World Serbia Brus

Alexes Abroad

Serbia - south 29 Jun 2006

From Belgrade we headed south. It was basically "drive to Pristina until we get there" but we did a couple of quick tourist-stops. Manasija Monastery near Despotovac was worth a detour, although possibly not the extra hour we spent driving around in circles trying to find the road there. The monastery looks more like a fortress than a monastery from the outside, but the 15th century church had lovely frescoes and an outstanding stone mosaic floor. We were feeling a bit sad about the lack of other visitors (not sure why, but we were) until, just as we were leaving, a busload of locals arrived. Ćele Kula - the Skull Tower - in Niš was worth a stop but would not be worth even a detour out of your way. The tower was built by Turks. The skulls are Serbian. It would have been quite a sight before most of the skulls were souvenired and the few that remain were reattached with modern cement. Now, well... The southern Serbian countryside was classic rolling hills and very beautiful. Serbia did not seem to have any areas that were not in very productive (and picturesque) agricultural use. We enjoyed the views, we appreciated the horses and carts and the hand-reaping of crops. We could definitely have done without the extensive lengths of cobbled roads.

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