BALKAN SIBERIA – THE COOLEST PLACE IN SERBIA

During the existence of medieval Serbia, one of the courts of the members of the Nemanjić dynasty was located in the area of today’s town of Sjenica.
This town is located on the Peshterska plateau, which belongs to the Raska region and has about 14,000 inhabitants.
One of the coldest places in Europe
Especially during the winter, the city of Sjenica is considered one of the coldest places not only in Serbia, but in the whole of Europe. It is interesting to mention that the temperature of 35 degrees below zero was measured in Sjenica in 2005, so the city rightly follows such an epithet. But to make everything much more interesting, it is considered that the temperature in the city is a degree lower, because it is otherwise officially measured on a hill, known as Radišića hill.
It is assumed that due to the existence of specific hydrometeorological characteristics in this area, an extremely low temperature was recorded, not only during the winter, but higher during the summer.
At the end of January 1954, the lowest temperature in Sjenica was officially recorded, which was 38.3 degrees Celsius below zero.
It is also interesting to mention that on May 31, 1996, snow fell in the vicinity of Sjenica. In some years, the appearance of salt has been noticed even during the summer months.
Sights in Sjenica and surroundings
Of course, there is no person who has not heard of the famous Sjenica cheese, but there are far fewer who know about Sjenica Lake. The greatest depth of this lake is about 108 meters, and it is located at an altitude of 985 m.
It is considered an ideal destination for hikers, as well as for nature lovers and there are a large number of undiscovered caves near it. Uvca Canyon is one of the attractions that is also located near Sjenica Lake, and is about 6 km away from the mentioned town.
The largest plateau in the entire Balkan Peninsula rises above Sjenica. In addition, the Peshterska plateau is considered the largest in Europe. It covers an area of as much as 63 km, and with good reason it is called Balkan Siberia or Balkan Tibet. In the area of Pešter, snow about 10 cm high is present for as many as 60 days a year, and there are a large number of historical sights.
One of the attractions of Sjenica is the Valide Sultan mosque, which dates from the 19th century. This mosque is interesting in that it was built at a time when the seat of the Sandzak was in Sjenica and that the mosque has no foundations or a single pillar.
The oldest mosque in the entire municipality is the Mosque in Ugl, which dates from the beginning of the 18th century.
In Kumanica is the church of the Holy Archangel, which is believed to date from the 13th century. The famous Kumanič Gospel was also located in that church, and until recently it was neglected and rather dilapidated, only to be renewed in 2000.
And finally, and certainly the most important are the gastronomic specialties of this area. It is enough to mention the lamb from Pešter, then the famous Sjenica cheese and even more famous homemade pies from this area, so that the water starts in your mouth and you want to visit Sjenica as soon as possible.