Fluent Fiction - Serbian: City of Life: A Villager's Urban Lessons
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fluentfiction.org/city-of-life-a-villagers-urban-lessons

Story Transcript:

Sr: Jovan je bio nov u Beogradu.
En: Jovan was new to Belgrade.

Sr: Stigao je rano jutrom vozom i osećao se uzbuđeno zbog svog prvog putovanja u veliki grad.
En: He arrived early in the morning by train and felt excited about his first trip to the big city.

Sr: Bio je seljak, i sve oko njega izgledalo je čarobno i novo.
En: He was a villager, and everything around him seemed magical and new.

Sr: Sunce je tek izlazilo iza zgrada dok je Jovan šetao ulicama.
En: The sun was just rising behind the buildings as Jovan walked the streets.

Sr: Na Trgu Republike, Jovan je ugledao grupu ljudi kako se okuplja oko nečega.
En: At Republic Square, Jovan saw a group of people gathering around something.

Sr: Milica i Dragan, dva prijatelja iz grada, tuda su prolazili i videli zbunjenog Jovana.
En: Milica and Dragan, two friends from the city, were passing by and noticed Jovan looking bewildered.

Sr: "Šta gledaju ti ljudi?
En: "What are those people looking at?"

Sr: " upitao je Jovan kada su se približili.
En: Jovan asked as they approached.

Sr: Milica se nasmejala.
En: Milica laughed.

Sr: "To je statua našeg poznatog pisca," objasnila je.
En: "That's a statue of our famous writer," she explained.

Sr: Dragan je klimnuo glavom u znak potvrde.
En: Dragan nodded in agreement.

Sr: Jovan je pažljivo pogledao statuu.
En: Jovan carefully looked at the statue.

Sr: Činilo mu se da je pisac skoro živ.
En: It seemed to him as if the writer was almost alive.

Sr: Pomišljajući kako je Beograd čudesan grad, pretpostavio je da je statue ovde moraju da budu kao ulični umetnici koji se prave da su statue.
En: Thinking that Belgrade was a miraculous city, he assumed that the statues here must be like street performers pretending to be statues.

Sr: Odlučan da ispoštuje gradu običaje, krenuo je prema statui s novčićem u ruci.
En: Determined to respect the city's customs, he approached the statue with a coin in his hand.

Sr: Milica i Dragan su se zbunjeno pogledali, ali pre nego što su uspeli nešto da kažu, Jovan je već podigao ruku da stavi novčić u šaku pisca.
En: Milica and Dragan looked at each other in confusion, but before they could say anything, Jovan had already raised his hand to place the coin in the writer’s palm.

Sr: Čitav trg je utihnuo na trenutak pre nego što je otmeo talas smeha.
En: The entire square fell silent for a moment before it erupted with laughter.

Sr: Jovan je iznenađeno pogledao oko sebe, a zatim u statuu, shvativši svoju grešku.
En: Jovan looked around in surprise and then at the statue, realizing his mistake.

Sr: Milica, brišući suze od smeha, prišla je Jovanu.
En: Milica, wiping tears of laughter, approached Jovan.

Sr: "Nisi prvi kome se to dogodilo," rekla je kroz osmeh.
En: "You're not the first this has happened to," she said with a smile.

Sr: "Naučio si važnu lekciju o našem gradu," dodao je Dragan, tapšajući Jovana po ramenu.
En: "You've learned an important lesson about our city," added Dragan, patting Jovan on the shoulder.

Sr: Jovan se priključio smehu.
En: Jovan joined in the laughter.

Sr: "Mislim da me je Beograd već naučio da ne sve što sjaji je zlato," rekao je kroz osmeh.
En: "I guess Belgrade has already taught me that not everything that glitters is gold," he said with a smile.

Sr: Zajedno su napustili trg, smejali su se i pričali o drugim zanimljivostima Beograda.
En: They left the square together, laughing and talking about other interesting things in Belgrade.

Sr: Jovan je saznao da pravi prijatelji i dobra humor mogu učiniti i najneugodniju situaciju svetlom i veselom.
En: Jovan learned that true friends and good humor can turn even the most embarrassing situation into a bright and cheerful one.

Sr: To je bio dan koji nikada neće zaboraviti, dan kada je grad života naucio seljaka važne gradski lekcije, i dan kada je stekao dva dragocena prijatelja.
En: It was a day he would never forget, the day when the city of life taught a villager important urban lessons, and the day he gained two precious friends.


Vocabulary Words:

• excited: uzbuđen
• villager: seljak
• miraculous: čudesan
• bewildered: zbunjen
• statue: statua
• approached: približili
• pretending: praveći se
• customs: običaji
• razed: utihnulo
• embarrassing: neugodno