HellO, WOrld!
Yesterday I had one of the laziest Sundays from the past months. I spend few hours playing with Honey O., my crazy little pisoi, and I was reading some magazines listening Hotel Costes compilations. It was so hot ouside, and I had the feeling that Summer is not over yet. Even if I had a great one, I must admit, whit many beautiful stories. I went to Cappadocia to fly with a hot air baloon, I’ve been in a cruise on Bosphorus, I spend a wonderful weekend in Sighisoara, I went to Pisa to climb that famous tower, I danced in the Novi Sad Fortress at EXIT Festival (by the way, did you know that thay have a lovely beach there, right on the Danube river?) and I saw an amazing sunset in Cinque Terre. And there are more stories to remember, but now I have to write a new one. About Belgrade.
What a beautiful view, isn’t it? I’ve been to Belgrade in July, on my way to Novi Sad, and I discovered a charming city. It’s the capital city of Serbia, but even if it has almost 2 millions inhabitants, it’s a very relaxed and laid back town. It’s very green also, as you can see in my pictures, because the city lays on the banks of two big rivers: Sava and Danube. And the White City (as his name can be translated in English) it’s very friendly, and not expensive at all. You can stroll all day on the city center streets, and you will find charming corners with wonderful coffee shops or bistros. Or you can go to visit the Belgrade Fortress, that will give you the chance to see the whole city from the top. And there you can make some amazing photos (like I did). It was very hot outside then, in the middle of July, and I was wearing this outfit from H&M Studio AW 2016 (recunosc, ma topeam de cald, dar sunt obisnuit, asa a fost si anul trecut, cand am vizitat Burano in August, purtand tot un palton H&M Studio, dupa cum puteti vedea AICI). I couldn’t post any photo at that time, because the campaign for this new fabulous collection started at the end of August. So, no I”m very excited that I can show you this pictures taken in Kalemegdan, the heart of the city, a fortress that is more than 1.000 years old. And here you can find also the most beautiful and popular park of Belgrade, because of Kalemegdan Park’s numerous winding walking paths, shaded benches, picturesque fountains, statues, historical architecture and scenic river views In the true sense, Kalemegdan fortress is today a green oasis in the Belgrade’s urban area.
And now, some tips:
How can you get there:
Well, there are not too many options from Bucharest. The best way is to fly there, choosing Tarom, or Air Serbia. If you pick the Serbian airlines, be aware at your luggage, they could leave it in Bucharest. That’s what happened to me, actually, and even if they sent me my precious Lami with the next flyight, it wasn’t quite a pleasure for me to spend 24 hours in Belgrade, wearing the same clothes. And without my touthbrush! Thank God thet they have Mega Image (Delhaize, I guess) in Belgrade!
Where to sleep:
If you want to spend your nights in a hystorical building, you should choose Metropol Palace Hotel. It’s placed right in downtown of Belgrade, and it’s a famous five star hotel, where you will feel spoiled every second by the very kind team of Metropol Palace. This famous hotel had some very famous guests in the past 50 years of his existence, from Elizabeth Taylor co Che Guevarra, from Louis Armstrong to Brigitte Bardot or Sofia Loren, Hitchcock or Robert De Niro.
For more options, you can try to find a hotel on Booking.com.
Where to eat:
I discovered the craziest restaurant ever, in Belgrade. I didn’t expected something like this, but Lorenzo & Kakalamba Restaurant has the much much of muchness. It’s a combination of Disneyland with a Sex Shop from Wonderland. The decorations are absolutely madness, and you can imagine every moment that the Mad Hatter will shof off. Naked, probably. And with some Smurfs dancing around him. And singing. Anyway, after I discovered all the crazy decorations of this famous restorant from Belgrade, I enjoyed a yummy tummy dinner, a combination of italian dishes with local specialities. Especially the local sarma and the meat were soo tasty. But the big surprise of the evening was Floating Islands (Laptele de pasare). O My Goood! Fabulous Desert! You should try it!
What else can you do in Belgrade:
Iou can start your day drinking a coffee, at Koffein, and after that to stroll around on the streets from downtown of Belgrade. There is a pedestrian area there, so you can walk and discover some beautiful corners of this city. Don’t miss an icecream from Moritz, and eat some local food at a traditional restaurant.
In the evening, you should go on the bank of Danube, where all the fun happens. There are many clubs, bistros and pubs there, and, if you want to dance, be ready to make it on a boat. It’s amazing and I can’t wait to go back to Belgrade, to drink another Aperol Spritz with this beautiful view over the Danube.
LOve,
O.
HellO, WOrld!
Ieri am avut una din cele mai lenese duminici din ultimul timp. Bine, cred ca pentru asta sunt facute duminicile de Septembrie, pentru huzur si petrecut ore intregi in pat. Am citit reviste, m-am jucat cu pisoiul meu, Honey O. si am ascultat compilatiile Hotel Costes. O duminica perfecta, in care mi-am adus aminte ce vara frumoasa am avut, in care calatorit mult si am ajuns in locuri la care doar visam. Am zburat cu balonul in Cappadocia, am facut o croaziera pe Bosfor, am petrecut un weekend superb in Sighisoara, am vizitat Pisa si am urcat pentru prima data in celebrul turn inclinat, am dansat in Novi Sad la celebrul festival Exit (chiar, stiati ca in Novi Sad exista o plaja superba amenajata pe malul Dunarii?) si am admirat un superb apus de soare in Cinque Terre. S-au adunat o multime de amintiri frumoase, iar acum a venit momentul sa va spun o noua poveste, despre Belgrad.
Am ajuns in capitala Serbiei in Iulie, in drum spre Novi Sad, si am descoperit un oras incantator. Chiar daca are in jur de 2 milioane de locuitori, Belgrad pare foarte relaxat. In acelasi timp este un oras foarte verde, dupa cum puteti vedea in fotografiile de mai sus, asta pentru ca e asezat la confluenta a doua rauri: Sava si Dunarea. Cu o denumire care se traduce ca „Orasul Alb”, capitala Serbiei mi s-a parut foarte prietenoasa si, mai ales, foarte ieftina. Oricum, mult mai ieftina decat Bucurestiul. Poti sa te plimbi linistit pe strazile din centrul orasului si sa descoperi colturi incantatoare, cu cafenele si bistrouri minunate. Sau poti alege sa vizitezi cetatea Belgradului, celebra Kalemegdan, asa cum am facut eu, de unde poti vedea tot orasul de sus si , mai ales, poti face niste fotografii superbe. Era foarte cald afara, iar eu eram imbracat cu un outfit din colectia H&M Studio Toamna/Iarna 2016, pentru ca pregateam campania de lansare a acestei superbe colectii. Noroc ca sunt obisnuit sa port la zero grade colectii de primavara, sau in miezul verii sa fac fotografii imbracat in colectii de toamna (de altfel asta am patit si anul trecut, in August, cand am vizitat Burano purtand un palton, tot dintr-o colectie H&M Studio, ceea ce m-a transformat intr-o mini atractie turistica, fiindca o multime de vizitatori au dorit sa-si faca poze cu mine, dupa cum puteti vedea AICI). Sunt tare fericit ca in sfarsit pot sa va arat aceste fotografii realizate in fortareata Kalemegdan, pentru ca, incepand de joi, 8 Septembrie, colectia este disponibila in magazinele H&M, dar si online, pe HM.com
Cetatea are mai bine de 1000 de ani de istorie si este inconjurata de cel mai frumos si faimos parc din Belgrad, presarat cu alei umbrite, statui, fantani si colturi pitoresti. E o oaza verde in mijlocul capitalei Serbie, unde poti sa-ti petreci nenumarate ore incantatoare, mai ales daca ajungi acolo intr-o zi insorita.
Si acum cateva sfaturi, in cazul in care v-am convins sa vizitati Belgradul:
Cum ajungi?
Nu sunt multe variante (desigur, poti sa optezi sa mergi cu masina, dar imi pare cam complicat). Cu avionul e mai simplu, Tarom si Air Serbia efectuaza zboruri spre Belgrad. Daca alegi Air Serbia, sa ai grija la bagajul de cala, s-ar putea sa te trezesti ca l-au lasat la Bucuresti, asa cum am patit eu. Desigur, l-au trimis pe Lami la Belgrad cu urmatorul zbor al Air Serbia, insa nu m-am simtit foarte confortabil sa port aceleasi haine 24 de ore. Si mai trist a fost ca ramasesem si fara groomng kit-ul meu, si fara periuta de dinti. Noroc ca in Belgrad au Mega Image, sau ceva foarte similar, asa ca am reusit sa supravietuiesc pana a doua zi dimineata.
Unde dormi?
Daca vrei sa iti petreci noptile intr-o cladire istorica, renumita in Belgrad, iti recomand sa te cazezi la Metropol Palace Hotel. Este asezat chiar in centrul orasului, si este cotat cu cinci stele, asa ca o sa te simti super rasfatat la Metropol Palace. Personalul este foarte amabil, iar hotelul are o traditie de peste 50 de ani, in care a gazduit o multime de celebritati, de la Elizabeth Taylor la Che Guevarra, de la Brigitte Bardot la Louis Armstrong, Sofia Loren si Hitchcock.
Unde mananci?
In Belgrad am gasit cel mai nebun restaurant in care am fost vreodata. Se numeste Lorenzo & Kakalamba si este o combinatie intre Disneyland si un Sex Shop din Tara Minunilor. Te astepti in orice moment sa apara de undeva Palarierul Nebun. Care eventual sa faca un numar de striptease. E asa de da fascinant locul asta, incat iti ia minute bune pana te opresti din a te minuna de decorul fantastic, plin de papusi, strumfi, centuri de castitate, tablouri fantastice si personaje din ceara. Insa apoi te poti bucura de un meniu delicios, o combinatie de bucatarie italiana cu specialitati locale. Pot sa spun ca sarmalutele au fost absolut delicioase! Insa cel mai mult m-a bucurat „Laptele de pasare”! A fost de vis!!
Ce poti sa mai faci in Belgrad?
Poti sa-ti incepi ziua in centrul vechi, pietonal, unde sa savurezi o cafea la Koffein, iar apoi sa te plimbi pe stradute, descoperind locuri incantatoare si magazine de suveniruri sau de artizanat local. Nu rata o inghetata delicioasa de la Moritz, iar apoi poti sa gasesti un restaurant traditional, pentru pranz. Seara nu trebuie sa ratezi o plimbare pe malul Dunarii, unde se afla o multime de baruri, restaurante, bistrouri si cluburi, pentru ca aici e concentrata viata de noapte si distractia din Belgrad. Eu recunosc, abia astept sa ma intorc, pentru ca Belgradul, la fel ca si Bucurestiul, se mandreste cu niste cluburi foarte tari. Doar ca la Belgrad, multe dintre ele sunt in niste ambarcatiuni care plutesc pe Dunare!
LOve,
O.