Since the days of the Roman Empire the city of Nis has been at an unofficial boundary between East and West. The Ottomans had control of Niš from the middle ages to the 19th century, and left an imperious fortress that still has a 16th century mosque inside.
Like Belgrade, Niš seems to make the most of what it does have – the Turkish fort by the river has been developed into a pleasant park, and some of the original buildings have been converted to galleries and smart café-restaurants. The main shopping street has been pedestrianised to become the route for a crowded korso every evening. At the end of this is Kopitareva (Kazandzijsko sokace – ‘Tinkers’ Alley’), a narrow alleyway filled with bars, cafés and restaurants. Aside from the Turkish fort, the city’s number one tourist ‘attraction’ is probably the grisly Cele kula (the Skull Tower). It is also worth visiting the Roman archaeological site Mediana, Bubanj- the WW2 memorial site and Red Cross concentration camp.
As well as a few interesting historical sites, the city has quite a lot else to offer: a number of excellent but inexpensive restaurants, a relaxed atmosphere, good places to stay and a nearby spa resort.

The Latin church is located on Metoh hill, above the city of Niš. It is an 11th-century Orthodox church dedicated to the Holy Trinity. Known as the Latin Church, the building got the name from Dubrovnik merchants (called “Latins” by the locals for their Catholic faith) who used it for religious ceremonies in the 16th century. It is one of the few buildings from the pre-Nemanjić dynasty epoch (Medieval Serbia), when the region was still part of the Byzantine Empire.
The church was built from stone and bricks and the facade decorated with stone ornaments. There are no traces of interior decorations and frescoes remaining, but it is known it was painted in 1870, including with a frescoes depicting a life-size figure of famous Serbian medieval knight Miloš Obilić. The architectural style of the church resembles the old Byzantine churches: stone, with brick arcades and one ancient Roman tombstone embedded in the wall. The churchyard is a necropolis of the prominent Dubrovnik merchants and diplomats from that time. During the Ottoman conquest, it was the only remaining church in the area, as all others were converted into mosques.
The church offers spectacular views on the surrounding area, it overlooks the nearby villages, forests and mountains.

The year 1809 marked the turning point in the course of the First Serbian Uprising against the Ottoman Empire (1804-1813). The outnumbered rebel army faced a 36,000 strong force of Turkish imperial guards near the strategically important southern city of Niš. Rather then surrender or flee they decided to put up a desperate last stand at Čegar Hill. Faced with imminent annihilation, the rebel commander Stevan Sinđelić in an act of desperation fired a shot into a gunpowder keg at the fully stocked gun powder room, blowing up his entire army as well as wiping out enemy soldiers who were already flooding the rebel trenches.
Deeply angered by the rebel force’s actions, the Turkish commander Hurshid Pasha decided to teach a grim lesson to the Serbian nation. The bodies of the dead rebels were mutilated. Their skins were pealed off their decapitated heads, stuffed up with straw, and sent to the Imperial court in Istanbul as proof of Turkish victory. The skulls were used as building blocks for a tower built by the main road at the entrance of the city. A warning to the local populace of an impending fate to any potential future rebels. In total, 952 skulls were used. In its original form, the tower stood 15 feet high and 13 feet wide. Skulls were arranged in 56 rows, with 17 skulls in each row, at each side of the tower. The skull of rebel commander Stevan Sinđelić was placed at the top. This gruesome edifice, left a deep scar in the Serbian national psyche. However, it failed at its purpose. The Serbs rebelled again in 1815, this time successfully, driving off the Turks and winning independence in 1830.
In the years immediately following the building of the tower, the families of deceased rebels chiseled away some of the skulls in order to give them proper funerals. Today 58 skulls in total remain in the tower.

Bubanj Memorial Park marks and honors the location of one of the most horrific mass executions of the entire war, where more thаn 10,000 Serbs were taken prisoner, gathered and unceremoniously shot by invading German forces.
Estimates of the brutal event’s toll range between ten and twelve thousand lives lost to the execution. The majority of the victims were citizens оf the Serbian city of Niš, which is where the memorial park іs located.
Bubanj Memorial Park is at once a stark and empty locale meant to inspire reflection and honor, but also a functioning public park, complete with memorial trails and monuments. At the park’s center, a 23 x 2.5 meter marble monument consisting of five separate monoliths abstractly symbolizing the progression of the war and its effect on the local populace, moving from German invasion and execution squads to Serbian resistance and eventual victory.

SUVA PLANINA (Dry Mountain) is one of the most impressive mountain ranges in Serbia. The massif of Suva Planina is 35 km long and it is a last Western part of Balkan Mountains system which after that continue to the Rodopi mountain system. The highest peak of Suva Planina is Trem (1810 m) peak with its high and impressive vertical rocky wall dominate more than 1000 m above the Kosmovac village. The north side of Dry mountain is very steep with deep crags and rich beech forest below. On the other hand, south side of Dry Mountain is smooth, but bare-wooded. Farther east of Trem peak (1810m) outspreads the large high-lend plateau. Composition of Dry Mountain is primary lime stoned and most of the mountain range above 1500m is dry without any water.
Two peaks are most impressive and recognizable. That are Trem and Sokolov Kamen which are separated and connected with Devojački Grob (1311 m) pass.

Slightly lower than its neighbor Suva Planina, Svrljiske planine are nestled between the most beautiful gorge in Serbia- Sicevacka Klisura and the upper flow of the Svrljig Timok. The composition of the mountain is primary lime stoned. The lower parts of the mountain slopes are covered with vineyards and orchards, which at slightly higher altitudes change the fields of thyme and sage, which are intoxicating with their scents.

Sicevo is wine-growing centre, and there are vineyards stretching up the hillside all around the village. The vines, the rustic quietness and stone houses of the village, all give the impression that you have momentarily been transported to Provence.

Stara planina (the Balkan mountains), after which the Balkan Peninsula was named, extends 550 kilometres across its central part and connects Serbia and Bulgaria.
Endless stretches of untouched nature, vast mountain pastures and forests rich in forest fruit and herbs, picturesque villages and interesting folklore. That is the true picture of Stara planina, one of the most beautiful and most authentic nature reserves.
It is a wonderful world of peaks, waterfalls, canyons, gorges, caves, connected with numerous hiking trails.

Interesting and uncommon, the story of GostuSa spread across the borders of Serbia and attracted the attention of experts worldwide. The reason for this lies in the houses built from stone, mud and other natural materials that the locals found in the surroundings of Stara planina. The houses were built without mortar or any other binding material, but with the technique called “suvozidica” (roughly translated: drywall or dry-build). It means that the base material isn’t tiles but stone plates. Therefore, all buildings from their base to their roofs are made from stone. A great deal of craftsmanship, experience and hardwork are required to build such a house. This technique has been used in GostuSa for centuries and the results speak for themselves. You can see them in the houses that don’t crumble under the decay of time even though they are old and run-down. And that’s exactly what makes them so unique, rare and a thing you simply have to witness and experience.

Pirot was once the most important rug-making centre in the Balkans, located on a caravan road between the Middle East (among the most famous kilims are the ones from Persia, Afghanistan, China and the Caucasus) and Europe, became a famous centre for this ancient weaving technique. In the 16th century, when rugs were made exclusively for domestic needs, the kilims were simple and mostly uncoloured.
The Kilims of Pirot were usually used for covering floors, walls, and to be used as curtains, for bedspreads and for covering parts of furniture. Originally, these rugs were only an object of use, but slowly they became a symbol for heritage and were an inextricable part of the region in which they were created. Kilims were given as a gift only on special occasions – they decorated the salons of the Serbian dynasties of the Karadjordjevic and Obrenovic and rulers used to offer them to foreign diplomats, as a valuable gift and a unique souvenir from Serbia.
The most important ingredient for a good quality kilim is wool (obtained from the sheep from the Stara Planina). Only good quality wool is a guarantee for a long duration, a nice appearance and a high-quality weaving.
The sheared wool gets classified by fibre length and then washed in boiling water, rinsed out, dried, bleached and dyed. By spinning the precious wool is transformed into yarn. Pirot kilims with some 122 ornaments and 96 different types have been protected by geographical indication in 2002.