RUDNIK AND ALL THE SPLENDOUR OF NATURE In the Šumadija region, at the heart of Serbia, there is no mountain bigger than Rudnik, which reaches its highest elevation of 1,132 metres above sea-level on Cvijić’s Peak. Named after the zinc and lead ore that was mined here even by Ancient Romans, all praying to the goddess of Mother Earth, Terra Mater, to preserve them in her womb. It was there that medieval Serbs minted the first dinar with an inscription in the Cyrillic script. When the area was taken over by the Ottoman Turks, Rudnik became a small town, and was again in the service of mining ore during the era of Austro-Hungarian rule. During the First Serbian Uprising this was the first territory to be liberated from the new invasion of the Turks, with great credit being bestowed on Commander Arsenije Loma, to whom the people of the area also erected a monument.The basins of the Great Morava and West Morava rivers, as well as the River Kolubara, are dominated by beech, oak and maple woods, while the entire stretch is considered an air spa thanks to the currents of various winds...
tains of Povlen, Maljen, Suvobor and Ravna, while in the foreground it encompasses Ostrvica Mountain. “ is volcanic cone reminded me of the logo of film company Paramount pictures from my childhood,” says Ivo, for whom every association is related to the cinematic arts. e plot of some future creation could be constructed on the basis of the legends of Ostrvi- ca. According to the most popular story, the fortress situated between two mountain peaks was built by Damned Jerina, the wife of Despot Đurađ Branković. “Legend has it that the village of Trudanj was named because Jerina forced pregnant women [trudnice] to carry stones for building the fortress,” says Ivo, re- counting an alleged occurrence from the 15th century. Testifying to the true age of the fortifications, but also the zinc and lead mines that were formed from volcanic eruptions, are the Roman coins that are still sometimes found in the field opposite Holywood. Am- ateurs with a penchant for mountaineering can try their luck archaeologically: marked trails lead to the remains of Jerina’s town. Peaks reaching heights of around 750 metres can be conquered without bespoke mountaineering equipment, and without historical foreknowledge. e yellow iris, an endemic plant species, will also be enjoyed by those who have no idea about botany. Of everything happening here, perhaps the best understood is the culinary saga that’s spun by specialities - warm bread buns with kaj- mak milk curd, cornbread, roast lamb, cabbage from an earthen pot, but also rakija brandy made from early red plums. And when they fall asleep in the evening in one of the huts, the question is what the visiting trav- eller will dream about. Will it be a Hollywood scene or a picture of natural wealth; or the beautiful but cursed Jerina, who died between two legends – one about the monastic region and one that says she died at the hands of her son Lazar, who was impatient to take power in Serbia?
culturally from that position. e deafening love call of the crickets may divert attention away from the action of the films, as could the huge star-studded sky, as the vaulted ceiling of an unusual auditorium. “When it rains, the screenings are moved to the nearby Culture Centre in the small town of Rud- nik, where the daily repertoire is also shown,” explains Ivo. During the year of Coronavirus, all contents have been transferred to the vir- tual space, but even then there is still reason to visit Mutanj. Ivo declared the territory of this lovely village the wonderland of the film e Wizard of Oz, which made Judy Garland famous way back in 1939. As such, ar- riving travellers are greeted first by Dorothy, then by the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion, at intervals of about 10 metres, all the way to the en- trance to the Emerald City, where they are awaited by another sensation, which certainly includes Čkalja’s Hut. However, there is also an adrenaline rush and the largest swing in Serbia, dubbed the Sky Swing, be- cause it offers bird’s eye views of almost half the coun- try. e view opens up in the distance to the moun-
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