Unfortunately, I did not spend as much time in Serbia as I wanted to due to finances and time but I had an incredible time there with amazing people. There is so much to see and do in Serbia and what I love about the country is the fact that it’s almost a hidden treasure. I don’t mean that no one backpacks in Serbia. What i mean is so many people are drawn to overrated Western European destination that Serbia doesn’t get a chance. Even in the Balkans, people are drawn to the coastline of Montenegro and Slovenia but don’t consider going inland to Serbia.
For, I had the pleasure of enjoying couchsurfing in the big cities of Belgrade and Novi Sad. But aside from the large capital city and Vojvodina where travelers mostly do go in Serbia, there is so much to do and see in the south. There are beautiful mountains, canyons, fortresses, ossuaries, and the city of Vis. But aside from making notice of what I did and didn’t do, what I found intimidating prior to arriving in Serbia were the constant warning that Serbians hate / dislike Americans. I had no intentions whatsoever of changing my nationality to Canadian or another country that avoid sketchy topics. I simply tell people I’m American if they ask. I’m proud of where I come from. But at the same time, I don’t brag about it obnoxiously.
Funny story I heard in Romania, was this American guy, who was SO American, got robbed in Serbia, because he was SO American. Like being overly patriotic with a big mouth and being obnoxious. I wasn’t afraid of running into this issues because one, I’m not an obnoxious overly patriotic American. And two, I’m pretty smart when i comes to avoiding scams and being too honest about how I feel, especially when topics are sensitive in another country.
Arriving in Belgrade late April was by far one of the worst experiences. I’m not even making reference to the country. It was the coldest and wet spring day I have ever experienced probably in my life. It felt like mid January in Belgium, only more south haha. Anyways, what got my attention two hours into being in Serbia was befriending an older Serb and being asked, “Hey man, so why did you bomb my country,” He was obviously joking, but it’s a doorway to a conversation that could turn bad if I chose to say the wrong thing. I was obviously 8 years old and even if I was an adult, how could I even play a roll. We laughed it off, but it was still at least 4.5% awkward.
Couchsurfing with a young Serb in Belgrade also got me into some interesting conversations about the Nato bombings in 1999 and the intervention in Kosovo which liberated the Kosovo people from oppression and mass killings. As always, there are two sides to the story and it was certainly interesting hearing the Serbian side. On his television, I saw something that I will never forget. A “propoganda-like” reminder of the bombing of a radio building that killed several innocent people. It’s like continuing a cycle of hatred towards America and NATO.
Anywho, while I am not writing this post to persuade anyone to avoid Serbia. Serbia is incredible for what I have seen and done. And although there are a good number of people who have a deep hatred for America to a mild hatred, as long as you aren’t overly patriotic, single minded, and pushy into arguements, you will have an incredible time here. 🙂
