H ow to Arrive Before You Departed
Or Traveling Through Time Zones (With a Serbian Passport)
Traveling with a Serbian passport is always a bit of a lottery: in some countries they greet you with a smile and without question just wave to let you through, in others they look at you as if you’ve just tried to smuggle ajvar into the country. 😊 On that note, my friend had a legendary answer while entering the USA, where the customs officer, holding a jar of ajvar above his head, a gift from his grandma Manča for a friend he was visiting, angrily asked “What is this?!!!”, to which he replied – “face cream”. 😉
Since we are people who love a good challenge, and because we deal with time surrounding us, defining us and ambushing us, I am taking you on a one-day journey through time zones with our passport. In that sense, bring with you a lot of patience and, if possible, a bulletproof folder for your papers.
GMT+9 Japan
You depart from Belgrade, but the plane lands in Tokyo 11 hours later, and it’s already the next day. Jet lag? No, brother, this is a time travel without a time machine. At the border, they ask you why you’re coming, and you reply: “To eat authentic ramen and to take a photo in front of a vending machine for which you don’t know the use”.
GMT+9 Japan
You depart from Belgrade, but the plane lands in Tokyo 11 hours later, and it’s already the next day. Jet lag? No, brother, this is a time travel without a time machine. At the border, they ask you why you’re coming, and you reply: “To eat authentic ramen and to take a photo in front of a vending machine for which you don’t know the use”.
Visa status for Serbian citizens: A visa is not required for stays up to 90 days
Documents you will bring: hotel reservation, return plane ticket, employment proof, property documents, bank statements, proof that you’ve lived in Serbia for over 5 years and, of course, proof that you know what sushi is. 😊
Documents you will bring: hotel reservation, return plane ticket, employment proof, property documents, bank statements, proof that you’ve lived in Serbia for over 5 years and, of course, proof that you know what sushi is. 😊
GMT+3 Turkey
No visa is required, and every third person at the airport asks if you’re from Novi Pazar. InIstanbul you buy spices, bargain all wrong (so you pay more than they asked) and write in your diary: “Istanbul, the city that never sleeps, neither do I – because of 2 a.m. burek.”Visa status for Serbian citizens: No visa is required for stays up to 90 days.
GMT+5.5 India
At the airport, you try to explain to the customs officer what rakia is. He thinks it’s medicine. You don’t argue. In Delhi, at least a dozen people ask to take a picture with you, because you look “exotic”. In Goa you discover that you don’t know how to meditate but can fall asleep easily in the lotus position.
At the airport, you try to explain to the customs officer what rakia is. He thinks it’s medicine. You don’t argue. In Delhi, at least a dozen people ask to take a picture with you, because you look “exotic”. In Goa you discover that you don’t know how to meditate but can fall asleep easily in the lotus position.
Visa status for Serbian citizens: : Visa required. Since 2016, Serbian citizen can apply for an electronic visa. Tip: Don’t keep it only in your e-mail. Print it, post it to yourself and iron it onto a T-shirt, just in case. 
GMT+1 Italy
Weather just like at home – you feel like you’re in Niš, except everyone’s riding a Vespa, with sunglasses looking like they came out of a movie. You try to explain to the customs officer the difference between prosciutto and bacon. He asks if you know how to make pasticceria. You reply: “I do, more or less.”
Visa status for Serbian citizens: No visa required
For younger ones- once you need a Schengen visa, which required 3 weeks to gather all the document, begging your employer to declare that you were not a flight risk and carrying it all like a Harvard diploma.
GMT-3 Brasil
Landing in Rio. First question: “Who is your favorite football player?” Second question: “Did you come because of the Carnival?” Third question: “Why did you bring an umbrella?” (You asked yourself the same thing.)
Visa status for Serbian citizens: No visa required for stays up to 90 days
Landing in Rio. First question: “Who is your favorite football player?” Second question: “Did you come because of the Carnival?” Third question: “Why did you bring an umbrella?” (You asked yourself the same thing.)
Visa status for Serbian citizens: No visa required for stays up to 90 days
GMT-8 United States of America
Okay, now we’re entering the territory of the “visa Olympics.” Your visa is approved, but you still carry a slight trauma from the question: “Do you plan to stay longer than intended?” (Translation: “We know your plans better than you do” 😊).
Visa status for Serbian citizens: B1/B2 visa required.
If you made it through the interview without stress and without breaking a sweat — congratulations, you could work at the Pentagon.
GMT+12 New Zealand
To get here, you must endure three days and one eternity in transit. Landing: greenery, sheep, silence. At the border they ask, “Are you carrying any food?” You: burek, two servings of kajmak, and some Vegeta.
Visa status for Serbian citizens: : Visa required.
Tip: New Zealand likes to know every detail of your life — including whether you’ve ever used sweet cream in moussaka.br />
A traveler from Serbia can leave Belgrade on a Friday evening and arrive in Mexico on Thursday morning — all without a time machine, and with a passport that knows both borders and possibilities, but also “has your back” — there’s someone to help you with visas, saving you time. And nerves. 😊
Truth is, traveling with a Serbian passport is like a great comedy: there are tensions, paperwork, and sudden plot twists, but also moments when you think, “It’s worth every hassle. And every penny.” If nothing else, at least you know where to find the best food — and you always have a plan B… if they don’t let you into the country where you need a visa - just head to Turkey. 😊
To get here, you must endure three days and one eternity in transit. Landing: greenery, sheep, silence. At the border they ask, “Are you carrying any food?” You: burek, two servings of kajmak, and some Vegeta.
Visa status for Serbian citizens: : Visa required.
Tip: New Zealand likes to know every detail of your life — including whether you’ve ever used sweet cream in moussaka.br />
A traveler from Serbia can leave Belgrade on a Friday evening and arrive in Mexico on Thursday morning — all without a time machine, and with a passport that knows both borders and possibilities, but also “has your back” — there’s someone to help you with visas, saving you time. And nerves. 😊
Truth is, traveling with a Serbian passport is like a great comedy: there are tensions, paperwork, and sudden plot twists, but also moments when you think, “It’s worth every hassle. And every penny.” If nothing else, at least you know where to find the best food — and you always have a plan B… if they don’t let you into the country where you need a visa - just head to Turkey. 😊
Bon voyage
JJ Beba 🧳
