"Adio" to Dubrovnik A tale of two refugees Full Monty Parlor Games Share My Fire Car - the relationship-saving device Going Straight West A year to expirience, a lifetime to understand Meeting Vuk Cultural insensitivity Sex in Serbia Buvljak experience What's news in Yugoslavia? part II What's news in Yugoslavia? Trust issues: Yugoslav Banks Hosting, Serbian style Flat-hunting Staying legally in Yugoslavia Welcome to Belgrade Border crossings The Paper Chase: Single - entry visas

When visiting a Serbian household, it would be almost unheard of not to be offered fresh baklava or some similar homemade sweets, juice, wine or brandy.

The strange thing is, many of my adult friends claim they've never learned to prepare those tasty Serbian dishes. But when the time comes, some latent gene carrying all Serbian recipes fires up and rakijas, pitas and sarmas are whipped up with the greatest of ease. Of course, not all women buy into the tradition gender roles, but since going out to eat is expensive by most people's standards and frozen dinners haven't permeated the market, many are forced to by default.

Part of assimilating into Serbian society involves learning the art of hosting and it all starts with the ritual high voltage shot of Turkish coffee, one of the remnants of 500 years of Turkish rule over the Balkans. For the uninitiated, Turkish coffee is an acquired taste and a slight shock to the system. It's short, thick and strong with a healthy lining of sludge on the bottom. No wonder that with a nation of Turkish coffee drinkers, even the blackest of teas is reserved for sick people and infants. Many Serbs realize they have a habit not shared by many in the Western world and they'll be impressed if you can make it. So here's how.

Making Turkish coffee is simple and fast. Start with a dzezva, that's a pot with a long handle for cooking coffee and ground coffee found in virtually every household. Use espresso-sized cups to measure the exact amount of water you need per cup, or risk a watery brew. Bring water to a boil. If your guest asks for slatka, add one spoonful of sugar per spoonful of coffee. If gorka is the order, that means make it bitter, without sugar.

Next, add one spoonful of coffee per cup and take the dzezva off the stove as you finish stirring the coffee into the water. Then, cook the coffee for a few more seconds until you get a slightly bubbly froth at the top. This froth is the best part of the coffee-drinking experience, so scoop it off and place it on the bottom of the cup(s). Then pour the rest of the liquid in and impress your guests.

If you still can't cook, don't fret. Cigarettes, in some cases, are even more important than that baklava. Tom Waits and Iggy Pop, in a recent short film, captured the true Serb spirit with their mutual addiction to nicotine and caffeine, the sustenance of the downtrodden soul.

That's how Serbs survive Belgrade.

by Jennifer C. Brown    

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