Illustrative Wi-Fi networks

I recently noticed my neighbor's wifi network names, two of which, stand out as supremely Serbian. "25_Maj_5B": May 25th was Tito's birthday, and while he governed Yugoslavia, he initiated an annual "Youth Day" celebration to be held on his birthday. To honor the day's namesake, he summoned a Union of Pioneers, children who wore red scarves and blue hats called Titovka. On Youth Day, the pioneers participated in a "Relay of Youth" to celebrate Josip Broz's special day by designing batons that they passed among themselves through the major towns in Yugoslavia until it reached Tito in Belgrade. Though many street names changed after the break-up of Yugoslavia, May 25 remains the name of a main boulevard in Belgrade, and the Historical Museum of Yugoslavia is also called the May 25 Museum. A special day charged with nostalgia.

And, of course, "King Novak": As I've written before, he is deeply idolized by the Serbs. He even gets two networks in one apartment complex!

Awetumn

Though winter has come, I thought I'd share some images of the fortress in fall. Kalemegdan park/fortress is my favorite part of Belgrade. As you can see, it's remarkable how a few steps into the park will lead you to forget you're in the middle of Serbia's capital along with two million others. When my mom visited, she compared this effect to NYC's Central Park. Plus it's not only a park, but a fortress at the confluence of the Sava and Danube riviers that the occupying power - be it the Roman, Byzantine, or Ottoman Empire - employed to defend its control over this crossroad between East and West.

Anyway, back to autumn. While friends and family in Hawaii are glad to never worry about shoveling snow, they also tend to admire the two-toned trees that don't emerge during Hawaii's perpetual summer. I hope this satisfies that fall fix:

Don't these photos make you want to see it for yourself? I'm not exaggerating when I say there's a lot more where this came from throughout the Balkans. Here are a few examples :)

And for kicks: a clock on the side of a building! 

Sat = hour, so it was about 3:16pm (15:16:22 to be exact).