These are interesting times here in Belgrade. Like all members of fully functioning healthy society, I felt like I should get a job that is difficult and earn my wage, as opposed to just working in the hostel, which is a pretty awesome job.
As it is, I've got a lot of handily placed chums out here, so finding a job was no real problem. The aforementioned job is, obviously, a bar job. So, after complaining about working in a bar for pretty much the majority of the last 6 years, I am back in a bar.
This time however, there is one key difference. This is a bar where I don't speak the language.
My first shift was on Friday, and as expected it was pretty darn interesting. As anyone who has been to mainland Europe will attest, the art and etiquette of going out is different to how we do it in Wales.
Table service is king here. When you arrive at a bar, you find a seat, you wait, and eventually a waiter will come over to you to take your order. They never, ever carry pads and pens with them, and almost always serve multiple people at a time.
I used to forget what people ordered in The Oak whilst they were still ordering their drinks. Surely this won't work?
Well, it kinda did and it kinda didn't. Luckily, one thing I'm not too bothered about is being embarrassed, so no problems there. It was also quite entertaining going through a conveyor of people ordering in Serbian, only for me to tell them that I don't speak Serbian but I do actually work there.
One woman thought I was trying to buy her a drink as a romantic gesture. Seriously. And she was pushing her mid 50's. It all got easier as it went on, and I also remembered that I'm probably the Most Charming Man Alive (there's a copyright there) when I can be bothered, so the tips were-a-coming.
In typically Serbian fashion, there was a lot of activity as well. First thing in the morning there was a Bicycle Festival, so bikes were everywhere.
Later that day I met two girls who were cycling from London to Sydney (think about that for a second) and one thing really shocked me. They were drinking and smoking as normal.
Now, when I was planning my great cycle from Aberystwyth to Vladivostok, I figured I'd have to have some sort of super intense health regime, with nothing but egg whites until forever. Apparently not.
In the afternoon there was a round table discussion split into two halves, the first being about literature and the second about politics. Yes, its a stereotype, but good lord these people are capable of passionate debates like no other.
I understood maybe 37 words during the whole 3 hours, but it was easy to see that these people loved and cared about what they were discussing.
I also love the fact that two people can have a heated argument only for one person to make a quip, and everyone breaks out into chuckles. We can learn a lot there.
I got back to the hostel shortly after work, sat down with a beer and set about writing this and that. I was down for a quiet night, an early night, when I received a message on Facebook from a chum, just saying 'Come to Skadarlija ASAP'.
Skadarlija is the old Bohemian quarter of Belgrade, and is full of bars and cafés, it's a really nice area. It is exactly the type of street that demands you stroll down it, as traditional musicians blare out tales of love and loss on either side of you.
For a tourist, it really is a must see in Belgrade, and it is also super popular for locals.
We didn't stay there long however, heading out to one of the boats that sit on the Sava river. The weather hasn't been great over the last few weeks, so there was a small bit of flooding, but nothing a makeshift hilarious nail ridden wobbly bridge couldn't sort out.
The boat, called 'Schlep', recently opened, so is still in a very popular stage with local people, and was crowded as expected. It plays mostly 90s British Indie, which was rather surreal but in a really nice way.
I bought a beer (and one for Una, you owe me), and quietly sat on the deck, to look out over the river towards Belgrade.
For all of my joking about ugliness and misery, Belgrade is an unbelievably beautiful city. Spending so much time in the very centre, it is easy to forget this, but whilst I sat there looking out across the Sava at the glistening lights of the city, there was a real moment of calm and contentedness.
I felt like I could easily just sit there for hours on end, doing nothing other than staring. Good work Belgrade, good work.
Then we played table football and I made more noise than anyone, because that’s how sports work. If you are lacking in skill, make up for it by being loud and obnoxious. Rule of life, number 8.
That's it for this time, it's too hot already to do anything other than sit and vegetate, or maybe even get a tan? Really, is it time for me to abandon my pasty skin in favour of becoming a bronzed Adonis? We'll see.
You can find me on twitter at @pingvinorkestra, there'll probably be a blow by blow account of how boring I find sunbathing.
Until next time!