BELGRADE – One of the most culturally vibrant cities in Europe

Belgrade, tucked away in the middle of the Balkans, is a brilliant gem bursting with an intensity that soothes the soul and stimulates the imagination. The discriminating eye of the American fashion bible, Vogue, has lately shone this Serbian capital—a city of great historical relevance and modern appeal. Vogue has woven a tapestry of locations that, although less visited by the general public, call to the adventurous visitor in a revelatory exposé on the hidden treasures of the Balkan Peninsula.

Belgrade, dubbed by Vogue as “one of the most culturally vibrant cities in Europe,” towers among these particular sites. This accolade is more than just evidence of its rich legacy; it’s a call to those trying to enter a milieu where the past and present dance in harmonic synchrony.

While the azure waves of the Adriatic and the sun-drenched isles of Croatia and Montenegro have long held sway over the collective imagination of visitors, Vogue boldly asserts that the Balkans harbour a wealth of experiences that transcend these familiar vistas. The magazine invites readers to start an odyssey of inquiry right away by presenting a picture of a region blessed with breathtaking natural beauty and a cultural vitality pulsing through its veins.

Using language almost divine in its lyrical portrayal of Belgrade, Vogue characterizes the city as a “divine fusion of past and present.” This celestial allegory rightly captures the core of a city where modernism and history coexist in an amazing scene. Imagine if you will the soft lapping of waves against more than 200 rafts adrift on the Danube and Sava rivers. These floating paradise provide equal measure of refuge and celebration as a moving reminder of Belgrade’s close relationship with its rivers.

One wanders across the several districts of the city and the soul of Belgrade shows itself in many different ways. Skadarlija’s cobblestone streets, redolent with the scent of rich Balkan cuisine and the mellifluous strains of traditional music, carry the visitor to a bygone period of bohemian rhapsody. By contrast, the ancient town of Dorćol radiates timeless elegance, its stately buildings and tree-lined streets echoing centuries past.

Still, Belgrade is hardly a city frozen in amber. Savamala’s district is evidence of the city’s rebirth, a creative furnace where avant-garde galleries and innovative cultural centers have found home in converted industrial sites. This juxtaposition of the ancient and the modern produces a tapestry of experiences that is both startling and harmonic, so testing the visitor’s preconceptions at all levels.

Without savoring Belgrade’s gastronomic pleasures, no study of the city would be whole. The city’s green markets explode in a rainbow of locally grown food; their stands are a riot of color and scent. From luscious fruits to crisp vegetables, each morsel a tribute to Serbia’s agricultural past, one can taste the abundance of the rich plains here.

Belgrade presents a real paradise of grilled meat specialties for people with more carnivorous tastes. The seductive scent of ćevapi and pljeskavica permeates the air; their sizzling calls the epicurean adventurer a siren song. One need only look at the local wines and brandies, each sip a liquid capture of the Serbian terroir, to balance these strong tastes.

Belgrade finds great company as Vogue reveals its pantheon of Balkan sites for the discriminating visitor in 2017. From the medieval elegance of Prizren to the rugged beauty of Herzegovina, from the crystalline waters of Lake Ohrid to the mist-shrouded castles of Transylvania, each place promises its own unique tapestry of experiences. The sun-kissed shores of Himara.

Still, Belgrade is the throbbing core of this Balkan rebirth. a city where the lightness of invention balances the weight of history and where progress and legacy entwine in a dance as ancient as time itself. Walking Belgrade’s streets is like traversing centuries, breathing in the core of a culture that has weathered storms and emerged phoenix-like with an unquenchable spirit and an unrelenting zest for life.

Belgrade is clearly a journey unto itself as Vogue’s focus highlights these hidden Balkan treasures reveals, not only a destination. This is a city that begs to be experienced, felt, lived in. Belgrade promises those who answer its call an adventure that will linger in the chambers of the heart long after the trip ends, a symphony of events that will permanently change one’s view of what it means to really travel.