Posted
on November 21, 2014
Many
people in the Serbian Orthodox Church celebrate their family's patron
saint on his or her feast day. Today is the feast day of one of the
most popular saints, St. Michael. So today many Serbians families are
celebrating their most important feast day of the year.
Traditionally,
adult sons take their families to their father's home to eat a feast
of Slava cake (a kind of bread made with walnuts, nutmeg, and
cloves), koljivo, and other favorite foods. Often the family
attends a church service or has the priest over to bless the house
and give a memorial for relatives who have died.
Where
in the world is Serbia?
You
probably know that Serbia is in Europe, but do you know exactly
where? It used to be a part of Yugoslavia, so I know that it is one
of the Southern Eastern nations. Here are some maps to orient you to
the location of Serbia, which is just a bit larger than South
Carolina in size:
 |
| Serbia appears in bright green. |
A
few of my favorite things about Serbia
Much
of the history of Serbia is unhappy—including pretty much all of
the 1900s. Serbia suffered greatly during both World Wars, and Serbs
as well as Jews and gypsies (the Roma people) in Serbia were all
persecuted to the point of genocide by the Nazis. A repressive
communist government took over after World War II, and the leader
Slobodan Milosevic continued the authoritarian style while Yugoslav
Wars erupted. Finally, in 2000, protesters forced the fall of
Milosevic and the beginning of a new era—more democracy, more
freedom, and a greater stake in world affairs. Serbia is now a
candidate for membership in the European Union. More freedom is
definitely one of my favorite things about Serbia!
Serbia
is the world's second largest producer of plums.
Nikola
Tesla is one of Serbia's most renowned scientists and inventors. He
designed our modern Alternating Current (AC) system.
Serbian
Novak Djokovic is an amazing tennis player, currently Number 1 in the
world and considered to be one of the best of all time.
The
only Serbian word accepted worldwide is vampire.
The
first satellite video transmission between Europe and North America,
in 1963, was a picture of the Serbian fresco of the White Angel from
Mileseva Monastery.
Vodopod
Tupavica is just one of the many lovely waterfalls that dazzle their
way through green Serbian landscapes.
Uvac
River takes meanders to a maze-like level!
Also
on this date:
Plan
ahead:
Check
out my Pinterest boards for:
And
here are my Pinterest boards for:
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