Belgrade Quotations

Quotes about Belgrade, the capital of Serbia (2006–Present):

I cometh and found the noblest burgh from ancient times, the grand town of Belgrade, by sorry fate destroyed and nearly void. Having rebuilt it, I consecrated it to the Holy Mother of God.
- Stefan Lazarevic

Soldiers! Heroes! The supreme command has erased our regiment from its records. Our regiment has been sacrificed for the honor of Belgrade and the Fatherland. Therefore, you no longer have to worry for your lives - they do not exist anymore. So, forward to glory! For King and country! Long live the king! Long live Belgrade!
- Major Dragutin Gavrilovic, to defenders of Belgrade in First World War

The sky above Belgrade is wide and high, unstable but always beautiful; even during winter serenities with their icy splendour; even during summer storms when the whole of it turns into a single gloomy cloud which, driven by the mad wind, carries the rain mixed with the dust of panonian plain; even in spring when it seems that it also blooms, along with the ground; even in autumn when it grows heavy with the autumn stars in swarms. Always beautiful and rich, as a compensation to this strange town for everything that isn't there, and a consolation because of everything that shouldn't be there. But the greatest splendour of that sky above Belgrade, that are the sunsets. In autumn and in summer, they are broad and bright like desert mirages, and in winter they are smothered by murky clouds and dark red hazes. And in every time of year frequently come the days when the flame of that sun setting in the plain, between the rivers beneath Belgrade, gets reflected way up in the high celestial dome, and it breaks there and pours down over the scattered town. Then, for a moment, the reddish tint of the sun paints even the remotest corners of Belgrade and reflects into the windows, even of those houses it otherwise poorly illuminates.
- Ivo Andrić about Belgrade

Serbia is the ideal destination for anyone looking for an adventurous holiday, without any long-haul flights, and a love of meeting the locals. You get a real feeling of being in an exotic location, where the tectonic plates of Islam, Orthodox Christianity and Roman Catholicism, alongside socialism and capitalism, have all collided in the past.
- Guardian: The Observer Travel

Night falls in the capital of the former Yugoslavia, and music fills the air. Everywhere.
- New York Times

It is a city where you can dance until sunrise seven nights a week, where hospitality crackles in the air, and where looking good is a birthright and a religion in one.
- CNN Traveller

Of all the cities I know, this one has the most beautiful position, the greatest amount of light and sunshine. It is indeed a White City, particularly from a distance. It is the whitest, the airiest of all the cities known to me, a white and sunny place, as if it had been chosen to be an image of freedom and the light in our flame…
- A.G. Matosh

This slightly disheveled air, combined with the city's vibrancy, fine restaurants, street cafes and northern European atmosphere, would make it an ideal place to spend a few days...
- Lonely Planet

Once located at the border between the Turkish and Austro-Hungarian empires, it combines Central European with more Oriental influences, and adds a style and spirit of its own. I can only put it one way: Belgrade is cool.
- Bootsnall: Serbia Travel Guide

Mist, not smoke, rose from the water at the confluence of the Danube and the Sava rivers. This is the point where the biggest city in the Balkans began. Belgrade's origins lie in a Celtic settlement on a bluff with superb views across the plains. Today, the horizon is scarred with chimneys and tower blocks, but the drama of the location remains.Beneath the ridge, skeletal trees accompany the Sava to the point where it merges into, and amplifies, the artery of eastern Europe. As the Danube continues its stately progress towards the Black Sea, you can understand why the Romans, Slavs, Turks and Austrians took turns to command these heights. Nowadays, the gently decaying stratum of history known as Belgrade fortress, draped upon the high ground, is the preserve of tourists.
- Independent.co.uk: "Back to the Balkans"

City break- Belgrade: If you've seen Budapest and Kraków, consider heading somewhere new in Eastern Europe. Belgrade is a fast-paced modern European capital, successfully banishing the shadows of war. The city's history has deprived it of the richness of historical buildings of other capitals, but it still boasts plenty of impressive leftovers from the Austro-Hungarian empire and a fascinating citadel with architectural influences from its many occupiers. A visit here is all about enjoying the modern architecture, dynamic atmosphere and excellent nightlife. Belgrade is best seen from the water - the city has a beautiful setting at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers. If that's not enough to tempt you, the tourist office literature explains that Belgrade is a city of about two million people. More than half of them are women, renowned for their beauty, cleverness and unpredictability.
- "The 2004 hot spots", Guardian Unlimited/The Observer