Belgrade: From the cafés of the Danube to the ghost buildings of 1999

✍️ Της Βιβής Μαργαρίτη

Belgrade is a city that knows how to live intensely. In the cafés and bars along the Sava and the Danube, the atmosphere is filled with laughter, music, and the vibrant energy of a youthful capital that never sleeps. A traveler instantly feels the Balkan warmth, the energy, and the hospitality that characterize the Serbs.

And yet, just a few blocks away, the scenery changes. In the heart of the city, the half-ruined buildings of the Ministry of Defense still stand as silent memorials to the NATO bombings of 1999. The scars remain visible: broken concrete, exposed floors, and twisted steel reminding us that history is never as distant as we might think.

For locals, these buildings are symbols of pain but also of resilience. For the traveler, they offer a rare experience of “living history”—a chance to see how the past coexists with the present of a city moving forward without forgetting.

Belgrade is full of contrasts. On one hand, the romantic evenings at the Kalemegdan fortress overlooking the confluence of the two rivers; on the other, the wounds of a war that marked an entire generation. This balance between life and memory is what makes the city unique.

📍 If you travel to Belgrade, don’t miss the chance to experience both sides:

  • Enjoy your coffee on the floating splavs of the Danube.

  • Stroll down Knez Mihailova, the city’s most vibrant pedestrian street.

  • Pause for a moment in front of the ghost buildings and reflect that, here, just a few decades ago, a chapter of modern European history was written.

Belgrade is not just a stop for nightlife. It is a destination that invites you to remember, to be moved, and to discover the strength of a city that knows how to be reborn.