Braaing in Belgrade

We took the overnight train from Bucharest to Belgrade, or as the children would tell you, we took an overnight sauna. The windows on sleeping cars do not open in order that that the air conditioning works. That's fine, if the air-conditioning works. If it doesn't and it is 35 degrees outside, the temperature inside gets to over 40 degrees.

We were met at the station by the svelt Mr Simon Cottrell, my former partner in rugby crime from Moscow. Simon whisked us back to his beautifully air-conditioned house where we unloaded several days of washing into his washing machine and then enjoyed his pancakes. Cathy may be the brains of the Cottrell family, but Simon does make a mean pancake.

Belgrade is pleasant enough. It has the the somewhat faded grandeur of the old Central Europe while the apartment blocks of the outskirts are recognisable to anyone who has travelled in Eastern Europe.

There is less buzz than in Bucharest, and the fact that Serbia is now an island in the middle of the EU rankles, especially when Bulgaria is in the club! The citadel in the centre of town affords excellent views of the confluence of the Danube and Sava rivers which presumably, way back when, was the original raison d'etre for Belgrade.

The Serbs have left a couple of buildings which were bombed in 1999 by NATO as a reminder to visitors of the bombing. After watching Serbia lose to Ghana in the World Cup, Simon and I took a taxi back home. As we passed the former Ministry of Defence, Simon mentioned that the Spanish had bombed that particular building. The taxi driver saw it differently. "it was England and Tony Blair". Simon tried to put the guy right, but he told us again that it was Blair and England, and that his brother had been killed by English bombing. End of argument. The man's analysis that Blair is a lying war criminal does give one hope for this country.

That evening we discovered that not only is Simon a pancake of chef of note, but also has South African ancestry, otherwise how could we explain his braai skills?

We were also treated to an impromptu concert from Alex and her Scottish friends. As ever dressing up was a big part of the programme. Thank you Alex for providing the costumes and creativity!