Niš - Niš

Niš it's a city Serbian of the Podunavlje.

To know

Niš is located in a strategic position in the center of the Balkans, so much so that it is considered one of the main points of contact between theEurope and the Middle East.

Niš is a historic city not to be missed by any traveler passing through Greece or the Middle East.

Geographical notes

Nis is located in the Niš valley and is surrounded by a series of mountains, two rivers, two beautiful gorges and numerous sites of historical importance from various eras. Some approximate distances: Belgrade 240 km, Sofia 150 km, Skopje 200 km, Thessaloniki 400 km.

Background

The name of the city under the Roman Empire was Naissus ("city of the nymphs"). Niš is one of the possible locations of Nysa, a mythical place in Greek mythology where the young god Dionysus would grow up. Naissus was considered a noteworthy city in Geography of Ptolemy of Alexandria. The Romans occupied the city during the Dardanian War (75-73 BC), and the city developed as a strategic crossroads and market. For a few decades, starting with Augustus, it was the seat of a legionary fortress, and for the whole of the first century, the capital of the new province of Moesia. In 268, during the third century crisis when the empire was now close to collapse, the largest Gothic invasion ever seen until then reached the Balkans. In the 9th century the Bulgarians became the masters of Naissus, which was reoccupied by the Byzantines during the campaigns conducted by the Emperor Basil II against the Bulgarians (1014). The Hungarians took it in the 11th century, and the Byzantine emperor Manuel I Comnenus reconquered it once again in 1173. Towards the end of the 12th century the city was in the hands of the Serbian prince Stefan Nemanja, who hosted the Germanic emperor Frederick Barbarossa and his crusaders. In 1375 the Ottoman Turks took Naissus for the first time from the Serbs. During the German occupation in World War II, the first concentration camp in Yugoslavia was near Niš. In 1942 an armed revolt led to an escape. The fugitives were Tito's guerrillas who had been captured by German forces during the Battle of Kozara. This escape was reinterpreted in Miomir Stamenkovic's film Lager Nis, in 1987.

How to orient yourself

How to get

By plane

Niš has an international airport named after Constantine the Great (international code: INI). Airport service is getting better and better. There are flights to and from European cities including Milan (Bergamo), Basel is Zurich, Munich Memmingen, Dortmund, Berlin Schoenefeld, Dusseldorf Weeze, Bratislava, Eindhoven, Malmö is Stockholm. Other destinations can be reached via the stopover in Zurich.

The airport is about 4 km from the center, much closer than many other airports. There are taxis and buses leading to the center.

By car

The European highway E75 runs through Niš. From the north you can use any highway from the Hungarian border through Novi Sad and Belgrade to Niš. From the north-west you can travel through Austria, Slovenia and Croatia to Belgrade and then to Niš. They are modern highways, including the Belgrade-Niš section, fast and with six lanes and a speed limit of 120 km / h rarely respected because the road is in good condition. But beware of the police. From Belgrade it takes about 2 hours.

The highway continues for another 10 km towards the Bulgarian border, then becomes a narrower mountain road towards Sofia. Here caution is advised, especially along the 20 kilometers of the beautiful Sicevo Gorge which begins immediately after the end of the highway on the outskirts of the city. The other extension of the motorway branches off to the south, towards Macedonia and Greece. The highway continues for another 60 km south of Niš and then becomes a normal road at the beginning of the Grdelica Gorge, where caution is advised.

How to get around

What see

Niš is full of historical sites that are worth visiting, dating back to different periods. Particularly advantageous is the purchase of the pass for 4 attractions of the National Museum: Mediana, Skull Tower, Red Cross Concentration Camp and National Museum. The cost is 300RSD. Otherwise you pay 200RSD for each of the attractions.

• Median. Archaeological site, Roman imperial villa. Birthplace of Emperor Constantine the Great. This ancient historical site (4th century) on the Niš - Niška Banja (Terme) road is a testament to the wealth and glory of Naissus imperial. The remains of the imperial palace were discovered, together with the peristyle (series of surrounding columns), villas with mosaic floors, sacred objects (baptistery room), agricultural buildings with pithos, Roman baths, water cisterns, remains of fortresses, and more that testify to the culture and wealth of Naissus from the time of Emperor Constantine the Great, born in Niš, and remembered above all for the edict of Milan of 313, which completely legalized Christianity in the Empire, and for the Council of Nicaea of ​​325, fundamental contributions to the spread of the Christian religion. 
• Tower of Skulls (Ćele Kula). November-March 9: 00-16: 00; April-October 7: 30-19: 30. Built by the Turks with the skulls of the Serbs killed in the battle of Cegar, near Niš, in May 1809. It is rectangular in shape, about 3 m high and was built with quicklime, sand and skinned skulls, on the orders of Khurshid Pasha who had sent the skulls filled with cotton to the Sultan of Istanbul. Each side of the Tower has 14 rows with 17 openings where the skulls were inserted. There were 952 skulls, but today there are only 58 left. The rest was mined to be buried or lost in time. In 1892 a chapel was built around the Tower, according to the design of the Belgrade architect Dimitrie T. Leko. The skulls are found inside the small chapel made up of four glass walls. 
• Fortress (Niška tvrđava) (On the banks of the Nišava River in the city center). Above the remains of a Roman military camp, then the Roman city called Naissus, and finally the remains of a destroyed Byzantine fortification, the Turks built a solid fortress in the early 18th century. The construction of this fortress lasted from 1719 to 1723. It was built with the help of local workers, stonemasons and masons from Istanbul. Alongside those well-preserved walls and gates, there remain numerous structures from various periods, such as the armory, the Turkish steam bath, the Turkish post station, the mosque, the powder keg and the prison. 
• Church of Rusalia. The Holy Trinity Church of Rusalia is located above the village of Gornji Matejevac. Rusalia is the most beautiful ancient structure in Niš. The church was built on the orders of a local Byzantine dignitary in the first half of the 11th century. 
• Kazandžisko Sokače. Example of original Ottoman architecture. This is an old urban neighborhood in what is now Kopitareva Street, built in the first half of the 18th century. It was a street full of craftsmen, along with houses from the Turkish period. Unfortunately, only some of them are now preserved and protected by the state. The street has recently become full of cafes, a place very popular with visitors. 
• City museum. 9:00-16:00. 
• Archaeological exhibition of the city museum. 9:00-16:00. 
• Mediana Museum. 9:00-16:00. 
• Pasteur Institute of Public Health Museum. 7:00-14:00. 
• Crveni Krst Field Prison Museum. 9:00-16:00. Crveni Krst means Red Cross, and is an area of ​​Niš (not to be confused with the Red Cross). 

Events and parties

What to do

Shopping

How to have fun

Where to eat

The city's water is considered to be among the best in Central Eastern Europe.

Local wines are usually not much, although some small private wineries have produced excellent wines in recent years (Aleksandrović, Kovačević). The good ones, however, tend to be quite expensive. International brands are offered in most bars.

The Rakija, a powerful brandy made from various types of fruit (usually plum or apricot), is a local favorite. Warning: some types can be quite strong.

Where stay

Moderate prices

• Hostel Nis, Dobrička 3 / A (Near the University), ☎ 381 18 513703. 9/15 €. 
• ^{[link not working]}Sweet-Hostel Nis', Milorada Veljkovica Spaje 11/4 (In the center). 
• ^{[link not working]}Downtown Hostel Nis, Kej Kola srpskih sestara 3/2 (50 meters from the central square (Trg kralja Milana Obrenovica) in a pedestrian street on the banks of the Nišava), ☎ 381 18 526756. 9/13 €. 
• Hostel Kosmopolit, Anastasa Jovanovica 15, ☎ 381 63 472705, @[email protected]. 11 €. 
• ^{[link previously not working]}Happy hostel, Kej kola srpskih sestara 17A / 8 (250 meters from the central square (Trg kralja Milana Obrenovica) in a pedestrian street on the banks of the Nišava), ☎ 381 18 25 28 39, @[email protected]. 10/15 € per bed. 
• Day 'n' Night hostel, @[email protected]. 

Average prices

• New CIty Hotel, Vozdova Street # 12, @[email protected]. 
• Best Western My Place, 29.december bb (along the river), @[email protected]. 
• Niški cvet (Nis Flower), 29.december # 2, @[email protected]. 
• ^{[link previously not working]}Regent Club Hotel, Obrenoviceva Street. 

Safety

Niš is a very safe city. Being a university center it is easy to see a certain liveliness given by the students. However, always keep in mind the normal common sense rules to use on any trip.

How to keep in touch

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Other projects

• Wikipedia contains an entry concerning Niš
• Commons contains images or other files on Niš

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