Dead Tisa

Vojvodina has a lot to offer when it comes to inland waters – from one of the biggest rivers in Europe, the Danube, to artificial formed lakes in former quarries (some of those are, sadly, disappearing).

But, for me personally, the best summer time spot for some fun in the sun is, without a doubt, the National Park Dead Tisa, or Mrtva Tisa in Serbian.

This boggy marshland was cut of from the main flow of the Tisa river in 19th century, and is located near the village Curug, some 30 kilometers from Novi Sad by car.

But, although it’s technically a swamp, the main part of the national park is a canal-like lake, constantly supplied by fresh water from a series of natural underground wells that are located in the area.
Because of them, the water is never stale or smelly, and because of its relatively small surface area, easily heated by sun.

The place is perfect for swimming or canoeing, and even possibly sailing in small, one-seat boats.

Thanks to its status as a park, building is allowed on its banks, but installment of electricity, sewers or running water is not.
Without any waist waters, the Dead Tisa is amazingly clean and odorless.

Also, the practice of locals for the last 10-20 years was to build small summerhouses right next to the water, and equip them with wooden docks.
The banks are very steep, making those docks, alongside small patches of land where they are built ideal for jumping and sunbathing.

The best thing is that anybody can use those docks when the owners aren’t around.
They are public property, and there are a lot of them.

A lazy summer afternoon, little BBQ, a few beers cooling in the water and lot of friends and/or family – sounds like an ideal setting for a great day on Dead Tisa.

Silver Lake

I never went camping as a kid. I’m not sure why I avoided it for so long, but I finally tried it last year and simply loved it. That’s why I’m planning to travel and camp around Serbia, and one of my first destinations is Silver Lake (Srebrno jezero in Serbian) near the town of Veliko Gradiste. It’s located near Belgrade, some 110 km southeast of it and is easily accessible by car or bus.

This is what Wikipedia says about the lake itself:

Silver Lake has an irregular arch shape; it is 14 kilometers long, up to 300 meters wide and covers an area of 4 km². It is situated at the altitude of 70 meters and deep as much as 8 meters. The water is clear due to the lack of pollution and the natural philtration of the water through many sand dunes. The lake is abundant in fish, including white amur, carp, catfish, pike, perch and other freshwater whitefish.

The river Danube is also very near, so the region must be a great treat for fishing.
My friend visited it just recently and was very impressed, especially by the development – he said it looked like a lot of money recently went into maintaining and improving the landscape, as well as re-building the tourist infrastructure. According to him, the place had an almost ‘’seaside’’ feel to it, which is great.
He stayed in a bungalow, but I recommend a camping trip. All in all, Silver Lake looks ideal for a short, late-summer outdoors vacation.

Vojvodina on Open Days 2009

Representatives of Serbia's norther province Vojvodina are going to attend for the first time ''Open Days 2009''. This is an annual summit of European regions and cities that was created as a discussion platform for many diverse issues and problems that are facing the continent and its people. Its organisers hope that through this summit, regional representatives can interconnect and eventually, form mutually beneficial partnerships.

Although Serbia isn't a member of the EU, this is a great chance for Vojvodina and the rest of the country. Tourism, like food production, is one of the economical forerunners currently developing in Vojvodina, and it's important to get this message across.

Instead of using just standard tools like advertising, I believe that open discussion about pitfalls and possibilities in Serbia is also very important.

The decision to take Vojvodina to the ''Open Days'' is even more important with the publication of statistical data about visitors to the region: according to it, number of visitor for the first 8 months of 2009 dropped 9% compared to the same period last year.

If Vojvodina wants a steady revenue generated by tourism, it's time to expand its European promotion.

Anti-violence march announced in response to the death of Brice Taton

Yesterday, the french football fan that was attacked on 17th of September in Belgrade has died from his injuries. Heads of State sent out condolences to his family, and there was an united call for an end to street and sport violence from all major political parties in Serbia.

Also, according to B92, Human Rights Ministry State Secretary called on citizens to gather at Belgrade's central square at 11:30 CET on Wednesday, (30.09.2009) to pay tribute to the victim.

Attend this important, although very sad event if you can, no mater where you come from.

Safety in Belgrade

In the last few days, 4 foreigners were attacked in Belgrade. One, a supporter of Toulouse FC was badly injured in a fight that broke out before a match with Partizan FC, and just few days ago, a Libyan student was a victim of an a apparently random attack.

So, did Serbia, and especially its capital, suddenly become unsafe for visitors from abroad?
I don't believe so.

Although street violence is a horrible thing, I don't see this as something endemic (although some do). The bright side is that all of these crimes got a lot of attention from the media. In my experience, it's better to maybe overestimate these kinds of problems, then to underestimate them.
With increasing publicity, the justice and the police department got under more public pressure. Police officers are more visible than before, and now, all most all alleged perpetrators of these attacks are incarcerated and waiting for their trials.

It is also comforting that a lot of statesmen have voiced their concerns about these attacks - the most recent is the statement of the tourism Minister about the negative impact these incidents have on Serbia's international standing.

photo from srbijanet.rs

Hopefully, all of this will transform those attacks into a bad memory.

Lake of Ledinci is gone

Usually, I write about interesting places and events in Serbia. This time I will write about something opposite - the complete destruction of one of those places.


Ledinacko lake (or Lake of Ledinci) formed in an abandoned quarry on Fruska Gora mountain. The first time I saw it I was amazed, because it looked like something from the pages of National Geographic magazine. Surrounded by steep rocky hills, the water in the lake was light blue, cold and very clear. During the summer, people came from Novi Sad and other near-by towns and villages to enjoy this great place that wasn't meant to be. Few years ago, a boulder fell from the rock wall and injured a few people, forcing the authorities to close all access to the lake.

This year, the site was drained and the lake is no more.
Local politics, business interest and safety issues aside, it's hard for me to believe that there was no other solution except the one that called for total annihilation of this gem.

I can just hope that the next generations won't look at these pictures and wonder what the hell were we thinking...

photos by Sel Emil

Golubac Danube fair

I’m very pleased to see that cities and town with access to Danube are expanding their tourism offers. This year, from 24th to 26th July, Golubac, a city in eastern Serbia, is hosting a Danube fair. This etno-event will cover smaller venues that will offer local food (especially the fish stew), traditional artwork and crafts, as well as folk music, all with the common theme of Danube.


I personally love Danube, because I grew up with this mighty river. But Golubac, located just before the Djerdap National park is truly a spectacular sight. There, Danube widens drastically, and is a great spot for waters sports like sailing. If you didn’t visit Golubac or Djerdap, Danube fair is a perfect opportunity to change that and enjoy on of Europe biggest rivers in its true glory.