Sveti Djordje

May 6th is the slava of the city of Kragujevac, so this past weekend was one big party.

On Friday we celebrated the first anniversary of the American Corner. At the party, we announced the winners of the creative writing contest and gave out prizes and awards. I was chatting with one of the winners, talking about Lemony Snicket (her prize was the box set of the first three books) and she asked how much Serbian I know. I said not much because my husband (pointing to Dan) learned so much faster than I did. She looked at me in surprise and said "He's your husband? He's so cute!" I don't think she was surprised that I have such a cute husband - I think she was disappointed to find out Dan is married. Nice to know he appeals to the 15 year old crowd.

After the party we went to a new bar with some friends. It specializes in beer, which means they have dark beer, which can be hard to find in K. We went there for the first time last weekend - the owner and I have a mutual friend who has been doing his best to promote the bar. Naturally, we wanted to do the same so we brought our other friends. It was neat to be the foreigner showing the locals a great new place. My favorite thing about this bar: the music isn't so loud that you have to shout to have a conversation. So you can actually sit and talk with your friends over a pint.

From there we went to watch the pre-concert fireworks. I have never been so close to fireworks - they seemed to be exploding towards us. And that's because they were. The parking lot we were standing in was just across the way from where the fireworks were being set off. Apparently the city had suggested that people not park their cars there to make sure they didn't get damaged. They didn't seem to think it was important enough to block the lot off to people. There were literally cinders coming down around us. It was great!

Following the fireworks there was a concert with a famous "stari grad" singer. "Stari grad" means "old town," and I think it's quite perfectly named. I thought it was good, but it wasn't music I would stand outside on a cold night to hear. I might play it while relaxing in the backyard with a book and an iced tea on a summer afternoon. So we listened to a few songs and turned in for the night. Our Serbian friends stayed to enjoy the concert; I think for many of them it's the music they grew up with and so there's sentimental attachment. Maybe if there had been chairs...

After a busy week of party planning and the resumption of Dan's classes, we were too worn out Saturday to get out and see much of the fun. We did go to a Mozart concert at the high school - we finally had an excuse to see the inside of the high school (it was the first one in Serbia, as any good Kragujevcan will tell you). It was beautiful... much nicer than NQHS. The hall the concert was in had statues of the trifecta of Serbian heroes - Vuk Karadzic, Saint Sava, and Milos Obrenovic (labelled, on the wall as "Milos Veliki," or Big Milos). I like the idea that they have representatives of intellectual, spiritual, and political/military greatness, instead of the usual George Washington you find in US classrooms.

I thought the concert was good, although Dan had a few minor complaints (he knows more about classical music than I do) and we were inspired to download a bunch of Mozart when we got home. Happy 250th birthday, Mozart!

Sunday we went out to investigate the newly-opened Srce ice cream parlor, one block over from the original. I felt a little like I was in Disney World - the atmosphere was reaching for a Viennese cake shop, or something like Gerbeaud in Budapest. A lot of thought had clearly gone into the decorations. The ice cream is just as delicious and there are two new cases full of pastry treats and cakes, so I can wholeheartedly (ah! it's a pun! get it? srce means "heart") endorse the new location, particularly the cherry tarts.

One of my favorite lazy Sunday afternoon pastimes is going down to city hall and watching the weddings. Everyone has to get married at city hall before going to church and / or party. The entire wedding party usual goes to the official ceremony, which means there are hordes of people, usually at least one trubaci band, and often a gang of Roma kids scrounging for money. This Sunday we saw three different wedding parties. Many people ask if we've gone to a Serbian wedding - it's supposed to be an unrivaled Serbian experince, replete with food, wine, dancing, rakia, and more food. Unfortunately, none of our friends seem ready to tie the knot, so the closest we've gotten is people-watching at city hall. One of these days we're going to crash someone's reception.