Europe in Belgrade

The Serbian capital will be host to the central celebration of Days of European Heritage, due to take place from September 20^th – 23^rd and organised by the Council of Europe and the European Commission in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and the City of Belgrade.

By Jelena Gligorić

The celebrated Serbian writer Miloš Crnjanski in his Travel Book says that “Belgrade’s beauty is the beauty of its upright position, the vision on the hill, the step across waters”. The Serbian capital is known by its attractive geographic location at the confluence of the Sava into the Danube, the river along which the Argonauts sailed in search of the Golden Fleece, indeed just the right place for the central European celebration of “Days of Heritage” on the theme “Rivers – the Streams of Heritage”.

The accent of this year’s event will be on heritage with a broader European dimension – the Danube Basin and the Balkans, connected above all with the Danube – one of four rivers of paradise and undoubtedly the most important river in Europe. Apart from emphasising the European dimension of its cultural-historical heritage, for this occasion Belgrade and Serbia will put the accent on the problem of managing natural and cultural heritage, and present themselves to Europe and the world as an important centre of cultural tourism in the region, and as a candidate for the 2020 cultural capital.

Belgrade, a city in which various cultures and civilisations have clashed but also creatively mixed over the centuries, will be this year’s host to a new Europe, the continent of prosperity, cooperation and understanding. The objective of today’s generation is to preserve the remains of the city’s past that, as its history testifies, was repeatedly demolished and burned down some 40 times, in order to enable future generations to become familiar with the turbulent history of Belgrade.

Every September, during this unique festival of culture and tourism to which Belgrade contributes through being part of the cultural-historic heritage of the Old Continent, thousands of Belgraders and their guests visit museums and other institutions of culture and important buildings, tour the cultural-historical city or go on excursions outside the city, free of charge, accompanied by guides and curators and all those who know and love their city.

Especially attractive are programmes intended for children and young people, the majority of which are also organised to enable access to visitors with special needs.

This year, as on earlier occasions, important state institutions and buildings will open their doors to visitors: the National Assembly of Serbia, the building housing the office of the President of Republic (New Palace), the building of the Serbian Government, the Royal Compound – Royal and White Palaces, the French Embassy, the building housing the City of Belgrade government (Old Palace), the Historical Archive of Belgrade, the National Library of Serbia, the National Bank of Serbia, important monuments of culture – the house of the Veljković Family, the house of Jevrem Grujić… Nearly all museums, cultural centres and other cultural institutions have prepared special programmes and will open their doors to receive as many visitors as possible. Exhibitions, lectures, film and video-projections, promotions, music, stage and multimedia programmes, workshops and free tours to sites near Belgrade will also be organised. The preparation of programmes includes the civic sector – NGOs, associations, artists, tourist guides, etc.

Inspired by the Cultural Monuments Open Days Programme launched by France, the Council of Europe in 1991 established the “Days of European Heritage”. The idea is to bring the peoples of the Old Continent closer through a better understanding of their own natural and cultural heritage that, though widely different, has the same roots. In Serbia, the “Days of European Culture” was first launched in 2002.   - Ethnographic Museum: “Waters of Serbia and Their Importance”, traditional fishing on the Danube and Sava. The old process of producing on water.   - Museum of Natural History: “A Hidden Life of Rivers”, exhibition, workshop, video-projections.   - Temple (Cathedral) of St. Sava: “Miroslav’s Gospel”, touring the heritage sites inscribed on UNESCO’s list “Memory of the World”.   - Princess Ljubica’s Residence: “To Fall In Love With A City”, the selected texts from travelogues by the best known European writers who either stayed or passed through Belgrade, with gravures, maps, drawings, old books…   - National Bank of Serbia The building in King Peter’s Street: Demonstration of minting coins and issuing banknotes with the image of a visitor…   - Business building at the Slavija Circus: Đorđe Weiffert –industrialist and explorer, banker and collector.   - Museum of Aviation: “Hydroplanes”, construction, their use in our area.   - Belgrade Fortress: “Fortress On the Danube”, an international exhibition of photographs and the international presentation of old artisanship.   - Museum of Vuk and Dositej: Dositej’s travels across Europe and his arrival to Belgrade.   - Botanic Garden “Jevremovac”   - Building of the Serbian National Assembly: “100 Years of the National Assembly Building”.   - Working part of the central European celebration – the international round table and presentation of the regional programme for countries of South Eastern Europe. Signing the Council of Europe’s Convention.   - Special programme for persons with special needs.   - Photographs from the Ethnographic Museum: exhibition of co-authors, the curator Miloš Matić and Marko Stojanović, “Wood Under Fingers” intended for persons with weak sight or the blind.