Christmas in the Serbian city of Niš.

Christmas in the Serbian city of Niš.

December 2023.

Sladja and I find ourselves back in Serbia every couple of years. Usually to check in with her parents in the town of Obrenovac. And to take care of medical and admin matters in Belgrade. In the winter of 2023 we stayed for several months, admittedly a bit too long for our liking.

Grim weather… barking dogs… polluted air… a general lack of things to do. With the end of the year rapidly approaching we were definitely starting to climb the walls. Yes, it was time for a change of scenery.

Thus we decided to clear our schedule for a Christmas break. It had been several years since we’d explored a new part of Serbia and we quickly settled on a four-night stay in Niš (pronounced Neesh), its third largest city. We took the bus from Belgrade, which did the journey in a (happily) uneventful three hours.

The biggest positive to sorting out our visit was that the Airbnb rental scene is one of the most affordable from our five years travelling the world together. Indeed we had no issues at all finding a lovely city centre apartment at a very reasonable price.

Christmas in the Serbian city of Niš.

In fact, our flat proved modern, cosy, spacious and fully equipped. Man, they even had Netflix so that we could polish off the last season of The Crown in the evenings after exploring.

The joint also had a little balcony with a view over the Nišava River.

Although fairly modest in size with a population of around 180.000, Niš is home to a handful of fascinating and varied sights for visitors to sink their teeth into.

Its main attraction is the Fortress of Niš, a sizeable complex with over two thousand years of history. From our place it was just a ten-minute walk to the entrance. Firstly along the Nišava river with its view of the impressive Nikola Tesla University Library.

Then across the aptly named Fortress Bridge. Check out my article on Niš Fortress for the details of our visit.

One of the many reasons I’d wanted to escape Obrenovac was that the town would have very little in the way of a recognisable Christmas vibe. With Serbia being Orthodox Christian, this rings generally true all over the country. But in Niš we were at least able to stroll through a small Christmas market.

Tis the season…

What’s more, we soon came across the city’s biggest Christmas tree stationed on King Milan Square.

However, the tree was dwarfed by the imposing Monument to the Liberators of Niš. Unveiled in black marble in 1937 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the city’s liberation from the Turks, it features a celebratory horseman clutching the banner of liberty.

A series of friezes around the base meanwhile remembers a number of epic battles from Serbia’s long and turbulent history. Including the liberation army’s victorious march into Niš in 1877 towards the end of the Serbian-Ottoman Wars.

King Milan Square sits between Fortress Bridge and Obrenovićeva Street, the main commercial stretch. Packed with stores, cafes, restaurants and malls, this is Niš’s liveliest pedestrian zone home to some charming spots.

Christmas in the Serbian city of Niš.

One of these is the endearing Tramvaj Cafe which channels the nostalgia of Niš’s old tram lines.

The city’s first tram service began operating in November of 1930. Surviving the dark days of the 1940s and flourishing in the post WWII era, the city council eventually retired the lines in the summer of 1958 following the launch of a new bus network.

We had already visited a Serbian tram cafe during our stay in Novi Sad, but this establishment was far bigger and fancier with much more attention to detail. Especially with all the various tram antiques and memorabilia. They’d also made an effort with the Christmas decorations, which helped boost our ever-increasing holiday vibe.

The Tram Cafe opened in 1985, so today locals consider it something of a Niš institution. And yet… as is so often the case in Serbia… we found the place to be lacking in terms of the ambience, service and overall quality of the food. Our waiter wasn’t rude at least, rather a bit casual and disinterested.

As for the food, it was ok. Our coffee was passable, with the usual issue of not being hot. Sladja had the avocado salad, the plainest setup imaginable, while I went for a decent chocolate crepe served with whipped cream. One victory we had was in managing to secure a table near the entrance door away from the main cluster of booths where clouds of cigarette smoke sat thick in the air.

Tramvaj Cafe.

Also on Obrenovićeva Street, we found it impossible not to pop into The Vinyl Cafe & Record Store for another coffee.

It’s a beautifully designed cafe with hundreds of LPs on display. Moreover, many of the records are delightfully underground with plenty of surprises buried between heavyweight artists such as Miles Davies, The Rolling Stones and David Bowie.

Despite liking the place we didn’t linger too long. After all, lukewarm coffee + nicotine ÷ keen to explore = let’s move on.

The more we walked the more evidence we saw of the city’s appreciation of pop culture. Indeed we came upon the Forrest Gump Cafe on Jovana Ristića Street.

And the Sherlock Cafe Bar with its obligatory red telephone box. “Lukewarm coffee Sherlock?” “Elementary, my dear Watson”. 

We also enjoyed the sense of humour many business owners have when naming their new joints. Of these, I award full marks to Tostojevski, a toasted sandwich chain with several stores across the city.

In contrast, I think I might turn down the offer of a razor face shave at Barber Shop Lobotomy. Yikes.

Architecturally Niš can come across as… how can I put this…. not the prettiest city you’ll ever see. At first glance one could be forgiven for thinking that it’s all just gargantuan tower blocks and tombstone-esque Soviet eyesores.

Christmas in the Serbian city of Niš.

But fear not, there are some delightful edifices to seek out. Take for example The National Museum of Niš Archaeological Hall, crafted from the remains of a former bank in the years following World War II.

The National Museum’s Headquarters on Generala Milojka Lesjanina is worth a look too. Seriously, I was half expecting to catch Miss Havisham peering out from behind one of the windows.

Elsewhere, we found ourselves smiling at the pastel yellow of the secession style Court House and its charming clock tower.

Less endearing, but certainly no less striking in its own way, is the Headquarters of the Serbian Army Land Forces.

 You can’t miss it looming over the nearby King Aleksander Square and Park. Home to a cluster of war graves and memorials, it is one of just a few green spaces in the city centre where one can go jogging or walk the canine.

One of my favourite buildings is the Central Post Office, built in 1931 as a mortgage bank. An example of French academic architecture, it transitioned into the city’s main post office after World War II. The reliefs above the main door however still depict bank investors and creditors.

Central Post Office.

As an unexpected bonus, we also found an antique post box dating back to 1840 just across the road.

But for the ultimate escape from Niš’s Soviet high-rise eyesores we headed to the historic Tinker’s Alley. Established in the early 1800s, this cobblestone street was once home to the workshops and storefronts of various craftsmen and tinkers.

Very few of the street’s historic structures remain, though there are a few seductive hints at its former grandeur.

Today you won’t find any tinsmiths or copper merchants. Instead, Tinker’s Alley has become one of Niš’s most popular restaurant, cafe and bar streets. Its best eatery is arguably Kod Rajka, which specialises in traditional Serbian dishes.

Our second day in Niš saw us chalk off two of its main sights. Setting off on a lengthy walking route from our apartment, we paid a visit to the fascinating and more than a touch grisly Skull Tower. You can read my article on the tower here. 

After the skull extravaganza we walked for another 33 minutes to Mediana, an incredible site of Roman ruins. Who would have thought (spoiler: certainly not me) that none other than the Roman emperor Constantine the Great was born in Niš (then called Naissus) and that this is where he built a grand residence? For the full story, here’s my article on the Roman ruins of Niš.

Christmas in the Serbian city of Niš.

Christmas Day itself played out as all good Christmas days should. We slept in, drank loads of coffee, ate chocolates, cookies and other goodies. Watched TV, drank a bottle of wine, had a bath.

Still, we did manage to make it out of the apartment for an afternoon hike. Our destination was Bubanj Memorial Park, a hilly forest on the edge of the city that is home to one of Serbian history’s darkest chapters.

The walk up to the hill was lovely. It was a crisp blue sky day with a leafy crunch underfoot. With the birds a-tweeting we had perhaps underestimated the intensity of the grim narrative that awaited us. Not exactly the most fitting Christmas Day field trip, but one we have no regrets taking.

Atop the hill sits a striking World War II memorial called The Three Fists. Created by the Yugoslavian sculptor Ivan Sabolić, these towering marble slabs topped by fist-like heads remember the ten to twelve thousand people executed by the Nazis in the forest between 1942 and 1944.  

Bubanj Memorial Park.

During the Second World War occupying Nazi forces built a sizeable concentration camp in Niš. According to historians, as many as 35.000 Serbs, Jews and Romanis were held at Crveni Krst Concentration Camp. 

The Nazis used the nearby Bubanj Forest as an execution site. The precise number of people killed here was impossible to determine due to the fact that the Germans often burned bodies along with any associated documents.

Placed on a grassy clearing at the top of the hill with the forest surrounding them, the monuments have an undeniably powerful effect. Sabolić unveiled his creations on October the 14th 1963 on Niš Liberation Day. Addressing a large crowd, he explained that the monuments symbolise the Serbian people’s rebellion and resistance.

Later, in 2004, the artist Alexander Buđevac added a new memorial to the site. Christened Glass Chapel, it was not met with positive reviews, with many calling it an ugly, ill-conceived irrelevance. We found a particularly scathing online review from a local woman that states:

“Unprecedented stupidity. How to ruin a locality with something that has nothing to do with the theme and purpose. It is not very clear to anyone what, why and how. The lower windows were broken a long time ago. A mockery that needs to be removed” 

Eventually we left the memorials behind to take a walk through another section of Bubanj Forest. Before too long we came upon what initially looked like a disturbing scene! Oh my god… has… ? But it turned out simply to be a family barbecuing behind their car.

Christmas in the Serbian city of Niš.

A short while later we stumbled upon another memorial. This, the accompanying plaque claims, is most likely the precise location where the Nazis executed their prisoners. A sad and chilling moment to stand on the spot where such evil once took place.

That evening, back in the city centre, we were looking for a restaurant in which we could have a special Christmas dinner. As someone who is usually in foreign lands on Christmas Day, I’m used to going without roast turkey and Yorkshire pudding. Nevertheless, I always try to find some kind of culinary treat to mark the day.

Disappointed that we couldn’t find an Indian restaurant, we settled on a feast at Wenzhou Chinese Restaurant. Wenzhou is a large city in Zhejiang Province that Sladja and I both worked near in the years before we got together. Hence it felt like the perfect choice.

We have been accustomed to lowering our expectations when it comes to eating authentic Chinese cuisine in Europe. No matter where we go the food has been altered to suit local tastes and is a far cry from those incredible dishes we experienced in China.

However, Wenzhou’s dishes are nothing short of a resounding victory. The closest in fact that we’ve had to the real thing outside of China.

Christmas in the Serbian city of Niš.

The best dish had to be this exceptional pile of sizzling beef, served with onions and peppers on a hot plate. Now THAT’S a Christmas present.

It was the perfect way to end our Christmas Day and indeed toast a highly enjoyable winter break before our bus back to Belgrade the next morning. The only downside was that I felt so full I was concerned Sladja and the waitress might have to carry me home.

 Like this? Check out my many articles from across Serbia.

I’ve been living, working and traveling all over the world since 2001. So why not check out my huge library of travel reports from over 40 countries.