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British Mensa Travel Special Interest Group |
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Beating
the mouse Being a Serb was not very good during the 1990s and even later. Maybe you ask why? Well, here are the facts. For almost two decades now we have lived with the fact that, despite globalization, our country is unremittingly becoming smaller and smaller. It feels as if, every few years, a giant mouse bites another piece of cheese of what used to be a huge and beautiful chunk. Nevertheless, looking at a bright side of it, since we no longer have a sea in the country and since numerous tourist destinations such as the Plitvice Lake, Postojna Jama, Ohrid Lake, Tara River canyon or waterfalls in Jajce, belong now to neighbouring countries, we are starting to take a closer look at the hidden and somewhat marginalized parts of Serbia. All of a sudden, we have plenty of time to discover our own motherland. Given that I have been expressing my patriotism by getting to know my country better since I was a child, my time has come - the opportunity to disclose the secret places with my friends from PDP SIG (the Travel SIG of Mensa Serbia), with whom I share curiosity and a passion for adventure. Eastern Serbia has always been particularly attractive to me, and over time I have come to understand why that is so. Therefore, I decided to dedicate several country sightseeing events with PDP SIG to this part of the country. On this occasion, a selected destination was the city of Negotin. The easiest way to reach Negotin from Belgrade is by highway to Paracin, and from there, one should use the regional road passing through Zajecar all the way to Negotin - a total of 330km. This border region of Serbia has been troubled for many years, mainly by the white plague, migration of the local population and the problem of undefined areas of development. It was not until recently that the national TV station broadcast the story about the wine cellars dating back to the 19th century, whose uniqueness and preservation brought it the status of culture monument under the highest level of state protection. The small settlement consisting of these wine cellars is called Rajacke Pimnice, and it got its name by the place of origin - the village of Rajac, located on the hills surrounding the Timok River, approximately 30km from the centre of Negotin. Constructed in stone and covered in tile, the wine complex consists of several curvy cobbled streets with a few wells on their crossings. The constructions are petite for the most part, none of them with a chimney. The fact is that they were not meant for habitation in the first place. The houses of local vintners are mostly placed down lower, in the very village. Still, passionate vintners and wine producers used to spend most parts of their lives in these modest houses, which preserved their authentic exteriors today. A quite unusual large graveyard is located at the end of this settlement. Our host and guide spoke about the way of life of the vintners in the past times; since their entire life was intertwined with wine, one way or another, their departure to another world had always been announced for the first time at their wine cellars. This is why there is no house in this block which does not have a black framed obituary on the door. A dead vintner would then be carried all the way through the settlement to the graveyard, where some remarkable monolithic tombstones can be found, visibly older than the rest of the village. The guide says that, according to some recent archaeological findings, the tombstones date back to the Roman Empire, which confirms that many secrets of this once rich wine region are yet to be revealed. Exhaustive sightseeing and wine tasting forced us to take a break in the restaurant St. Triphun, which is a wine cellar itself, adapted and renovated with a good taste by our host. The menu comprises national cuisine specialities, starting with white cheese, soft cheese (in Serbia known as kaymak), pork cracklings and warm bread, and belmuge which is a speciality of eastern Serbia. In addition to these starters, guests can also try pork and lamb roast, or venison goulash. Even the hungriest can have enough, and the pickiest can find something to suit their taste. And alongside all this, we had at our disposal limitless amounts of rakiya (fruit brandy) and wine. If by any chance someone gets exhausted dining, he can spend a night in one of the rooms in St. Triphun. Given that eastern Serbia is well known for its migrant workers, it is quite common to spot very beautiful spacious houses and backyards in the villages of this region. Unfortunately, most of them are empty as their owners are still earning a living abroad, while their descendants and relatives are moving to bigger regional centres nowadays. Schools in the villages barely have any students at all, since mostly the old remained in these villages. However, there is still a trace of hope in the air. Entrepreneurs from the region decided to help its poorer areas, where they had come from long ago. Searching for accommodation in the Negotin district, I came across the website of the Association for Development of Eco-rural Tourism (www.dert.org.yu). I decided to give it a shot. I did not regret it! A group of members of PDP SIG spent a splendid weekend in the village of Tamnic. This village, situated approximately 5km from the Rajacke Pimnice, has a population of barely 200 nowadays. Spacious houses, big clean backyards, and extremely hospitable hosts are the main features of this cute little place. Our hosts did not even mind going to the centre of the village, where the local shop is, to buy anything their new arrived guests needed, or even bringing a shop manager to open the shop in case it were closed. Waking up with the birds chirping in the countryside has been described in many forms of literature. However, there is no way for city people to comprehend it until they experience it. The sole wish that one has after such waking up is to come out to the porch, hit by the sun and decorated with flowers, and to stay still there for a long, long time, and allow that eternal peace to overwhelm him entirely. Still, breakfast is waiting, prepared with love by a diligent hostess since the early morning - pies, corn bread, cakes... all warm, just out of the oven. Here and there, barbecue and roast are on the breakfast menu as well. Even though
we spent that entire weekend walking around and enjoying the sightseeing
of numerous natural and historical monuments of this area, somehow, the
carefree, relaxing peace of that morning made the strongest impression
of the journey. I know for sure that I speak for my fellow-travellers,
too, when I say that, and I am also confident that rural tourism got a
few new passionate fans on this journey. Only a few archeological spots from the Roman period have been preserved in Serbia. One of the biggest monuments of that era is Felix Romuliana, built by Roman emperor Gaius Valerius Galerius Maximianus III in his hometown in the 3rd century BC. The very look of the ruins speaks volumes about the magnitude and greatness of this ancient residence. Since recently, a visitor to the monument, assisted by a host and a miniature reconstruction of the site, can easily travel back in time and enjoy the walk through the towers, temples and spa rooms, most of which are covered with fine mosaics. The findings of some sculptures made of purple Egyptian porphyry and the coins found on the site, helped the researchers to date the complex. In July 2007, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee decided to place Felix Romuliana on the World Heritage List, and starting December of the same year, the UNESCO flag flutters from the gates of this historic monument, one of the most important late Roman sites in Europe. More information at: www.anarheologija.org/veliki/romuliana/index.php. This article has mentioned a small part of the beauties of East Serbia. If your imagination was triggered even a bit, I believe we will meet somewhere on the not-so-good roads of the region of Negotin (called Negotinska krayina). First published in VISA 78 (Jun08) |