Beer and bumper cars

So here I am being a lazy bum in Belgrade…watching the Olympics and chatting in the hostel common room all morning. Last night was Belgrade Beer Fest (apparently, it’s going on all week here), which was surprisingly fantastic.  I was expecting a hall or outdoor venue with a bunch of tents, lots of beer, and not much else.  However, what I found was a huge stage with Serbian bands, an amusement park with booming techno music, and mobs of people enjoying beer, food, music, and rides. 

I went with a group we got together at the hostel, and we really had a blast.  After sampling some Bavarian, Czech, and Serbian beer and chatting over the music, we hit the bumper cars, cheering and laughing when we hit one of our own group.  After a few of the braver souls had gone on some of the more adventurous rides (not for me though, with a full stomach!), we headed back to the main festival for some satisfying Serbian burgers (a “small” was as big as my head, and filled with lettuce, onions, tomatos, ketchup and mayo – so much for healthy food!).  Let me tell you though, the Serbians definitely know how to do their meat, and everything I’ve sampled so far has been juicy and delicious.  Not a good city for vegetarians, though!

It’s fantastic being somewhere cheap for once though!  A dinner or lunch can easily be bought for $2-3, and prices in general are pretty reasonable.  I’m looking forward to the last bits of the trip, though…Budapest, which should be amazing, then Croatia for the puppet festival, then home!  I’m glad I saved some of my favorite places and events for last, because now I’m just as excited about my last 2 weeks abroad as I am about finally getting home.