Belgrade in 3 days

Nikola Tesla Museum (Krunska 51, Vračar — the museum dedicated to the Serbian-American electrical engineer Nikola Tesla (born 1856 in Smiljan (now Croatia), died 1943 in New York): Tesla is the most important Serbian cultural figure in the world (the unit of magnetic flux density (the tesla) is named for him). The museum: the original Tesla patents, the personal archive (the museum holds the most complete collection of Tesla personal papers in the world, acquired from the US Government after Tesla's death without heirs), the famous rotating Tesla coil (the demonstration of the alternating current that Tesla invented: the coil generates 200,000 volts of electricity passed through the body of a museum guide to light a fluorescent tube — the same demonstration Tesla used to convince investors in the 1890s), and Tesla's ashes in the golden sphere.

Zemun (the former Austro-Hungarian border town, now incorporated into Belgrade: the distinct European town on the north bank of the Sava (before the Sava joins the Danube), with the Habsburg architecture (the 18th-century neoclassical and Baroque buildings of the Zemun center are architecturally closer to Vienna or Budapest than to Ottoman Belgrade), the Gardoš tower (the Millennium Tower built in 1896 to mark the 1,000th anniversary of the Hungarian conquest of the Pannonian Plain), and the Zemun Quay (the most atmospheric riverside restaurant strip in Belgrade, where the fishermen's restaurants serve the specific Danube and Sava freshwater fish: the šaran (carp) paprikaš, the catfish (som) grilled or baked, and the smuđ (zander) in the white wine and vegetable stew that is the signature Zemun dish).

Rakia Bar (Dobračina 5, Dorćol — the most comprehensive Serbian rakija bar in Belgrade: the Serbian rakija (the fruit brandy — the most important domestic spirit of the Balkans, with šljivovica (plum brandy) the most produced in Serbia: the rakija is made from the domestic šljiva (the Serbian prune plum — the specific variety (the Požegača or the Crvena Šljiva) used for the finest šljivovica, which must be double-distilled and aged a minimum of 5 years to produce the top quality (the old stock rakija (stara šljivovica): amber, complex, 45–50% alcohol)). At Rakia Bar: 100+ varieties of rakija from across the Balkans (šljivovica, kruškovac (pear), dunja (quince), loza (grape marc), kajsija (apricot), klekovača (juniper brandy) and the honey rakija (medovača)).

Pljeskavica (the Serbian grilled meat disc — the equivalent of a hamburger but made from a blend of minced beef, pork and veal, seasoned with onion, garlic and hot paprika, grilled over charcoal to a thin disc (up to 30cm in diameter)): the Belgrade pljeskavica is a specific institution distinct from the versions in other Yugoslav successor states. Dačo (Patrijarha Varnave 11, Čukarica — the most celebrated pljeskavica restaurant in Belgrade, operating since 1966: the classic spicy pljeskavica (ljuta pljeskavica) with the ajvar (the Serbian red pepper and aubergine relish — the most important condiment in Serbian cuisine) and the raw onion.

Hram Svetog Save (the Church of Saint Sava on Vračar hill — the largest Orthodox church in the world by volume (under debate with the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow: St Sava has a floor area of 7,500 sq m and a height of 79m): construction began in 1935 on the site where the Ottoman Grand Vizier Koca Sinan Pasha burned the relics of Saint Sava (the 13th-century founder of the Serbian Orthodox Church) in 1595 as a punishment for a Serbian uprising (the burning was intended to destroy the spiritual center of the Serbian people — instead it made the site sacred). The neo-Byzantine interior (the massive gold mosaic dome — the largest mosaic in the world by surface area, 1,700 sq m of gold tesserae — was completed in 2020) is the most spectacular interior of any Serbian building.

Ada Ciganlija (the freshwater "Sea of Belgrade" — the river island on the Sava converted to a 4km beach by a causeway in 1967 (the original island was connected to the bank by filling in the northern channel, creating a long freshwater lake used for swimming): the most used public recreational space in Belgrade (peak summer Sundays: 300,000 visitors). The freshwater beach bars (Sportski centar Ada Ciganlija — the complex of cafés, water sports rentals (kayaking, rowing, water skiing), the sand beach along the 4km length, and the island parks beyond the beach). Ada Ciganlija is the most democratic and characteristic public space in Belgrade: the entire city social spectrum from politicians to Roma families on summer weekends.

Dorćol (the old quarter of Belgrade between Kalemegdan and the Danube — the neighborhood that combines the oldest street patterns in Belgrade (the Ottoman grid of the former Turkish quarter) with the most dynamic café, bar and gallery scene in the city. The Skadarska and Đerdapska streets in Dorćol have the highest concentration of independent cafés and wine bars in Belgrade: the Belgrade coffee culture (the domaća kafa — the traditional Serbian boiled coffee, thick and sweet, served in a džezva (the small copper pot) with the grounds in the bottom of the cup (the most intense and cheapest coffee in Europe)) and the natural wine bars (Belgrade has a small but growing natural wine scene centered on Dorćol).

Ćevapčići (the small minced meat rolls — the most universal street food of the former Yugoslavia: the ćevapčiči are made from a blend of beef and pork (or pure beef in the Muslim tradition of Bosnia and Kosovo), seasoned with garlic and baking soda (which gives the crust its characteristic texture), grilled over charcoal in the ćevabdžinica (the specialist ćevapčiči restaurant, open from breakfast to midnight) and served in a fresh lepinja (the soft bread roll, slightly chewy), with raw onion, kajmak (the clotted cream-like dairy product made from the skin of slowly heated and cooled milk) and ajvar. RSD 300 (€2.50) for 10 pieces — the most filling and satisfying street food in Europe at the least expense.