Serbia, officially the Republic of Serbia, is a country situated at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe in the southern Pannonian Plain and the central Balkans. The sovereign state borders Hungary to the north; Romania and Bulgaria to the east; Macedonia to the south; Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro to the west and claims a border with Albania through the disputed territory of Kosovo. Serbia numbers around 7 million residents. Its capital, Belgrade, ranks among the oldest and largest cities in southeastern Europe. The official language of Serbia is Serbian and official currency is Serbian dinar (ISO code: RSD).
Serbia is a member of the UN, CoE, OSCE, PfP, BSEC, CEFTA and it is acceding to the WTO. Since 2014 the country has been negotiating its EU accession with perspective of joining the European Union by 2025 and is the only country in the current enlargement agenda which is designated as "free" by Freedom House. Since 2007, Serbia formally adheres to the policy of military neutrality. An upper-middle income economy with a dominant service sector followed by the industrial sector and agriculture, the country ranks high by the Human Development Index (66th), Social Progress Index (45th) as well as the Global Peace Index (56th).
Located at the crossroads between Central and Southern Europe, Serbia is found in the Balkan peninsula and the Pannonian Plain. Serbia lies between latitudes 41° and 47° N, and longitudes 18° and 23° E. The country covers a total of 88,361 km2 (including Kosovo), which places it at 113th place in the world.
The climate of Serbia is under the influences of the landmass of Eurasia and the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. With mean January temperatures around 0 °C (32 °F), and mean July temperatures of 22 °C (72 °F), it can be classified as a warm-humid continental or humid subtropical climate. In the north, the climate is more continental, with cold winters, and hot, humid summers along with well distributed rainfall patterns. In the south, summers and autumns are drier, and winters are relatively cold, with heavy inland snowfall in the mountains.
Tourism is mainly focused on the mountains (e.g. Kopaonik, Stara Planina (Old Mountain), and Zlatibor) and spas (e.g. Vrnjačka Banja, Soko Banja, and Banja Koviljača).
Some of the music festivals are EXIT in Novi Sad, Nišville Jazz Festival in Niš and Gitarijada rock festival in Zaječar.
Serbian cuisine is largely heterogeneous. Serbian specialties include ćevapčići (caseless sausages made of minced meat, which is always grilled and seasoned), pljeskavica, sarma, kajmak (a dairy product similar to clotted cream), gibanica (cheese and kajmak pie), ajvar (a roasted red pepper spread), proja (cornbread), and kačamak (corn-flour porridge). Serbians claim their country as the birthplace of rakia (rakija), a highly alcoholic drink primarily distilled from fruit. Rakia in various forms is found throughout the Balkans, notably in Bulgaria, Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Hungary and Turkey. Slivovitz (šljivovica), a plum brandy, is a type of rakia which is considered the national drink of Serbia.
Source and read more on: Wikipedia - Serbia
