Due to political turmoil it wasn't very easy to go to Serbia and Montenegro. Things are clearing up pretty fast now with Milosevic in prison in The Hague, so you can start thinking about a trip to Serbia and Montenegro again.
Serbia and Montenegro actually consists of four parts. In the east there is the semi-autonomous Vojvodina, where many Hungarians live. Serbia is right in the heart, with the capital Belgrade. Montenegro is in the south on the Adriatic, the Bay of Kotor is one of the major attractions here. Montenegrans have been thinking about independance for some time now so far have stayed in the union.
The Kosovo Province is part of Serbia and Montenegro only in name. It's effectively controled by the Albanians living there and calm is ensured by the NATO peace troops there.
Modern art has had plenty to feed off in Serbia and Montenegro. The vibrant art scene produces works that use folk motifs, political symbols and provocative text to pull apart and interpret the former-Yugoslavia's tumultuous recent history. Surrealist posters bring political messages out of the gallery and onto the streets; some groups hold installations, or 'Phobjects', in bombed out parts of Belgrade. Writers, too, have mined the rich vein of tragedy in their country's history - Ivo Andric won a Nobel Prize for his book Na Drini Cuprija, about the gap between religions.
Serbian music and dance is built on a strong folk tradition, similar to that of neighbouring Bulgaria. The gajde, which looks like a large set of bagpipes, is the wailing mainstay of Serbian song, and has probably been in the country since the Celts invaded in the 4th century. Albanian Kosovars tap their feet to a more Turkish tune and play on Arabic instruments, while around Guca, gypsy dancers swing their thing to the brassy tones of blehmuzika, Serbia's national brass-band sound. Modern musos such as Momcilo Bajagic and Dorde Balasevic have taken folk themes and added street poetry and jazz.
Serbia and Montenegro's official language is Serbian. It was developed by philologist and language reformer, Vuk Stefanovich Karadzich, who polished and codified the language of Serbian peasants. Formerly know as Serbo-Croatian, Serbian differs in that it is written in Cyrillic rather than Latin script. The Cyrillic alphabet is entirely phonetic, with one symbol for each of the language's 30 sounds - there's no such thing as a silent letter in Serbian. Many Serbs can converse in Hungarian or Russian, and English is also widely spoken, but even so, learning a few Serbian phrases will open doors and create smiles.
The region blurs culinary borders, with a cuisine that takes tastes from
Turkey,
Hungary and
Greece. However they spice it, though, Serbs and Montenegrins love their meat; Serbian kebabs, hamburger steaks, vegetables stuffed with meat and mixed grills of pork, liver, sausage and rissoles. Vegetarians will find the going tough outside major citites; chicken and fish are considered vegetarian food and the bean soup is usually cooked with smoked ham for flavour. Montenegrins, who do a good line in dairy cows, serve their meat with cream and cheese. Even breakfast is meaty - the traditional Balkan burek is a greasy layered pie of cheese and meat. Fruit grows everywhere, and the locals like to enjoy their harvest year round by fermenting grapes, apples, or stone fruit into a 'brandy' calledrakija or a lethal home brew plum brandy, sljivovica. Montenegrin beer is also an especially tasty tipple to be enjoyed regularly.
