Banjica

Banjica is located 5-6 kilometers south of downtown Belgrade (Terazije), on the Banjica hill. On the west, the hill descends into the valley and neighborhood of Lisičji Potok and further continues into the hill and woods of Topčider while on the south it descends into the valley of the creek of Kaljavi potok, bordering the neighborhoods of Kanarevo Brdo (south-west) and Jajinci (south-east). To the north, Banjica extends into the elite neighborhood of Dedinje while the eastern side is covered by the Banjička šuma (Banjica forest), a long narrow belt of deciduous woodland along the Boulevard of Liberation, which separates Banjica from the neighborhoods of Voždovac and Trošarina.

Findings of the ancient Vinča culture such as figurines or the oval terracotta with meander art and Old European inscriptions place civilized human activity in Banjica to 7,000 years ago.[1]

The name of the neighborhood comes from the Serbian word banja, meaning spa, thus it can be translated as the "small spa".

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 1815. In 1903 Banjica was the location of the military parade made for coronation of king Petar I Karađorđević of Serbia.

At the beginning of the 20th century, location of the Belgrade hippodrome was moved from the neighborhood of Marinkova Bara to Banjica. There, the First Serbian derby was held.[2]

Near the location of modern VMA, in the beginning of 1912, first wooden airplane hangar was built. Two years later, when the World War I broke, Banjica was the base where an airplane squadron and the balloon company of the Serbian Air Force were stationed.[3]

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 Belgrade. During the World War II Banjica was also a place where the German forces together with their Serbian collaborators ran a Banjica concentration camp.

From June 1945 to December 1946, Banjica was one of 5 administrative neighborhoods within Belgrade’s Raion VI. [4] After the war, the village was heavily urbanized, with new large apartment buildings built in place of old family houses. Banjica had a population of 17,711 in 2002.

Today, Banjica is mainly a residential area, but with large diversity in administrative and sports buildings. The most notable ones are:

• VMA (Vojno-medicinska akademija), a famous military hospital. A massive, modern building constructed in 1980 on top of the Banjica hill, thus visible from many lower parts of the city. It is the largest single hospital in Serbia.

CRW 2636 Panorama

• Orthopedic hospital, just north-west of the VMA.
• Police academy.
• Banjica sports centre, which includes the open pools, one of the most popular in Belgrade during summer.
• FK Rad stadium, right next to the sports centre.
• Church of the Saint Vasilije Ostroški.
• Museum of the Banjica concentration camp, on the corner of the Crnotravska and Generala Pavla Jurišića Šturma streets.
• Hotel Best Western (former "Mladost") in the Banjica forest.

Public transport includes bus, trolleybus and tram lines. Bus lines toward the city are 42, 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 (400(seasonal), 401, 402, 403, 405, 406, 407 and 408) to the above-mentioned lines toward the city.

In 2011 a project of the revitalization of the Kaljavi potok was announced. The stream is already channeled and has a concrete bed, but it also receives waters from many local cesspits. It was envisioned as the green oasis between the trolleybus terminus in Banjica and the "Tehnogas" factory in Kanarevo Brdo, just 5 km (3.1 mi) from downtown Belgrade. The 800-metre-long (2,625 ft) section of the stream was projected as the history and nature reserve as it was to include the remnants of the paleolithic site, pedestrian and bicycle paths, trim trail, a series of small bridges over the stream, three natural springs, limestone above-the-ground formations and the habitat of 20 species of rare birds, not usually find in the urbanized areas. The entire revitalized area was projected at 8 ha (20 acres) and should comprise the surrounding forest, rearranged forest paths, outdoor gym, children playgrounds and gazebos. The illegally built houses, fences, gardens and sewage drains along the stream were to be demolished. It was supposed to be the starting phase of the creation of the "green-blue corridors", the network of arranged forest and water sections all over the city, and the next project was already slated to be the stream of Jelezovac potok, a tributary to the Kaljavi potok.[5] As of 2017, nothing from the entire project has been done.

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 Stanković" and it is for grades 1-8 (ages 7–15). There is no high school in the neighborhood, 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).