Serbia asked 2,483 questions about EU entry bid | EurActiv

Serbia asked 2,483 questions about EU entry bid | EurActiv

Aleksandra Kovac - Ti

beetantone - vruce

Svi na pod - Carobni limun

SVI NA POD Iza nas

Many places and 3 countries - Part V - Romania - Timisoara

Timisoara was our first destination in Romania. This Middle-Ages city located in the Banat region has an incredibly interesting architecture. Even if a lot of students come to live in Timisoara I didn't have the impression that the city is a very dynamic one. It seems more like a quite, nice, relaxed atmosphere where Cipriano and me enjoyed nice walks and nice talks in the cafés of Timisoara.

Timisoara was during a long time in the hands of the Habsburgs and was consequently heavily influenced by Vienna which allowed to the city to bloom economically and socially. From this period date some of Timisoara's premiers such as the introduction of electrical street lighting and electrical trams.

At the end of 1918, while the Habsburg Empire was living its last days, the citizens of the Banat regiuon decided to unite with Romania.
From 1947 Timisoara, like the all country, came under the communists and it is in the 1970s and the 1980s that Romania is hit by a huge crisis. In that time, the country was led by the dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. But in 1989, the Revolution started in the Victoria Square of Timisoara.
After that date, this city benefited from international exposure and shows growth on foreign investments.

Today Romanians make up 85% of the total population; they were 10% in 1900 and 23% in 1930. And yet Hungarians, Germans, Serbians and Roma are active communities, having their own cultural institutions. We even past by a Serbian Orthodox church which surprised me.
 

 Libertatii Square

Libertatii Square (Liberation Square) was once the headquarters of the military administration. It was called "Parades Square" in the time when Timisoara's role of border city of the empire was overwhelming. The square has a lovely aspect, with some elegant baroque monuments, like the statue of St.Mary and St. Nepomuk, a masterpiece of Viennese artists, that you can see above.

 

At Victoria Square 

This square, contrary to the other squares such as Unirii Square and Libertatii Square evolved after 1910 on the grounds of the former fortress walls and water channels. It is much newer than the others, but is soon became the main square in Timisoara up to date.

Main Orthodox church at Victoria Square

This church is located in the southern end of Victoria Square and represents an interesting counterpart to the theater. It was built between 1936 and 1946. 

Victoria Sqaure is considered as a masterpiece of Eastern European urban architecture. Some of the most dramatic episodes of the Revolution in December 1989 against Ceausescu took place here. Some buildings remain till today poke marked by the bullets of the brutal repression forces, testifying for the dictator who dared to order fire against his own people.  

Austrian architecture influence - Unirii Square

Theater building at Victory Square

This building is interesting in the sens that it shows a rupture with the Austrian administration. In 1919, Timisoara undergoes Romanian administration and the façade of the Theater building is restyled.

Lupa Capitolina in the middle of Victoria Square (a guift from Rome's municipality)

Darko Rundek - Makedo

Many places and 3 countries - Part III - Gamzigrad (Felix Romuliana) and Zajecar

Felix Romuliana is one of the most brilliant example of Roman architecture. It is located 11 kilometers from Zajecar and was built by the Roman Emperor Galerius (293-311 AD). Unique archeological findings were discovered in the palace: a portrait of the emperor Galerius, mosaics with representations of the imperial hunt and the Dionysus on a feats, sculptures of Hercules and Jupiter. The palace was listed on UNESCO World culturla and Naural Heritage in 2007. 

It is for sure one of the most preserved representations of the Roman Empire, very often considered as surpassing other monuments of the period, in Trier, Milan, Thessaloniki, Istanbul and Nicomedia.

It is really impresive by its size and by the preservation  of the site. A MUST for people interested in archeology, history of that time...

Felix Romuliana - Gamzigrad

Part of the old Roman city, as it used to look like

  Central Square in Zajecar

Zajecar

Zajecar central square with the big Hotel Serbia dating from the communist times

Felix Romuliana - Gamzigrad

Žiga i Bandisti - Dolinom Se Šetala

Many places and 3 countries - Part II, Nis, Serbia

Nis is an interesting city. It is not as beautiful as other Serbian cities such as Novi Sad or Belgrade but is a very interesting place where centuries of history meet and which is a real crossroad to other cities and countries. Nis is located in Southern Serbia, 2 hours driving from Vranje and it is considered as the most important regional center of administration, culture, history, economy and universty in South East Serbia.

Nis is the birth place of the emperor Constantine the Great who supported Christianity. One of the most interesting things to see in Nis is the Mediana residence dating from the 4th century. This archeological Roman site, even if protecting amazing mosaics with sand (which doesn't allow to see it) is worthy to see and is a beautiful memorial of thousands years ago. The estate occupies 40 hectares and exhibits the remains of a granary, craft center, villas, thermae, and the remains of an ancient villa.

Another interesting monument in Nis is the Skull Tower. The guide told us the story of this tower which was appearently built after a battle called Cegar. The turks prepared the construction of the tower made of skulls. As the battle and the explosion resulted in twice more Turks dead than Serbians, the Pasha of Nis ordered that the heads of Serbs should be collected, skinned and built into this tower. The heads were stuffed with cotton and sent to Constantinople, as a warning to anyone rising against the Ottoman Empire. 

Roman site (Mediana Temple)

An old Mosque used as an art gallery

In the Kafana

Old Serbian songs in Kafana

In the main square

The hunter telling his unrealistic story - Bohemian quarter

Fruit Pizza at the fortress

Inside the Concentration Camp from II WW

                         The Concentration Camp                         

This concentration camp is one of the few fully preserved fascist camps in Europe. It provides authentic testimony of to the perils of Serbians, Romani, amd Jewish population, communists, partisans and supporters of the liberation movement, who were incarcerated here during the German occupation of Serbia between 1941 and 1945. One well-knowned story of this camp is the massive escape of the 12th February 1942 organised by the prisoners. Out of 150 inmates who attempted to flee, 108 managed to escape. After this successful escape, and another in December 1942, this camp became a real venue of death. Inside the main building, where the prisoners were kept, many pictures, objects, passports remain kept over there and it is possible to see messages left on the walls from the prisoners themselves, in case they would ever been searched by family or friends.