Banjica

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Banjica (Serbian: Бањица) is a southern suburb of Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. It is part of the Vozdovac municipality.

Banjica used to be a suburban village, inhabited in the early 19th century by migrants from southeastern Serbia who came after the end of the Second Serbian Uprising. In 1903 Banjica was the location of the military parade made for coronation of king Petar I Karadjordjevic of Serbia. Until World War II, Banjica remained a quiet village with most of its population employed in crop production to support the growing agricultural demands of the Belgrade. During the World War II Banjica was also a place where the German forces together with their Serbian collaborators ran a concentration camp. After the war, the village was heavily urbanized, with new large apartment buildings built in place of old family houses.

Today, Banjica is mainly a residential area. The most notable buildings are VMA (Vojno-medicinska akademija), a famous military hospital, and the Banjica sports centre. Other buildings include FK Rad Stadium and the newly built Church of St Vasilije Ostroski. There is a small (by western standards) shopping mall next to the school, and a well-stocked green market up the hill, where people bring fresh grocery goods from afar.

The school's name is "Bora Stankovic" and it is for grades 1-8 (ages 7-15). There is no high school in this suburb, but due to good public transport students can easily reach numerous high schools in Belgrade (most popular choices are Fourth and Twelfth College-Preparatory High Schools, which are the closest).

Public transport includes bus, trolleybus and tram lines. Bus lines toward the city are 47, 48, 50, 59, 78, 94, trolleybus lines are 40 and 41, tram lines are 9, 10 and 14. The public transport station near the school is also the place where people living in nearby villages switch from their local buses (401, 402, etc) to the above-mentioned lines toward the city.

Banjica is separated from downtown Belgrade by Banjicka Forest, a long narrow belt of deciduous woodland. Most common tree species are Pedunculate Oak, Red Maple and Silver Maple, but there are many others as well. There are numerous wildflowers on the forest floor, including Wood Avens, violets, strawberries, Garlic Mustard, dead-nettles etc. Bird species are very diverse so because of them, Banjicka Forest is now a Nature Monument protected by state. The most common breeding birds are Nightingale, Blackcap, Great Tit, European Magpie, Hooded Crow, Blackbird, Woodpigeon, Great Spotted Woodpecker etc. Mammals include Eastern European Hedgehog, Mole, several species of shrews, various bats, Red Squirrel (but the local subspecies is chocolate-brown!), Wood Mouse and Yellow-necked Mouse, Least Weasel etc.