about it, but, what can I say… Morelia is the city with most populated city in Michoacán (its state), and is the most extense, with an area of 78 km² and 597,511 habitants. It used to be a very strategic place for wars (when it was founded) and right now, the most important activities are culture and economy, you know, it’s a touristic place, for example, we have one touristic event called “Mariposa monarca”, and is a reserve of nature, where you watch all butterflies migrate to Canada (I think), and of course its an opportunity to sell food and services, tratidional food, like enchiladas, corundas, uchepos, tamales, elotes, atole de grano, atole of different flavors, churipo, carnitas, buñuelos, tequila, charanda, mezcal and other funny drinks , by the way, mescal burns almost like rakija, and taste is very similar, and of course don’t forget the effect jajajaj

Q) How did you first hear about Serbia?

Serbia was a country I never heard before in my life before, I even thought it was some sort of Asian country xD (sorry people, but we only learned about Yugoslavia) I first heard about it on the internet, I won’t say more , but when i heard about it I started to investigate it. I looked up its location on the map, the music, culture, food, and started to like it.

Q) What gave you the idea to visit Serbia? 

With time, I wanted to travel, thanks to a special b-day present from my mom so I started to look for different scholarship or volunteer programs that would allow me to travel and have some experiences. I found a program called “Vive Mexico” it is an organization here in Mexico that allows kids to travel, experience new cultures and volunteer. I applied for many countries including Serbia. I was accepted into the Serbian program called ” Drustvo Istrazivaca- Vladamir Mandic- Manda.”

Q) What did you like the most about Serbia?

this is a hard question for me, cuz, basically, I can say im in love with this country. I cant say I like everything, but…when I got there I really felt like I was at home. Serbia is very similar to Mexico starting with the people. They were very generous and kind. The food, OMG, the food was so interesting because it’s not the same food we have in Mexico but had some things that were similar like style, flavors and ways of cooking. They had spicy foods, cheeses, homemade dishes, yogurt, milk, meats and bread and so on. My favorite of them all was  sarma and burek. I could eat them both forever and never get tired of them. and even if it’s not a dish or anything special, yogurt (moja kravica) and cookies was great. Landscaping is amazing in Serbia too. Mexico has some green places, but I never knew green until I came to Serbia, PERIOD. Another thing was the water. In my country you cant take water from the tap or public places and drink it. But in Serbia you can drink it which is so practical. I loved the music, dance and drinks too! Rakija is similar to our drink, tequila. but when i tried it the first time it made me think of “Metzcal” because it burns and tastes so delicious. I almost forgot, the old buildings, they are beautiful!!  The Serbian guys are also very good looking so girls GO TO SERBIA. 😉

Q) What were your favorite cities that you visited and why?

I cant tell you like my favorite, i mean i enjoyed staying at all those cities, but, instead i rather say like an order, and the number one would be Jagodina, its a small one, and because of that I think the most calm one, and i loved that, whole city is amazingand beautiful, very nice and great people, and one of my favorite parts besides downtown, is Potok park, that place is so simple and so misterious at same time, I couldnt be at the top of it, but where i was, I could see a place where you can just close your eyes and feel how the whole city embrace you, I cant explain the exact feeling, but is a great place to be chill . Number two, is Kragujevac, and again, city is great!, bigger, but still not crowded, I also loved the park, Veliki park, and I actually got lost there, it was very funny , anyway, that place is beautiful!!, green is all over the place, and there is a place where you can sit and watch people passing by, and still is quiet and relaxing, that place brings me lots of special memories, there, I felt some strong energy of love, peace, and fullfillness, its a magic place , third Valjevo, its a great city, great ice creams at plaza, but what I really loved from that place is Gradac, I actually stayed there, and we went to rock climbing, we were inside a cave, and the craziest and most amazing experience there was at this mountains, is near a border of town, but I cant remember the name of those mountains, we went there with Russian cars, and it was very fun!! Again, greeeen all over the place, there were like 3 mountains in a roe, all together, the smallest, middle and biggest, I wish i can remember the names, but, that was amazing. And last but not least, Belgrade, that city reminded me of Mexico city, crowded and big, people all around, transports, plazas, huge malls, even I rather more peaceful places, I still find Belgrade interesting, is because its huge, and full of history, buildings, that makes it so interesting, it still isnt that crowded as Mexico city, and gosh thats great, but, that city wellcome me and said goodbye to me of an amazing experience

Q) What was the strangest thing you encountered?

I cant say strange, but I wasn’t familiar with the carpets, you know, you get in a place, and take off your shoes. We don’t do that in Mexico. The toilets were also very strange. They are a different style and I didn’t know how to work it. One time in a restaurant I had to go out and ask a waiter to show me how to flush it. 🙂 The door handles are also a different style and the electrical outlets are so different from the rectangle ones we use in Mexico.

Q) What was the biggest problem that you ran into? 

Not problem actually, the only thing I can complain is that I couldn’t stay longer xD 😛

Q) Did you learn any Serbian ? 

I did learn Serbian, actually, im still learning, with my friends I made there, they help me a lot, plus, I search for pages where I can check grammar and all basic stuffs, but now is harder cuz im not constantly hearing it, when I was there, I realized I could actually learn it 100%, but of course I had to stay there way longer, I love Serbian, and the hardest part for me, probably to remember how to change last part of words, depending on tense and depending on gender, so, its funny for me sometimes to write it xD jajajaja

Q) What advice would you give to someone that is interested in visiting Serbia?

To not be afraid of what news, media or anybody that say things, especially negative things about Serbia, just don’t listen to that and go to Serbia, live your own experience. I can say that it is very safe, of course it isn’t perfectly safe, just like any country there is some crime, but it doesn’t mean there is a terrorist on every street corner, that is ridiculous. I can assure you that it is a place where you can find peace, so i am sure you are going to love the place. Go everywhere you can while you are there, try everything you can, meet all the people that you can meet , there are many things to enjoy. You will find a very close “family” there! 🙂

 

 

My Serbian Food in Pictures

Karađorđeva šnicla with potatoes, bread, and a sopska salad

One of the reasons that I have yet to leave this country is the vast amount of delicious foods! I wanted to share some of my past food experiences with you. Hope you enjoy!

Easter dinner with colored eggs, stuffed peppers, pork and lamb soup

 

Homemade meal from a friend’s house in Nis

Kafana meal with cevapi, fries, sopska salad and Zajecarsko pivo

Sarma, pickled peppers, green onion and homemade bread

 

Fish soup (ribala corba) bread, and Zajecarsko Pivo

 

Komplet lepinja. Specialty from Uzice, Serbia. Grease from a roasted lamb on bread with egg and kajmak

 

Fresh fish from a small village near Uzice

 

they raised these fish in a stream by the restaurant

 

Mixed meat platter from Kod Srbe

 

cevapi, steak, and big cuts of pork with some fries and veggies

Sopska Salad

 

pizza with something called “beef sauce” smeared all of it

 

plate of fresh roasted lamb at Mokra Gora

 

different meats from a restaurant at Zlatibor

 

Gurmanska pljeskavica

 

palacinka or Serbian pancake

 

Eurocream and Nutella… sweet creamy hazelnut spread they put on pancakes

 

a few of the condiments you can get on your burgers

 

Sarma or stuffed sour cabbage rolls… my favorite

 

meat tray from a friend’s party

 

big pljeskavica with bread, urnebes, and fries

 

little pumpkin pies

 

cheese pies with spinach in them

 

snack tray of pavlaka, ham and fried zucchini

 

my favorite snacks… cheese, ajvar, crackers and a big bottle of Zajecarsko Pivo

 

after dinner drinks of Nescafe and boiled wine

 

Serbian traditional drink, rakija that was served in a glass of crushed ice 

 

 

Serbian Company Built Countries National Landmark

 

One of my first pen pals was a guy from Kuwait. He sent me a few pictures of his country and I was always in awe of the “Kuwait Towers”! I swore I would see them one day.

The Kuwait Tower, as its known, is actually three towers. They are one of the most well-known structures in the world. The main tower has two separate spheres and stands 187 meters high. The smaller, top sphere is used as a cafe, lounge and restaurant. It can hold up to 90 people and rotates every 30 minutes. The lower, larger sphere is a water tank of 4,500 cubic meters. The second tower is a water tower and stands 147 meters high.The third tower houses equipment to control the flow of electricity and illuminates the two larger towers. The towers hold 9,000 cubic metres of water altogether.

The Kuwait Towers were designed by Danish architect, Malene Bjorn as part of a water distribution project that was being done by Swedish engineering company, VBB. VBB hired Belgrade company, Energoprojekt and Ivan Milutinovic ,to do the actual construction of the towers . Other Yugoslavian companies were hired to build many of the government buildings, air bases, and ports around Kuwait City.http://www.slideshare.net/dottuta/kuwait-towers-presentation2edited

The Serbian company  started construction in the early 1970’s and finished around 1976. The large tower was first opened to the public in 1979.

The towers are built with three levels of concrete, making sure that they will be able to withstand natural disasters and catastrophes like floods. This is also to ensure that the towers can endure wear and tear through the years. They were slightly damaged during the war with Iraq, but have been repaired. The spheres were constructed of 41,000 enamelled steel discs that come in eight shades of blue, green and gray. They could be described as  Arabic architecture, carefully mixed with a touch of contemporary elegance. This modern style was relatively unheard of at the time these towers  were being erected.

Serbia’s relationship with Kuwait is still going strong today! They are one of many Arab nations that do not recognize an independent Kosovo. Kuwait’s Foreign Minister was in Belgrade in April. He said his country is willing to invest in Serbia’s energy, agriculture, and infrastructure. http://www.tanjug.rs/news/83980/kuwait-willing-to-invest-in-serbia.htm

Serbian lands have had a long history of raising great scientific and creative minds. This is one great example of Serbian influence on the world. Please join our new Serbia website to find more interesting bits of info on this great nation and its people. http://www.sayserbia.com/

 

Another One Cashing in on Kosovo

What gives??? A few days ago I was reading up on Madeline Albright and her huge investments in the telecom company in Kosovo. That really bummed me out. How could I have been so blind? A few moments after posting my blog article on it, a friend messaged me this little tidbit of info.

General Wesley Kanne was born in Chicago , Il in 1944. His father died four years later and the family moved to Arkansas because  his mother didn’t share the Jewish faith of the Kanne family. She remarried a gentleman by the  name of Viktor Clark. She had her son’s name officially changed on the birth certificate to Wesley Clark. She failed to tell Wesley of his Jewish roots to protect him from the Ku Klux Klan that had a strong following in Arkansas.

 

Wesley Clark excelled in high school and eventually attended West Point. He served in Vietnam and was awarded many medals for his bravery. He ended up as a 4 star general and was chosen to head “Operation Allied Forces”. He had previous been military advisor in the Bosnian conflict and had a few close calls like this:

“While the team was driving along a mountain road during the first week, the road gave way, and one of the vehicles fell over a cliff carrying passengers including Holbrooke’s deputy, Robert Frasure, a deputy assistant Secretary of Defense, Joseph Kruzel, and Air Force Colonel Nelson Drew. Clark and Holbrooke attempted to crawl down the mountain, but were driven back by sniper fire. Once the fire ceased, Clark scaled down the mountain to collect the bodies of two dead Americans left by Bosnian forces that had taken the remaining wounded to a nearby hospital.”

General Clark on the left with General Mladic’s hat on…. General Mladic on the right with General Clark’s hat.

He was also thrashed in the western media outlets for his meeting with Bosnian Serb General Ratko Mladic. General Clark and General Mladic were shown exchanging hats which led to outrage from both the Liberal and Conservative pundits. Some Clinton administration members privately said the incident was “like cavorting with Hermann Goring.”

General Clark led “Operation Allied Force” , the military intervention into Serbian lands. President Clinton came on tv explaining to the American people how Democracy was threatened and we must help those that are seeking freedom from oppression. -_- That is what we were told anyway!! Was it true???

June 6th, 2012…… The company that former General Wesley Clark heads, Envidity, has received the green light from the Kosovo Government to begin work on oil generation from lignite in Kosovo!  They are offering hundreds of millions of Euros in investments!!! Shouldn’t this be considered a conflict of interest??? We can start a war on some small country that has lots of resources and then privately invest in them to make millions of dollars! INSANE!!!!! You can never trust your government!! http://www.eciks.org/english/lajme.php?action=total_news&main_id=1250

IT IS TIME THAT WE ALL REVOLT!!! OUR LEADERS CARE NOTHING ABOUT US! THEY LOVE TO BLOW SMOKE UP OUR ASSES AND ACT LIKE WE MATTER, BUT WE DON’T!!! REVOLUTION!!!! They would sell us for a $5 bill!

I have friends in the majority of countries around the world. They are all dealing with the same corruption that is dripping from the top down. Check out my video from my  friends all over the planet that are sick and tired of the status quo! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOBBBo71ClA

 

Albright Saw $$$$$ In Kosovo, not Injustice!

 

I have lost all credibility that I had in Madeline Albright!!!!  You always want to believe that your country ONLY does what is MORALLY right! Every time I dig a little deeper in one of our “humanitarian missions” I find myself feeling foolish for ever believing that!!!!! .

Madeline Albright or Madeline Korbel, as she was known at birth,  was the first woman Secretary of State. She was appointed by President Bill Clinton in 1996. She was the driving force behind our involvement in the dispute between Serbia and their southern region, Kosovo. It was nicknamed ” Albright’s War” by the insiders at the State Department.  This lead to a three month bombing campaign all over Serbia. N.A.T.O bombed the majority of the bridges in the country, the electrical stations, factories, military facilities, and some other buildings. A few hospitals were also hit along with the “accidental” bombing of the Chinese Embassy. You can learn more about her and about how the Serbs saved her during her childhood at https://serbiathroughamericaneyes.wordpress.com/tag/madeline-albright/

I have mentioned that I felt our involvement was justified when I first visited Serbia in May of 2010. My views have changed 100%. I was told by the media that we were here on humanitarian grounds because the “brutal Serbs” were killing and forcing Albanians off of their land. Since I have been here, I have spoken to hundreds of Serbian families that had lived in Kosovo for generations and had to flee or die. They told me they had taken a few clothes and left their homes, land, tractors, and everything they had accumulated in their lives because the Albanians were forcing them out! HORRIBLE! This all occurred while N.A.T.O forces were on watch! WTF?

One thing I have noticed about Serbs is their belief in lots of conspiracy theories. They come up with some pretty wild ideas. I find myself just shaking my head at some of them. I started digging into one of them after watching “The Weight of Chains”. It is a great documentary about the break up of Yugoslavia.

I was given a few articles about how N.A.T.O country leaders were taking advantage of this “new country” Kosovo. Many of the leaders and cronies had big financial investment in them! The Albright Capital Management Group is a D/C based management company that is headed by Madeline Albright. It will be bidding on the telecommunications company , PTK in Kosovo!!!! Isn’t this a crime or shouldn’t it be??? She was the decider on the military offensive to make it a free entity and now she is going to be making big profits on the selling of their communications company??? HMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!! Sounds like a crime to me!!!!! This isn’t the only scary part!!!!  The sale process has been clouded by corruption allegations, legal challenges, and the death of the state privatization agency’s chief, Dino Asanaj. In June, his body was found in his apartment in Kosovo’s capital city of Pristina, with 11 stab wounds. Authorities say he committed suicide. The company was also previously owned by Serbia before the war!!!! They have filed claims against the sale of this corporation! (shaking my head).  I better keep a low profile or I might end up “killing myself with 11 stab wounds to my torso” … Don’t mess with the political elite!

Yes, I voted for Bill Clinton in 1992 and 1996. He used to be my idol and a person I looked up to! I find my face blushing when people remind me of that! I still believe in the Democratic philosophy, but don’t know who to trust anymore! We have been lied to so many times! 😦 I start feeling nauseous when someone mentions Conservatism, but this article by the “Virginia Right” sums a lot of this up. http://www.varight.com/news/why-is-madeleine-albright-trying-to-buy-the-kosovo-telecom-company-another-poke-at-the-serbs/

I am done with defending Madeline Albright!! She even had the gull to call a group of Serbians ” Disgusting Serbs” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FaPuBUY558

Here are a few more interesting articles by an American and a British news source…

Bloomberg-http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2012-08-30/albright-firm-eyes-kosovos-contested-state-telecom

BBC- http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/special_report/1999/03/99/kosovo_strikes/315053.stm

ALWAYS QUESTION YOUR NATIONS MOTIVES!!! Don’t just turn on the tv and assume everything you hear is true!!!!

Join me at Say Serbia for more info on Serbia and the Serbian people…. http://sayserbia.com/

 

Serbia… Land of Billionaires

Yugoslavian money

It isn’t everyday you can move to a country and be surrounded by former billionaires. Serbia is one country that can boast that fact. Almost everyone that lived in Serbia during the 1990’s can brag about not just being a billionaire, but a MUTLI-BILLIONAIRE!

The U.S.A and other world powers love to put sanctions on “unfriendly” countries. It is usually the first step in punishing a nation for not abiding by their rules. This is a disgusting act that leads to mass starvation, shortage of life saving equipment, supplies, fuel, and it seems to punish ONLY the regular civilians. It also leads regular hard-working people into committing criminal acts just to feed their families!

During the 1990’s, Serbia was the heart of Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia was made up of Serbia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Macedonia, Croatia and Bosnia. Slovenia was the first one to declare its independence. The world was reacting to the fall of the “Iron Curtain” and the break up of the U.S.S.R.  There were some very brutal wars fought in this part of the planet to preserve the Yugoslavian lands.

N.A.T.O decided it would be best to slap on sanctions. For those of you not familiar with the term “sanctions” , as a noun, it means a threatened penalty for disobeying a law or rule. It keeps other nations from trading with them and keeps them from providing any financial assistance to them and keeping the “sanctioned” country from gaining access to its international funds. The majority of countries are drastically harmed by this act, Serbia included. Many of the families I have had the pleasure of talking with survived by smuggling gas, cigarettes, clothing, food, etc from their neighboring countries. This also lead to something called hyperinflation. Hyperinflation is extremely rapid or out of control inflation. There is no precise numerical definition to hyperinflation. Hyperinflation is a situation where the price increases are so out of control that the concept of inflation is meaningless.

worthless money

Many of the Serbian families worked very hard during this time in their history. Once they received their monthly pay they would rush to the store to use their paycheck before prices would skyrocket. I was told that many families would work all month and only be able to buy a few loaves of bread! 😮 Can you imagine???  If you ask many of them how in the world they were able to raise their kids, they will just shrug their shoulders. Many of them would share and trade what little they had and help their neighbor. Maybe you were good at fixing cars and your neighbor had a lot of tomatoes. You would fix their car for a bag of tomatoes. I think this is what has made Serbians the tough, unflappable people they are today.

Hungarian bill.. Largest ever recorded

The highest record of inflation was in Hungary held the record for the most extreme monthly inflation rate ever — 41,900,000,000,000,000% (4.19 × 10¹⁶% or 41.9 quadrillion percent) for July 1946 amounting to prices doubling every 15.3 hours.Yugoslavia ranks 2nd on the all time list with prices doubling every 1.4 days  See the chart below.

Highest hyperinflation

This  lead to bills in the billion dinar range! 😮 It looks and sounds good to have a billion dollar note, but when it won’t buy a loaf of bread it looses all of its glory!

500 Billion Dinars

It sounds like I am surrounded by a country full of Warren Buffets, but life was hard. I can sit here and imagine the stress that was put on all of these Serbian families during this time. They survived and continue to survive to this day!

Gotta love the Serbs…

Long live Serbia….

Please join our new Serbia page… SAY SERBIA! http://www.sayserbia.com/ and if you are capable of donating a few dollars, dinars, euro, pesos or whatever  to my documentary “Yankee Doodle Went to Serbia” please do!!!! Every little bit helps! Here is my donations page https://www.wepay.com/donations/serbia-through-american-eyes

The first episode of Yankee Doodle went to Serbia “RUMA”is going to be out in a week or two! Here is an update from Srem Tv……http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vksV7jyP9VY I need your help!!! I have lived on my savings for 3 years now. This first episode wasn’t cheap!!!! We had a very professional crew with us. One professional cameraman, sound guy, two lighting guys, one producer and one assistant producer. We had top of the line equipment and stayed 5 days in Ruma! We wanted to go all out on our first episode. If we can’t find more funding to make it this way, I will just strap a camera on my head and head out on my own. 🙂 😀 😦 I never ask Serbians in Serbia for a dinar, but anyone else that has a Visa, Mastercard, American Express credit or debit can donate. I have only had 15 people donate to this. 😥 If you can’t donate, please share to your friends that can! HELP ME SHOW THE WORLD WHY I FELL IN LOVE WITH SERBIA!   Hvala puno!!!!