To Irina, whose essence is love

To Nevena, who always focuses on magic

“Of all that man erects and builds in his quest for life, bridges are the best and most precious in my imagination,” wrote Ivo Andrić (1892-1975), one of the most important Serbian artists of the twentieth century and the first Balkan writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.

Inspired by this symbol of the insatiable human will to connect, to reconcile and weld in order to resist the elements of hatred and division that have repeatedly reshaped the Balkan Peninsula, our journey has passed.

At the end of September, at one of his warm, warm summer Friday afternoons with friends, we arrived in Belgrade. The ideal location of the hotel, in the very center, gave us the opportunity to enjoy magical walks in this lavish, pulsating, Slavic hearty and charming city. Only a few blocks away was the Museum of one of the greatest minds of all time – the genius inventor Nikola Tesla. Born in 1856 in what is now Croatia, to a Serbian Orthodox priest, Tesla has been called “the man who sanctified the twentieth century” for his work with electromagnetism and the invention of multiphase electrical machines and systems for transmitting electricity through alternating current. For any electrical engineer, visiting the museum is tantamount to pilgrimage.

In the immediate vicinity, in the eastern part of Svetosava Square, in all its splendor shone the largest Orthodox church in Serbia – “St. Sava”. Its construction in the Neo-Byzantine style, similar to the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, is the place where in 1594 the relics of the saint were burned by the Ottoman conquerors.

Along King Milan Boulevard we reached Republic Square, where are the National Museum, the National Theater and the bronze statue of Prince Mikhail Obrenovich on horseback. In his struggle against vassal dependence on the Ottoman Empire, in the 19th century, the prince created the First Balkan Union by attracting many Bulgarian national revolutionaries led by Georgi Rakovski, who in 1862 created the First Bulgarian Legion in Belgrade.

Carried away by the flow of cheerful companies, street artists, fragrances, melodies and laughter, we found ourselves in the cool embrace of Kalemegdan Park. In the distance, where the Belgrade fortress rises above the unity of the Sava and the Danube, bathed in the spotlight, stood out the symbol of Belgrade, the statue “The Victor”, the work of the Croatian sculptor Ivan Meštrović, who gained worldwide fame with the nickname “Slavic Michelangelo”.

Conversely, through the vibrating festivity of Friday night, we roamed the central boulevards for a long time when my gaze caught an elegant mahogany portal. Serbia’s oldest bookstore lit up the street, and not the light of neon, but the power of knowledge, streamed from its bright showcase, turning it into a sanctuary for generations of readers.

When late at night on the second day we arrived in Bosnia and Herzegovina we were welcomed by the unique Balkan cordiality – the entire hotel staff in Neum was waiting for us with a smile and hot food.

The next morning was gloomy, the dark blue sky merging with the sea, and only the outlines of a distant bridge marked the horizon line. Looking at his elegant white silhouette, I remembered the Bosnian parable told by the native of these lands Ivo Andrić: “When the world was created, it was equal, but the devil, in order to take revenge, scooped deep into the earth and created steep and impassable precipices around the valleys. And then the angels set their wings between them for bridges.”

There was angelic intervention that day, too, I am convinced, when the sun rose and led us to the fairytale Dubrovnik, poetically called by Lord Byron “the pearl of the Adriatic”. Founded in the 7th century under the name Ragusa, in its centuries-old history the city has been exposed to the appetites of many empires, has experienced natural disasters, economic prosperity and decline, but through skillful diplomacy and the riches of tireless maritime trade, has always defended its motto: “Freedom is not sold for all the gold in the world!”

The Republic of Raguz built a liberal system of government, abolished slavery as early as the 15th century, built an effective public health system and quarantine system to combat plague epidemics, established one of the first orphanages in Europe. A huge fortress wall still preserves the Old Town with its numerous churches, monasteries, palaces, museums and squares. A treasure trove worthy of UNESCO, Dubrovnik has repeatedly been the set of film productions, including “Star Wars” and “Game of Thrones”. On departure, from the height of the coastal highway, I looked over my shoulder at the receding city for a long time, and my imagination painted over the shrinking roofs the shadows of dragon wings.

The last purpose of our journey, Kotor, welcomed us stormy and rainy. His harsh Montenegrin temper tossed us like autumn leaves from shop to shop, from restaurant to cafe, returning us to the eternal refuges of human souls – the temples of St. Trifon, St. Luke, St. Nicholas the Wonderworker… One by one, across the wondrous bridges of words and smiles, we gathered like pieces of God’s mosaic in their safe, incense-smelling hugs. And in place of disappointment was the warmth of unity. A unity that illuminates the dark paths along which life sometimes pushes us and thanks to which many fought their shyness and sang a capply, poems were born and recited ourselves, we enjoyed stories of self-knowledge, linguistics, history, geography and celebrities. As the astute Andrić writes, “Life gives us back only what we give to others.”

October’ 2023
Milena Hristova