Day 223 – EU – Serbia [Leskovac to Nis]

02/10/20

42.5km

  From Leskovac (Serbia) to Nis (Serbia)

Europe

Glorious blue sky and sunshine for today’s marathon into Nis, via the Emperors’ Road, where I will rest for a day

I watched the sunrise from my balcony whilst having breakfast and I knew it would be a great day on the road. The air was warmer, the sky was clear, I decided it was gonna be a t-shirt day. The day delivered, it was indeed a great run. I was able to enjoy my surroundings, exchange smiles with people as I crossed quite a few villages on the way to Nis.

I notice how all the villages I pass are a lot more active and wealthy than the ones I passed when crossing Bulgaria. I am not sure what it is due to, but the difference is striking. As I tried my Serbian “hello” (“Zdravo”) in a village, a lady stopped me and all I could understand was “France! Tennis! Djokovic!”. Ah! Roland Garros Paris Tennis tournament is on and the Serbian champion is the favourite. I’ll watch the games on my day off tomorrow. I remember my Uni days, and it was a nightmare because the tournament would be smack in the middle of exams study time. Seems strange to have it in October now…

Today’s route I followed was that of the “Roman Emperors’ route”. Nis once was dubbed the Emperors’ city, as 3 major emperors originated from it: Constantine the Great, Constantine III and Justin I. Other than the name displayed on a few road signs, not much reminded the traveler of the great ancient Emperors though. The road was very quiet and beautiful, away from the main highway connecting Leskovac from Nis.

What a difference today’s weather made. The weather is beautiful, mid 20’s Celsius and I will explore Nis as there seems to be quite a lot to see. More about the touristy side tomorrow.

Check my daily run GPS data on or

Here is the map of today’s run: