LOCAL AREA

The hill above the confluence of the Sava and the Danube,the Turks called Fićibajir.Kalemegdan is a Turkish name,which means a fortress field, an actual area between the fortress and Belgrade.The town of Belgrade was surrendered to the Serbs in 1867.Following the edict issued by the Turkish sultan, the town keys were handed over to Prince Mihailo in Kalemegdan.At the end of the 19th century,this area became a big park with a promenade. Numerous remains recount the turbulent history of Belgrade.

Kalemegdan Park is a green oasis in the heart of the city.Whit its position, historical importance and functionality, it plays a special role in the life of the city as well as in the life of its citizen. It occupies 57 hectares and it consists of the following parts: Great and Small Kalemegdan, Upper and Lower Town, Sava and Danube Slopes and the ZOO.

The pedestrian zone and centre are under protection as one of the oldest and most valuable city ambients. Numerous monuments, remarkable buildings and private houses were built around 1870. It is considered that even during the Roman period this was the centre of Singidunum street with gardens, fountains and mosques intersected the area.

Duration: 120 min, walkin tour Tour: Terazije Street, Knez Mihailova Street, Republic Square, City Gate, Orthodox Cahtedral, Princess Ljubicas Residence...

The preparations for the constuction of one of the greatest orthodox cathedrals in world began in 1894.The cathedral is built on the very spot where,according to tradition,the relics of Sveti Sava were brought from Mileseva monastery and burnt,following the orders of Sinan Pasha in 1594.After 2 contests,architects B.Nestorovic and A. Deroko presented the plan that was accepted in 1926.The construction was interrupted by the bombardment at the beginning of World War II, and continued in 1985.

The fortress is the oldest edifice in Zemun, appearing in some records dating from the 9th and the 11th century.Todays remains date from the 15th century. Hungarian authorities built the Tower of Janko, located in the middle of this bastion, in 1896. It was named after Sibinjanin Janko. The Tower was renovated in 1962, and today it is a belvedere.

The island of Ada Ciganlija, a sports, recreation, cultural and entertainment centre as well as a forest park, is probably the most beautiful jewel of Belgrade, an oasis full of resting sports in the shade, a paradise for swimmers, fishermen and lovers of many other types of recreation.

Constructed between 1931 and 1940 in the Serbo-Byyantine style, next to an old church from 1835 which was destroyed during bombing 1941. The decoration of the church interior was abandoned due to the war and it is still unfinished. The church houses some of the most valuable Serbian icons and a sarcophagus with the remains of Serbian Emperor Stefan Dusan inside.

The Nikola Tesla Museum is a science museum located in Belgrade, Serbia. It is dedicated to honoring and displaying the life and work of Nikola Tesla as well as the final resting place for Tesla. It holds more than 160,000 original documents, over 2,000 books and journals, over 1,200 historical technical exhibits, over 1,500 photographs and photo plates of original, technical objects, instruments and apparatus, and over 1,000. Tesla's urn is also part of the permanent exibition.

This old bohenian quarter, with numerous restaurants, used to be gathering point of the most famous people of Belgrade cultural life. It was formed in the first half of the 19th century, while the name of Skadarska Street dates from 1872, when the houses were assigned numbers. Among the residents of Skadarlija werw famous writers, actors, painters and journalists.

Spread out over a hill that is 250m high, this 330 hectare forest park used to be the royal hunting grounds until 1903, when it was opened to the public. The forest, a mixture of deciduous and coniferous trees, is crisscrossed with numerous trim trails and nature walks and there are picnic tables in the clearings for the overwhelming majority who prefer to just sit and enjoy a barbeque.

There, you find the former TV transmitter (that was crushed in the 1999 war), an old-style hotel, built in 1924, (with communist-style bad service in the hotel restaurant). On the way, you may cross natural springs. Don’t miss the monument in the south-east of the peak that was erected after a Soviet delegation died in a airplane crash on the Avala in 1964. And on the very top, you will reach a huge monument for the Unknown Soldier in WWI.

Danube is one of the greatest rivers of the world, second only to Volga in Europe, with its length (2850 km) and branching tributaries (120 tributaries). It passes through Serbia along 588 km of its flow, it is navigable throughout its length and represents a natural link to Germany, Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Romania and Bulgaria. The Sava River is 945 km long, with 207 km flowing through Serbia, connecting Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Republika Srpska and Serbia.