BALKAN INCOMING BY

Republic of Serbia, 11000 Belgrade Kopernikova 18, entrance 2 & Tel/fax: 381 11 2762 747 / 7700 026 E-mail: [email protected] LICENCEOTP 8/2014 CAVE www.serbiabalkanincoming.com

Culture & Nature A full-day excursion Approximately 380 km round trip Belgrade – – – Waterfall Lisine – Monastery– Belgrade Program includes: • Transportation by coach or minibus (depending on the number of registered passengers) • Ticket for Cave Resava • Lunch • Services of a licensed travel guide, in English • Travel organization costs Price per person: 115.00 euro Minimal for realization at a stated price – 5 persons

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9zFiR47QKwU https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDEhndjzPu8

In the morning, we will drive from Belgrade towards . This region of Serbia is associated with an important Serbian ruler, Stefan Lazarević. We continue our drive towards Eastern Serbia and the Manasija Monastery. The monastery is located in the Resava river gorge, about 135km south-east of Belgrade. As an endowment of Despot Stefan Lazarević, the monastery was built during the hard times after the Battle of (1389) and its construction lasted from 1406/7 to 1418. Its special feature is its fortification, capable of defending and protecting the monastery settlement. This monastery was the cultural centre of Serbia until the end of 17th century. It was the meeting place of educated monks who also hand-wrote transcription of religious texts which were then used all over Serbia. This transcription activity is also known as Resava’s school (Resavska škola). The monastery church belongs to the Morava style (Moravska škola) in the Serbian sacral architecture and is mostly preserved in its authentic form, except for the window stone frames. Some notable changes were made in the narthex, during the reconstruction works in 1735 and 1844. The monastery was ruined by the Otomans and Austrians. Frescoes are comparable to the greatest achievements of the first half of the 15th century, like those in the Kalenić Monastery in Serbia, the Mistra Churches in Greece and the works of art of the famous Russian painter, Andrei Rublev.

We continue the trip by driving from monastery Manasija to the Resava Cave. Research indicates that it dates back to the period before the great ice age. Around 80 million years ago, the subterranean rivers had cut the path, while the cave has been created 45 million years ago. The length of the cave’s corridors is 4.5 km, one kilometre is accessible to visitors. Constant temperature is 7 degrees, with humidity from 80 – 100%. The interior features numerous chambers, canals, galleries, columns, stalactites, stalagmites, draperies and stone waterfalls.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JV80wuumFwg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JV80wuumFwg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKga5EQxpEs

Next, we will drive from the Resava Cave to Waterfall Lisine (Vodopad Lisine). At the bottom of the mountain Beljanica is a waterfall called Veliki Buk, known as Lisine. Waterfall Lisine is the biggest waterfall in Serbia. Its height is over 20 meters, and its beauty and magnificence leave a viewer speachless. Here, we will have lunch in the restaurant Vodopad Lisine. After lunch, we will proceed to Monastery Ravanica, founded by the Serbian Prince Lazar in the second half of the 14th century. This monastery is the most typical example of the Morava school of Serbian medieval architecture. The monastery's five-domed Church of the Ascension displays rather badly damaged but very fine frescoes. A transparent coffin containing relics of the great and highly devoted Prince Lazar, killed in the in 1389 and soon afterwards declared saint, is now displayed in this church (the relics can be seen only on Sundays). After the visit to the Monastery Ravanica, we will go back to Belgrade.