Novi Sad, Serbia

Most Americans' knowledge of cities in Serbia starts and stops with Belgrade. It is the capital city, and we all had to have a passing knowledge of world capitals at some point in our formal education.

Ah, but who is No. 2? That honor belongs to Novi Sad, located just up the Danube a bit from Belgrade. It has more than 300,000 people in the area, and can stand on its own merits as an interesting city for living and visiting. 

Novi Sad was created in 1694, as something as a companion for the large fortress on the river. It's taken some military hits over the years, including a big one in 1848. But in 1999, it took some bombardment from NATO forces as part of the Kosovo War. This is a long story, and the legitimacy of the actions probably are still debated. But the three bridges over the Danube were bombed during those days. They have since been replaced. Interestingly enough, the Veradin Bridge has a mural underneath the road over it which shows before and after photos that sandwich the bombing. In that case, everything was rebuilt quite quickly. 

Some of the history is happier, of course, and it's all on display here. While the Old Town remains the center of attention for tourists, part of downtown has become quite prosperous as well as resembling any other good-sized city in the West - as the photo shows. That makes Novi Sad a mix of the old and new.