I’ve been living in Serbia for a few months and started dating a Serbian guy. He’s really sweet and affectionate, which I wasn’t necessarily expecting, just because I don’t have any experience dating Balkan men.

One thing I’ve noticed is the use of pet names — like bebo, medena, ljubavi, slatko pile — and I actually really like it. But I’m curious: how common are these kinds of nicknames in relationships here? Are they used casually, or do some carry deeper meaning than others? Is there a sort of “hierarchy” to them?

I’m still getting used to the language and customs, so I’d love to hear from people who are familiar with this dynamic

The tattoo that has circulated in here earlier is AI generated. THIS is the actual version of it. Complete with the 9 stripes instead of 11 and everything else being in place as they should.

We often discuss the wars and conflicts in Balkan history, but I’m curious about the other side. Who are some notable individuals, leaders, intellectuals, or even everyday people who worked to build understanding, cooperation, or friendship between Balkan nations?

I don’t mean the mainstream political figures we always hear about, like Tito or the broader Yugoslav “Brotherhood and Unity” project. I’m more interested in lesser-known writers, thinkers, or activists - people like Esad Mekuli, the Kosovo Albanian poet who helped shape modern Albanian literature and also translated works from Serbo-Croatian, bridging cultural spheres.

On the Serbian side, an example might be Dobrica Ćosić in his early years, before his later nationalist reputation - back then he wrote sympathetically about Albanian issues and advocated for their recognition within Yugoslavia (though his views later shifted dramatically).

Who are other such figures - from any Balkan country - who genuinely tried to bridge divides rather than deepen them?

Ok, now there is this peculiar thing. Being a Greek means that whenever I attend international conferences or working alongside people from western and northern Europe they are famously eating lunch at 12:00-13:00, and a dinner will most definetely have been served (look the restaurants also close around 22:00 MAXIMUM) by 21:00. Now the neat part. In Greece nothing works like that in the urban population to say the least (Grandparents from rural areas used to eat lunch by 12-13 and go to a siesta immediately). I see Lunch being served late 14:00-16:00 and dinner etc. and the whole night life goes well beyond 21:00. Restaurants and Taverns/pubs will serve people until 00:00 sometimes and even later! Me too I am calculated like that. And I thought it's a classic Balkan thing or at least something from the Ottoman centuries. But nope! I visited Turkey and had some Turkish colleagues that desired Lunch at 12:00 and dinner at 18:00-19:00 like...Englishmen!! What's happening? What's your take? Is Greece the only country with later hours of eating and on a second note partying (but this is another conversation about the nightlife).

Hello!

First time writing on this subreddit :] Me and a friend are partaking in a Balkan Rallye next week, we are starting in Austria and ending in Croatia Other countries we will visit is Hungary, Romania, Serbia and Bosnia (countries chosen by the event organizers)

Just wanted to ask if anyone has any tips for any country we're gonna visit (we come from Germany), pretty corners to visit, things to try, sights to see, food to try, etc.

Thank you :] <3

My great grandfather bore this surname and im trying to find living relatives and ancestors all i know he was germano-slavic who lived in Croatia split and had a hotel

The Balkan people on the show? Georgi (Bulgaria); Adnand and Florian (Albania); Miona (Serbia); Razvan (Romania); Sarper and Mursel (Turkey)

Yes, I know it’s trash, but I watch it when ironing.

In terms of historic significance and presence, and general contribution to society in science, culture, literature, tradition..

Ive written it phonetically obviously. Heard a someone say this with a bit of attitude so i really wanna know what it means. Wee-shaf mee da s

Greetings from a fellow Balkan slightly north of the Danube.

Some years ago, I attended a funeral where I was surprised to see that the practice of placing coins over the eyes of the dead and / or in their casket is still very much alive in our country or in the south of Romania.

I'm curious to know if this custom is still present in your countries, since it dates back to Ancient Greece.

It would be cool to meet some of you guys. We can have a great meetup, play video games and eat pizza.

Hvala! The Balkans is my special interest so I want to learn the Serbian language, I’ve already learned the Cyrillic block letters and a couple words. Really in any Southern Slavic language is fine, from what I’ve learned so far, they are similar to each other- with minor differences such as spelling. I’m starting off with Serbian, because there is a fairly large Serbian population around where I live, in the San Francisco, California area. Eventually I want to learn each language. I am looking for media so I can learn while enjoying myself. Thank you so much!

Hello, everyone.

I'm taking a road trip with a friend from China. I’m picking her up at the Sarajevo airport tomorrow and dropping her off there on the 13^th, so let’s say 12 days in total. We tend to be flexible in out travels se we just book hotels / apartments as we go along. We only have the hotel booked in Sarajevo for the first, from there on we’re flexible. On 1. Sept. we’ll be moving on, we’ll return to Sarajevo before departure anyway. We plan to go through Mostar to Montenegro coast (probably Herceg Novi or Kotor), then Albania (I’m thinking Durres and Tirana. If there’s a better option than Durres in the north od Albania for a day or two, please let me know), North Macedonia (Struga or Ohrid, maybe Skopje), Serbia (Niš and Belgrade) and back to BiH (if time permits also Tuzla, otherwise just Sarajevo). It does seem a lot for 12 days, but I think we’ll manage. We’re OK with skipping a place of two, should it become necessary. I’ve never been to Montenegro or Albania before, So here’s where I’m struggling most.

I’m asking for recommendation for must see places on our route, as well as pleasant hotels and fantastic places to eat. We’re open to suggestions about the route changes as well.

Thanks!

Consider unemployment, supermarket/restraurant/fast food prices, rents, transport and any other typical expenses.