We left Belgrade by public bus to Nis this morning at 8:30. We basically had the whole bus to ourselves though. The ride was about 4 hours long. Once we got there we quickly checked into our rooms and then went and got a quick lunch.
Then it was off to the Red Cross (not affiliated with the Red Cross we know) concentration camp just outside of the main part of town. We had a private guide and he had quite the personality. It was like he was acting out what he was saying the whole time. The concentration camp in Nis is different in that an organized mass escape occurred on February 12th, 1942 in which 105 prisoners got away. However, as punishment 1100 prisoners were then executed by the Nazis.
The guide showed us the barb wire crossed floors the prisoners were made to sleep on in the cells and the area of the original fence in which the prisoners escaped from. A bigger cement wall was built around the perimeter after the escape happened. We also saw the site of the executions. It was very grim.
After the camp, some of us went to see the skull tower. The tower was made of skulls of the dead Serbs in a battle that took place in 1809 against the Turks. It was constructed to scare the others and show what they (the Turks) can do.
Once done there, we decided to experiment with the public buses and asked a local girl how to get back to the fortress - which is near our hotel. She was a great help but couldn't understand why on earth we were visiting her hometown. Not a lot of tourists here, I suppose.
We successfully made it back to the main square and from there I walked into the fortress to check it out. The view from the top was ok. Again it was a rather overcast day so you couldn't see very far. A lot of teens (aka youths - New Girl reference) were up there making out. It seemed like the hot spot.
In between then and dinner I just hung out in the room and caught up on my CNN news.
Dinner was amazing. We went for a set menu that included a delicious plate of cold meats, bread, cheeses and salads. Then we got some yummy chicken. There were these really hot raw green peppers that we ended up challenging each other to eat, but nobody succeeded.
A couple of us went and found a nice outdoor bar that was playing the England vs. Uruguay game and we had a beer and watched. I'm really getting into this whole European football thing! It was a bit cold out while watching the game though so I made a hot cup of tea when I got back to the room before bed.
Awful torture cell:
Red Cross concentration camp:
Part of the skull tower:
Nis fortress on a cloudy day:
Veggies! Yummmm:
Watching some football before bed:
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