Belgrade and Zemun

10th August

Got up early and went exploring down town. The shops are very quirky; the non-brand shops just sell a hotch potch of everything: I suppose due to the economy or maybe left over from communism. Belgrade has a nice old-fashioned feel about it. I found Kalemegdam, a lovely old fort ruin, surrounded by park and fountains and a display of tanks. There are several buildings in the town that have been left in their bombed state from the American bombing not so long ago. The country will take a long time to recover from this.

11th August

Met up with Branko Najhold in Zemun. I last met him at the Ayr Cartoon Festival in 2002. His only is he now has a beard but I recognized him straight away. We did a walking tour of Zemun and Branko was the Perfect Man for the job as he has written most of the books on the towns history. We then climbed a big flight of steps to the Millennium Tower, then over the hill to the loveliest part of the town where Branko lives. It has windy cobbled streets and little houses on the edge of the Danube. We went to his charming house where I met his partner, Bojana who was a delight. We went on to a fishermans café where I had Catfish Soup, Fried Fish and Potato Salad. It was delicious! We then went back to Brankos house where he showed me an impressive collection of archaeological artifacts, lovingly treasured and cared for by both of them. Branko also gave me a lovely book of cartoons from Zemun and the surrounding area. Zemun was a pleasant surprise, a little diamond of a place so near a big city, with a character all its own.

Sue