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Once we got permission from Customs to leave Hungary we started cruising on the tranquil Danube with Croatia on one side and Serbia on the other. A napkin folding demonstration was held at 10 in the morning and about an hour later after raising the Serbian flag as a gesture of respect we stopped for Serbian custom clearance in Bezdan, Serbia. While this was going on Doris van Jeveren our cruise manager gave a talk on the European Union and the hopes of eastern Europe, while some staff members shared their hopes and dreams for the future. Later in the day Captain Jan de Bruijn gave a nautical talk but I chose to continue capturing the landscape.

Around 9 oclock we passed Petrovaradin Fortress near Novi Sad but of course at this time of year it was dark. This never conquered landmark is known as the Gibralter of the Danube.

I will mention only the modern history of the area. World War II brought a horrible raid made by fascist forces, during which in three days Novi Sad lost 1500 of it's citizens, mainly Serbs and Jews. During the War several thousand citizens were killed. The city was liberated by the Russians on the 23 rd October 1944.

Later, twelve years of Milosevich rule in Yugoslavia and Serbia brought nothing but trouble. Citizens were devastated by poverty, many young and educated people went abroad.

The NATO bombing of Serbia in 1999 was a momentous event in a tragic decade. It was, perhaps, the second-to-last Balkan domino to crash, before the October 2000 revolution that ousted Serbian president and indicted war criminal Slobodan Milosevic.

Not only did the Novi Sad sustain damage — but its links to the rest of Serbia were cut when NATO bombers destroyed the three main bridges that connected Novi Sad to the rest of the country. One of the bridges remains in tatters below.

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