Serbia

People in Serbia and Montenegro are incredibly patriotic and highly value family and kinship networks. As the turbulent recent history has wreaked havoc on the economic and social structures, people have turned inward and become more suspicious of outsiders. Unemployment is still nearly 30%, and a large gap exists between the wealthy and the poor.

Serbia and Montenegro have separate governance, each with its own president, legislation, and court system.

Yugoslavia was once admired for its diverse and integrated society and will no doubt strive to return to everyday commerce with its neighbors. The social order is patriarchal, although this is slowly changing as women increasingly need to be breadwinners alongside men.

In Serbia, greetings are an important part of social interaction, and customs for greeting can vary depending on the situation and the level of familiarity between individuals.

Handshakes: Handshakes are a common form of greeting, especially in formal situations or when meeting someone for the first time. A firm handshake with direct eye contact is considered polite and respectful.

Kissing on the Cheek: Among friends, family members, or acquaintances, it is common to exchange kisses on the cheek (usually starting with the right cheek). Typically, two kisses are given, but the number may vary depending on the region.

Verbal Greetings: Verbal greetings such as "Zdravo" (Hello), "Dobar dan" (Good day), or "Dobro jutro" (Good morning) are commonly used throughout the day depending on the time of day.

Addressing with Titles and Last Names: In formal situations, it is customary to address people using their titles and last names, especially when meeting someone for the first time or in professional settings.

Respecting Elders: Respecting elders is an important aspect of Serbian culture. When greeting older individuals, it is customary to show deference and use formal language and gestures.

Maintaining Eye Contact: When greeting someone, maintaining eye contact is considered polite and respectful, especially during a handshake or verbal exchange.

Warmth and Hospitality: Serbians are known for their warmth and hospitality, so greetings often involve expressions of goodwill and interest in the other person's well-being.

Body Language: Body language plays a role in greetings, with gestures such as smiling, nodding, and standing at an appropriate distance conveying friendliness and respect.

Like in many cultures, certain gestures in Serbia may be considered offensive or rude. It's important to be mindful of cultural norms and customs when communicating with others. Some gestures that could be perceived as offensive in Serbia include:

Showing the Sole of Your Foot: Similar to many other cultures, displaying the sole of your foot or shoe towards someone in Serbia can be considered disrespectful and offensive.

Using the "OK" Gesture: While the "OK" gesture (forming a circle with the thumb and index finger) is commonly used in many Western cultures to indicate agreement or approval, in some Eastern European countries, including Serbia, it may carry a vulgar or offensive meaning.

Pointing with a Finger: Pointing directly at someone with your finger, especially accompanied by a stern expression, can be seen as confrontational and impolite.

Offensive Hand Signs: Making offensive hand signs or gestures, such as the middle finger or the "V" sign with the palm facing inward, is universally considered rude and disrespectful.

Crossing Your Fingers: While crossing fingers may be a gesture of luck or good wishes in some cultures, it can be interpreted as a sign of dishonesty or deceit in Serbia.

Hand Gestures with Closed Fist: Gestures involving a closed fist, especially if directed aggressively towards someone, can be seen as threatening or hostile.

Whistling Indoors: Whistling indoors, particularly in someone's home or workplace, is considered impolite and may be seen as bringing bad luck.

Negative Body Language: Negative body language, such as rolling eyes, sighing loudly, or crossing arms in a defensive manner, can convey disrespect or disdain.

Serbians frequently visit one another, and it is an important part of the culture to keep close ties with family and friends. Visitors may bring gifts on special occasions like birthdays, but it is impolite to open the gift while the guest is still there.

In Serbia, clothing styles vary depending on region, occasion, personal preference, and individual lifestyle.

Modern Western Clothing: Modern Western clothing is prevalent in urban areas and among younger generations. This includes jeans, T-shirts, shirts, blouses, dresses, skirts, suits, and jackets similar to those worn in other European countries and North America.

Traditional Clothing (Folk Costume): Traditional Serbian clothing varies by region and ethnic group. These outfits are often worn during cultural events, festivals, weddings, and other special occasions. Traditional attire for men may include the šajka?a (a traditional Serbian cap), a white shirt, a vest (jelek), trousers (kalpak), and boots. For women, traditional clothing may consist of colorful embroidered dresses (nosnja), aprons, vests, and headscarves.

Ethnic and Religious Clothing: Serbia is a diverse country with various ethnic and religious groups. Members of different ethnic communities, such as Hungarians, Roma, and Albanians, may wear clothing that reflects their cultural traditions. Additionally, individuals who belong to religious communities, such as Orthodox Christians, Muslims, and Catholics, may wear religious attire for ceremonies and religious observances.

Casual and Sportswear: Casual and sportswear, including tracksuits, athletic shoes, and activewear, are commonly worn for everyday activities, sports, and leisure pursuits.

Outerwear: During colder months, people in Serbia wear coats, jackets, scarves, hats, and gloves to stay warm. Heavy coats, wool sweaters, and insulated boots are common during the winter season.

Formal Wear: Formal attire is worn for special events, celebrations, and formal occasions such as weddings, parties, and business functions. This may include suits, dresses, dress shirts, ties, and formal shoes.

The Serbian staple diet relies on bread, fruit, meat, and dairy products, including yogurt and cottage cheese. Peppers are also a common ingredient in many dishes. The national dish is called cevapcici. It consists of small meat patties, highly spiced and grilled. Other Serbian specialties include a type of cornbread, proja; a thin, crispy dough served with eggs and cheese called gibanica; cabbage leaves filled with meat or sarma; and palacinke or crepes, served with coffee prepared in the Turkish style. A fruit juice called sok is very popular.

People in Serbia and Montenegro eat in continental style, with a fork in the left hand and knife in the right hand. Breakfast usually consists of bread, eggs, meat and a dairy sour cream dip called kajmak. Lunch is the main meal of the day, and is commonly taken at 3 PM. Then a light supper is served at about 8.00pm in the evening.

The Serbian staple diet relies on bread, fruit, meat, and dairy products, including yogurt and cottage cheese. Peppers are also a common ingredient in many dishes. The national dish is called cevapcici. It consists of small meat patties, highly spiced and grilled. Other Serbian specialties include a type of cornbread, proja; a thin, crispy dough served with eggs and cheese called gibanica; cabbage leaves filled with meat or sarma; and palacinke or crepes, served with coffee prepared in the Turkish style. A fruit juice called sok is very popular.

The extended family is still strong, but young people prefer to move into their own apartment. The normal size of family is one or two children. Grand-parents often help to look after the grand-children, and are cared for by their adult children when they become frail or ill.

Teenagers may meet at school, church activities, or with family outings. In their late teens, they can go out to cafes, movies or go for walks. Arranged marriages are not in currency, and young people select their own marriage partners. The age of marriage is moving up to late twenties.

Recreational activities vary depending on personal interests, location, and available resources.

Sports: Football (soccer) is immensely popular in Serbia, with many people playing and watching matches. Basketball is also highly regarded, and tennis has gained popularity due to successful Serbian players like Novak Djokovic. Other sports, such as volleyball, handball, and water sports, are also enjoyed.

Outdoor Activities: Serbia offers diverse landscapes, making outdoor activities popular. Hiking, camping, cycling, and mountaineering are enjoyed in areas like the Tara National Park, Kopaonik Mountain, and along the Danube River.

Socializing: Serbians are known for their hospitality and love of socializing. Gathering with friends and family for meals, drinks, and conversation is a common form of recreation.

Cultural Activities: Serbia has a rich cultural heritage, and its cities offer various cultural activities such as visiting museums, art galleries, theaters, and attending concerts and festivals.

Nightlife: Urban centers like Belgrade have vibrant nightlife scenes with numerous bars, clubs, and cafes where people can enjoy music, dancing, and socializing late into the night.

Traditional Festivals: Participating in traditional festivals and events throughout the year is a significant part of recreation in Serbia. These festivals often feature music, dance, food, and cultural exhibitions.

Recreational Sports: Besides mainstream sports, recreational sports like jogging, yoga, fitness classes, and recreational leagues for various sports are also popular among Serbians.

Nature Exploration: Exploring natural landmarks such as caves, rivers, and lakes, as well as visiting historical sites and monasteries, provides opportunities for relaxation and recreation.

It is not unusual for kids to have a very busy day from very early in the morning. Getting up around 5 or 6 a.m., on occasions even earlier, the young one(s) get out of bed to start a new day. While their fellow city classmates have the luxury of having virtually no chores before breakfast, kids living in rural areas have to tend to the livestock or do some other small chore before they eat breakfast. Personal hygiene was always very important for both pragmatic (diseases) and esthetical reasons. Washing the hands and face is a must-do. Breakfast is one thing that rural kids may enjoy more than urban kids. In the countryside, breakfast is natural, nutritional, and usually homemade. The menu includes eggs, cheese, milk, kajmak (diary product), bacon, poga?a (rural type of bread). After a good meal, it's off to school.

However, getting to school is sometimes a feat of its own. Often, a few villages share one school. Considering the population, this would not be a problem, but from a metric point of view, kids sometimes have to walk two or more hours to school in some areas. Some have a paved or asphalt road, so a local bus can take them at least a part of their way, but in mountain areas, sometimes there are no decent roads, and in winter conditions, going to school is challenging. In cases where there are means of transportation, there are options. In Serbia, there is no school bus service, so kids either take a ride in the local bus or hitch a ride from parents going to work, friends, relatives, or neighbors going the same way. Grandparents often accompany young kids to and from school. It is interesting and, at the same time, alarming that the large number of rural children who finish elementary school never move on to high school or University because of the commuting fee and poverty (renting an apartment in the city, living expenses, tuition fees, etc.)

More than 70% of schools in rural areas are very old buildings. During the 90s period, the maintenance of schools was neglected. TV news reported about leaky ceilings, drafty windows, etc. Some objects were even closed because of the fear they would collapse. However, in recent years much has been done to improve the situation, fixing the roofs, improving the toilet and sanitation systems. Equipment and tools still are a problem because they are usually very expensive. All schools have desks, books (usually old books) and the basics but very few have computers or any modern equipment. Musical instruments are also quite expensive, so some schools may have a small piano older than 15 years. Also, a substantial percentage of rural kids do not have computers.

School starts at 8 a.m. and typically ends around 1 p.m. Younger grades naturally leave early. First graders have 30-minute classes, but a normal class period in Serbia is 45 minutes. After the second class (in Serbia called ?as) there is a lunch break. Schools typically do not have lunch halls and pupils in most cases bring their food from home or buy it if there is a store in the vicinity. Homemade food, in most cases, is a sandwich, and stores offer standard fast-food menus (hamburgers, Danish, donuts, crepes). The Teacher (in elementary school, very similar to the homeroom teacher) is in charge of the discipline. Pupils often go to the principal's office for medium-scale and major violations (fight, theft, damage and destruction of property, etc.). Serbian pupils do not wear uniforms. During the class, if adult person enters or exits the room pupils are expected to stand up. If students wish to talk to a teacher in the hall or if the teacher addresses them, the greeting would be dobar dan (good day).

Children often have other activities planned after school. There are several "groups". One option is sports. Many kids are members of basketball, soccer, volleyball, handball or some other sports club so after school they go to practice. Many kids play sports just for fun. Every village has at least one street court. The second group could be the children that go to playhouses (that exist only in small towns) where they can play PC or Sony Playstation, either LAN or over the Internet. The third group could be the ones that just hang out or go to coffee shops (usually older kids near graduation age) to have a drink with friends. The Fourth group, probably the smallest, goes to the organized extracurricular activities in Serbian called sekcija. These extracurricular activities are extremely rear in both city and rural schools for various reasons. School support is fro extracurricular activities low because schools have no budget for such activities.

Weekends are playtime. Kids have the chance to play all day, go to their friend's place, or just relax. Homework and chores are there but most free time is spent on relaxation. In the mornings, kids often help their parents or grandparents with cattle and house chores, but the afternoon is usually free time.

Kids aged 7 through 10 usually have fewer classes and return home early. Typical school day ends around 7 p.m. if it starts at 2 p.m. If the school day starts at 8 a.m. it ends around 1 p.m. Most schools rotate the schedule on the weekly basis. When children come home they have supper and usually the evening is free. There is no standard bedtime, it's individual to each family or household. A standard greeting is dobro ve?e (the polite variant) but most people use ?ao, similar to Italian "Ciao" and laku no? (good night). Evening meal could be a sandwich, pie, special kind of pie called Gibanica and a glass of milk.

Serbia has a big problem with unemployment. Therefore, parents tend to provide the best possible education they can to their kids in hopes that they will be able to provide them with a decent future. There were many public discussions about whether today's education in Serbia is too old and too wide. Because of the civil war in the '90s, education has lost its pace, but many complained that the knowledge is too in-depth and that the children get encyclopedic knowledge they can not cash in after graduation. However, music (theory) and painting will certainly remain dominant classes when it comes to art, but there is a slim chance that drama, journalism, sculpturing, and such will come into the spotlight. In rural areas, the possibilities outside music and painting are virtually non-existent.