Making the Belgrade

Making the Belgrade

By Andrea SachsWashington Post Staff Writer

Sunday, July 2, 2006; Page P03

Q. I will be attending classes in Belgrade. What destinations outside of the city should I see?
Jodi Winship, Arlington
With its cafes, nightclubs and 7,000-year-old history, the Serbian capital never sleeps. But for a break from urban life, just follow the Danube. "There is plenty to see in Belgrade," says Kathy Kutrubes, who runs Kutrubes Travel (800-878-8566, http://www.kutrubestravel.com/ ), a Boston travel agency specializing in the Balkans. "Outside is more of a rural atmosphere."
One of Serbia's best-known destinations is Novi Sad, the capital of Vojvodina province that sits on the river and is crammed with attractions, such as the Petrovardin fortress. Near the city lies Fruska Gora, a national park lush with orchids and linden trees, as well as boars and lynx. Also stop by Sremski Karlovi, home of the 18th-century Grammar School and the art-filled Orthodox Church.
Grab a meal at a salas, wealthy estates offering food, lodging, music and more. "Spending time on salas (one of them is Salas 84) is a unique experience," Serbian Embassy spokeswoman Jelena Cukic Matic said by e-mail, "and worth keeping your stomach empty during the day."
Belgrade has a beach on an artificial lake, but for wild water, go rafting down the Ibar River, which streams past the medieval city of Maglic. If "Black Beauty" is more your scene, the 227-year-old Zobnatica horse farm offers forest rides and the Museum of Horse Breeding. Fifty miles south of Belgrade is Topola, whose distractions include the prehistoric Risovaca cave; the Park of Bukovicka Banja and its sculpture garden; and the village of Orasac, which honors the first Serbian uprising against the Turks. When it's meal time, pair such specialties as Karadjordje's steak (stuffed and fried pork or veal) with local wine: The Oplenac Wine Route features wines that have been compared with French vintages.
For more quietude than cocktails, overnight at a monastery, such as Soko Grad. Find more holy centers in Kraljevo, including the UNESCO-protected Studenica. The region also touts earthly retreats: The Vrnjacka spa, for instance, is Serbia's largest modern spa, with mineral springs and treatments.
Info: Embassy of the Republic of Serbia/ National Tourism Organization of Serbia, 202-332-0333, http://www.yuembusa.org/eng%20.

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