Another first for me: a visit to my first non-EU country. Serbia here I come!

Already on crossing the border first impressions are good. No beak-rattling roads here. It is a smooth ride into the small town of Kanjiža where we stop to go a stroll and to get some local currency. I somehow think we won’t manage to get through all these dinars today, with prices such as 20c for a kilo of watermelon, €2 for a pack of cigarettes, 80c for a slice of pizza, 25c for a scoop of ice-cream…

Now that’s practical. All your services in one spot: gas, electricity, church.

There are still plenty of old communist buildings but there are also signs of changing times…

My owners were pressing on to Subotica, but just had to stop en-route, in Palić, when they spotted this beautiful post office. It was close to the entrance of a huge park which turned out to be well worth exploring, with its water tower, ‘grand terrace’, summer theatre, zoo, hotel, café –  all on a lake. With gulls! The Oldies had to drag me away from there, flapping and screeching.

I wasn’t the only one that was upset. His Lordship was practically crying when he realised that he’d missed this event. ‘Ulimited Beer’ at only 200 dinar, about € 1.65. A crying shame indeed!

We finally made it to Subotica which is only 10 km from the Hungarian border. What a lovely little city. It is just full of trees. So many, in fact, that His lordship was constantly complaining how difficult it was to photograph the buildings. Her Ladyship and I weren’t complaining though. Lots of wonderful shade and plenty of fountains to keep us cool too.

We Irish like a bit of craic, but this is ridiculous! I was shocked when I saw this church, the Cathedral of St. Teresa of Avila, which looks like it is about to split in two. My first thought was it had been hit by an earthquake, but Her Ladyship’s research indicates that the cathedral, which dates from 18^th century, was built half on sand, half on soil and that the cracks are due to uneven ground movement. It looks like somebody made a monumental blunder and now some monumental restoration work is in order. Perhaps it was a case of an architect who wasn’t quite as good as he was cracked up to be!

Subotica town centre has some fabulous Art Nouveau buildings, probably the most impressive being City Hall, which was built between 1908 and 1910. Some buildings are still sorely in need of renovation, others have been done up beautifully. Her Ladyship was very taken by all the ceramics and glazed bricks and tiles and I must say they do add a nice touch of colour to the city.

In spite of the low prices, many of the cafes, bars and restaurants in the city centre have a luxurious feel to them, are beautifully fitted out and have very friendly and attentive staff. The city overall has a relaxed and prosperous atmosphere. In fact, I keep getting confused. Romania is out and Serbia in. No, wait. It’s the other way round, isn’t it? Romania is the one that’s in the EU. Serbia is not. I wonder why I keep mixing that up…

We were all loath to leave, but His Lordship had to put the skids under us, reminding us that the border crossing back into Hungary was only open until 7pm. Once again, I had to shudder at the sight of all the razor wire and fencing put up by Hungary to keep out refugees, but at least the Serbian border police were relaxed and friendly. The officer who checked the Oldies’ passports noticed that they had only been in Serbia for the day, and he went out of his way to give them a quick run-down on other places to visit, things to see and advice on the best time of the year to visit the country. ‘One day!’ he exclaimed. ‘Too short!’

I agree. Far too short.