It is late afternoon and we are crossing the Serbian border. In Hungary we have been told that Serbian people are wilder and have a cold mentality. A prejudice that will not be proved true for us, at least for now. Nevertheless, we are alerted. Also regarding the Serbian street dogs which appear to be rather fluffy puppies instead.
It is heavily overcasted, the wind whistles in our ears and the houses in the first village are falling apart. However, we are very surprised: Almost everyone greets us with a smile, honks or waves enthusiastically. Now we are realizing that we have not seen other bike travelers in a while. Probably most of them cycle until Budapest, maybe a few further. For some time now we are in contact with LongTour BikeCamp in Sombor which is the first big city in Serbia and are looking forward to meet Ivanka and Predrag.
They definitely have put their heart and soul into their camp, one can tell. With a lot of attention to detail they have thought of everything bikers need after a long tour. There is even a summer outdoor shower and a small repair corner where you can fix and clean your bike. Eventually, our bikes look brand new again. In the very cozy recreation room we often sit with Ivanka and Predrag talking or enjoying Ivankas homemade, traditional Serbian specialities. We get to know Ljuba and Dalibor who show us the city center during a walk through Sombor and tell us a lot about their country and biking in Serbia. Predrag, Ljuba and Dalibor are passionate bike lovers and own pretty amazing bikes. Dalibor has built his own electro bike and Ljuba is founder of Adrenaline Cyclo an association that organizes bike tours through the region on a regular basis. Predrag shows us his favourite places, among others the natural beach of Sombor where we relax on our last day. We also visit a local market where we want to buy a blackjack a cudgel – just in case so that we can defend ourselves from wild animals!
Four great days come to an end and our first impression of Serbia and its people could not have been any better. If you plan to do the EuroVelo 6 through Serbia, make sure to stop at LongTour BikeCamp in Sombor which is located directly at the route and visit Ivanka and Predrag.
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