Post by radovic on Dec 8, 2008 12:47:33 GMT -5
Venice in Vojvodina
| 04 December 2008 | By Pat Andjelkovic
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It’s not so much Venetian-style canals as bucolic rolling countryside that provides the real draw to this pretty town near the Romanian border.
This week I invite you to venture to Bela Crkva, frequently referred to as the “Venice of Vojvodina.” While in my opinion that’s stretching the comparison, since there is only one canal near Bela Crkva, the town, as well as the entire municipality of the same name, deserve a visit. If Mother Nature is feeling friendly, you will have time to make a trip there in one day if you start early and only take in the town and a couple of nearby spots.
Bela Crkva, meaning “White Church”, lies in a spacious valley of the Nera river, in south-eastern Vojvodina, about 100 kilometres from Belgrade, in the Banat region. To reach the town, take the road to Vrsac, and then follow the signs. On the east, Bela Crkva is bordered by the Carpathians, and to the west by the Pannonian Depression, the remains of the ancient sea of the same name. Several rivers - the Danube, Nera, and the Karas and the Danube-Tisa-Danube Canal, are all at close quarters, as are as many as seven crystal-clear lakes. Bela Crkva has a temperate continental climate, with winter temperatures varying from minus 5 to 10 centigrade, while summer temperatures range from 23 to 35 centigrade.
The combination of mountain air from the Carpathian slopes, sunny days, home cooking, and numerous outdoor offerings provide a real opportunity for refreshment and memorable holidays.
The region includes the town of Bela Crkva and a number of villages; Banatska Palanka, Vracev Gaj, Grebenac, Dobricevo, and Kaludjerovo. Surrounded by beautiful countryside, filled with picturesque Baroque facades, pretty streets, parks and lakes, Bela Crkva is a respite from the hustle and bustle of big cities and the speed of modern life. In summer, the town holds a Flower Carnival and its fruits and quality wines are famous. Finally, because Bela Crkva has no heavy industry, there is no pollution, and consequently has been classified as an ‘ecological town’.
Though the town itself was named after the ruins of an old church, there are now four notable churches in Bela Crkva, located close to one another: St. Anne’s Catholic church, St. Peter and Paul’s Orthodox church, the Romanian church, and the Russian Orthodox church of St. John the Baptist. They all date from the 19th century.
Recreation
There’s plenty to do outdoors in and around Bela Crkva, though spring and summer are the preferred seasons. At this time, visitors can swim in the crystal-clear lakes. You can choose between lakes with only wild beaches and nature, and town beaches with many facilities, such as showers, cabins for changing, restaurants, ice-cream parlours, sports grounds, weight-lifting, water polo, and dingys and pedal boats for rent.
The Jezero tourist complex, located by the Town Lake, consists of five large bungalows.
All rooms have their own entrance, bathroom and terrace. The complex includes a restaurant with an outdoor terrace. Just 200 metres away, hotel Turist, with 80 beds, a restaurant, a bowling alley, a tennis court and a basketball playground is a good spot for sports training and recreation. Double rooms are available for around 1,600 dinars. If you prefer private rooms in a house, try Mirjana Lazovic’s accommodation. You can’t beat the price at 500 dinars per person. For campers, there is a well-equipped campsite nearby. Since Bela Crkva’s surroundings are a real treasure and the roads quiet, it’s really worth bringing your bicycle.
The hills, covered with orchards in the middle of “flat” Vojvodina, are a surprising sight. Several nearby rivers and lakes and the Tisa-Danube canal, are great for fishing. There’s a popular catfish-catching contest held in the summer every year in honour of a 200-kilo catfish once caught … or so goes a local legend.
But whether or not you catch a fish, you should try the fish soup and fish specialties in one of the restaurants in Banatska Palanka, located on the Danube-Tisa-Danube Canal, about 10 kilometres from Bela Crkva. I recommend Kod Nese. A friend and I recently shared one pot of spicy fish soup, two different kinds of freshly-fried fish (crispy and cooked to perfection), served with boiled potatoes, warm, soft bread, two salads, mineral water and two cups of coffee. All for a mere 1,200 dinars.
If you would like to visit the ancient Roman fortress at Ram across the water, take the ferryboat that leaves from just in front of this restaurant. The town of Ram was first mentioned in 1128. The Byzantines defeated the Hungarians in a battle near the town. The Turkish Sultan Bajazit II built the fortress, vestiges of which have survived, at the end of the 15th century. The fortress has five towers connected with high walls. It’s shabby and overgrown with grass but there are fine views from atop the walls. Beware of snakes in summertime.
Early History
Settlements in and around Bela Crkva date from the Iron and Bronze Ages. The area later fell under Roman domination until the middle of the 3rd century, when barbarians, particularly Goths and Sarmats, started invading the south of Banat and the Romans lost control. The Sarmats subsequently established a settlement, and artifacts, such as vessels and ornaments, of their culture can be seen in the Bela Crkva museum.
The Avars and the Slavs came along with the Great Migration in the 6th century, but, oddly, few archaeological remains have been found from that period. The Slavs finally settled the conquered territory, while the Avars moved on. Without the Avars’ powerful military force, the Slavs could not resist their powerful neighbours, and southeast Banat fell under Bulgarian control. Later, Hungarians occupied the Bela Crkva area, until 1522 when the Turks invaded Timisoara and became the rulers of the area.
In the 17th century, war erupted between the empires of Austria and Turkey and in 1716 Prince Eugene of Savoy conquered Timisoara and handed it over to Earl Claudius Florimund de Mercy to govern. Earl de Mercy occupied the fortress by the Danube, and Bela Crkva was established as soon as the territory had been liberated from the Turks. Later, Germans settled there, establishing a wealthy town where different trades developed, especially the production of high quality wines.
Soon afterwards, Serbs and Romanians also settled, but the majority of the population was German until the Second World War. To protect themselves from the Turks, the Austrians formed a military border and the Wallach-Illirian regiment in 1774. Some of the town’s finest buildings were built at that time and most are still in good condition. The military border was abolished in 1872, when Bela Crkva was united with Hungary again, having been returned to civilian government after years of military rule.
The town’s museum was the first founded in the Vojvodina region, where in addition to its archeological collection, you can admire Bela Crkva paintings from the 19th century. (Unfortunately and inexplicably, the museum is closed at weekends.) Bela Crkva remained part of Austria-Hungary up to 1918 when the area became part of the new Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. However, the border was divided unsatisfactorily with Romania, leaving Bela Crkva on the very border, while the surrounding forests and cultivable soil went to Romania. Many roads were cut off and markets were lost for Bela Crkva.
Pat Andjelkovic is a teacher, writer and a long term expat.
| 04 December 2008 | By Pat Andjelkovic
Email a friend
Save article
Print article
Increase text size
Decrease text size
It’s not so much Venetian-style canals as bucolic rolling countryside that provides the real draw to this pretty town near the Romanian border.
This week I invite you to venture to Bela Crkva, frequently referred to as the “Venice of Vojvodina.” While in my opinion that’s stretching the comparison, since there is only one canal near Bela Crkva, the town, as well as the entire municipality of the same name, deserve a visit. If Mother Nature is feeling friendly, you will have time to make a trip there in one day if you start early and only take in the town and a couple of nearby spots.
Bela Crkva, meaning “White Church”, lies in a spacious valley of the Nera river, in south-eastern Vojvodina, about 100 kilometres from Belgrade, in the Banat region. To reach the town, take the road to Vrsac, and then follow the signs. On the east, Bela Crkva is bordered by the Carpathians, and to the west by the Pannonian Depression, the remains of the ancient sea of the same name. Several rivers - the Danube, Nera, and the Karas and the Danube-Tisa-Danube Canal, are all at close quarters, as are as many as seven crystal-clear lakes. Bela Crkva has a temperate continental climate, with winter temperatures varying from minus 5 to 10 centigrade, while summer temperatures range from 23 to 35 centigrade.
The combination of mountain air from the Carpathian slopes, sunny days, home cooking, and numerous outdoor offerings provide a real opportunity for refreshment and memorable holidays.
The region includes the town of Bela Crkva and a number of villages; Banatska Palanka, Vracev Gaj, Grebenac, Dobricevo, and Kaludjerovo. Surrounded by beautiful countryside, filled with picturesque Baroque facades, pretty streets, parks and lakes, Bela Crkva is a respite from the hustle and bustle of big cities and the speed of modern life. In summer, the town holds a Flower Carnival and its fruits and quality wines are famous. Finally, because Bela Crkva has no heavy industry, there is no pollution, and consequently has been classified as an ‘ecological town’.
Though the town itself was named after the ruins of an old church, there are now four notable churches in Bela Crkva, located close to one another: St. Anne’s Catholic church, St. Peter and Paul’s Orthodox church, the Romanian church, and the Russian Orthodox church of St. John the Baptist. They all date from the 19th century.
Recreation
There’s plenty to do outdoors in and around Bela Crkva, though spring and summer are the preferred seasons. At this time, visitors can swim in the crystal-clear lakes. You can choose between lakes with only wild beaches and nature, and town beaches with many facilities, such as showers, cabins for changing, restaurants, ice-cream parlours, sports grounds, weight-lifting, water polo, and dingys and pedal boats for rent.
The Jezero tourist complex, located by the Town Lake, consists of five large bungalows.
All rooms have their own entrance, bathroom and terrace. The complex includes a restaurant with an outdoor terrace. Just 200 metres away, hotel Turist, with 80 beds, a restaurant, a bowling alley, a tennis court and a basketball playground is a good spot for sports training and recreation. Double rooms are available for around 1,600 dinars. If you prefer private rooms in a house, try Mirjana Lazovic’s accommodation. You can’t beat the price at 500 dinars per person. For campers, there is a well-equipped campsite nearby. Since Bela Crkva’s surroundings are a real treasure and the roads quiet, it’s really worth bringing your bicycle.
The hills, covered with orchards in the middle of “flat” Vojvodina, are a surprising sight. Several nearby rivers and lakes and the Tisa-Danube canal, are great for fishing. There’s a popular catfish-catching contest held in the summer every year in honour of a 200-kilo catfish once caught … or so goes a local legend.
But whether or not you catch a fish, you should try the fish soup and fish specialties in one of the restaurants in Banatska Palanka, located on the Danube-Tisa-Danube Canal, about 10 kilometres from Bela Crkva. I recommend Kod Nese. A friend and I recently shared one pot of spicy fish soup, two different kinds of freshly-fried fish (crispy and cooked to perfection), served with boiled potatoes, warm, soft bread, two salads, mineral water and two cups of coffee. All for a mere 1,200 dinars.
If you would like to visit the ancient Roman fortress at Ram across the water, take the ferryboat that leaves from just in front of this restaurant. The town of Ram was first mentioned in 1128. The Byzantines defeated the Hungarians in a battle near the town. The Turkish Sultan Bajazit II built the fortress, vestiges of which have survived, at the end of the 15th century. The fortress has five towers connected with high walls. It’s shabby and overgrown with grass but there are fine views from atop the walls. Beware of snakes in summertime.
Early History
Settlements in and around Bela Crkva date from the Iron and Bronze Ages. The area later fell under Roman domination until the middle of the 3rd century, when barbarians, particularly Goths and Sarmats, started invading the south of Banat and the Romans lost control. The Sarmats subsequently established a settlement, and artifacts, such as vessels and ornaments, of their culture can be seen in the Bela Crkva museum.
The Avars and the Slavs came along with the Great Migration in the 6th century, but, oddly, few archaeological remains have been found from that period. The Slavs finally settled the conquered territory, while the Avars moved on. Without the Avars’ powerful military force, the Slavs could not resist their powerful neighbours, and southeast Banat fell under Bulgarian control. Later, Hungarians occupied the Bela Crkva area, until 1522 when the Turks invaded Timisoara and became the rulers of the area.
In the 17th century, war erupted between the empires of Austria and Turkey and in 1716 Prince Eugene of Savoy conquered Timisoara and handed it over to Earl Claudius Florimund de Mercy to govern. Earl de Mercy occupied the fortress by the Danube, and Bela Crkva was established as soon as the territory had been liberated from the Turks. Later, Germans settled there, establishing a wealthy town where different trades developed, especially the production of high quality wines.
Soon afterwards, Serbs and Romanians also settled, but the majority of the population was German until the Second World War. To protect themselves from the Turks, the Austrians formed a military border and the Wallach-Illirian regiment in 1774. Some of the town’s finest buildings were built at that time and most are still in good condition. The military border was abolished in 1872, when Bela Crkva was united with Hungary again, having been returned to civilian government after years of military rule.
The town’s museum was the first founded in the Vojvodina region, where in addition to its archeological collection, you can admire Bela Crkva paintings from the 19th century. (Unfortunately and inexplicably, the museum is closed at weekends.) Bela Crkva remained part of Austria-Hungary up to 1918 when the area became part of the new Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. However, the border was divided unsatisfactorily with Romania, leaving Bela Crkva on the very border, while the surrounding forests and cultivable soil went to Romania. Many roads were cut off and markets were lost for Bela Crkva.
Pat Andjelkovic is a teacher, writer and a long term expat.