Fluent Fiction - Serbian: Dance, Rakia, and Friendship: A Serbian Tale
Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:
fluentfiction.org/dance-rakia-and-friendship-a-serbian-tale

Story Transcript:

Sr: Jedne tople večeri, u staroj kafani u srcu Srbije, svetlucavi fenjeri osvetljavali su lica veselih ljudi.
En: One warm evening, in an old tavern in the heart of Serbia, the sparkling lanterns illuminated the faces of cheerful people.

Sr: Milica, sa pletenicom do struka, igrala je kolo sa svojim prijateljima, Nikolom i Petrom.
En: Milica, with a braid down to her waist, danced the circle dance with her friends, Nikola and Petar.

Sr: Muzika je bila glasna, a zvuci harmonike mešali su se sa smehom i čašama koje su zveckale.
En: The music was loud, and the sounds of the accordion mingled with laughter and the clinking of glasses.

Sr: Nikola, čovek širokog osmeha i toplih očiju, bio je poznat kao najbolji igrač u selu.
En: Nikola, a man with a wide smile and warm eyes, was known as the best dancer in the village.

Sr: Njegov beli košulja blistao je pod svetlom kao znak da je večeras nešto posebno.
En: His white shirt gleamed under the light as a sign that something special was happening tonight.

Sr: Petar, najstariji od njih troje, tapsao je po ramenu mladog Nikolu, bodreći ga da zaigra srcem.
En: Petar, the oldest of the three, patted the young Nikola on the shoulder, urging him to dance with his heart.

Sr: Milica, uhvaćena u ritmu pesme, nije ni primetila kako se približava Nikoli sa čašom rakije u ruci.
En: Caught up in the rhythm of the song, Milica hadn't even noticed Nikola approaching her with a shot of rakia in his hand.

Sr: Njeno kretanje bilo je slobodno i razigrano, ali jedan neočekivani pokret učinio je da rakija prsne i umrlja Nikolino čisto belo platno.
En: Her movements were free and playful, but an unexpected move caused the rakia to splash and stain Nikola's pristine white fabric.

Sr: Muzika je na trenutak utihnula, a sve oči bile su uprte u njih.
En: The music momentarily fell silent, and all eyes were on them.

Sr: "Ljubavi, oprosti! Bilo je nehotice!" uzviknula je Milica, zarumenela od stida.
En: "Love, I'm sorry! It was unintentional!" exclaimed Milica, blushing with embarrassment.

Sr: Srce joj je tuklo od brige kako će Nikola reagovati, dok je kapljice rakije mirisale u vazduhu.
En: Her heart raced with worry about how Nikola would react, while the scent of rakia lingered in the air.

Sr: Nikola je zastao, gledajući svoju mokru košulju, a onda se razlegao njegov zarazan smeh.
En: Nikola paused, looking at his wet shirt, then his infectious laughter rang out.

Sr: "Nema veze, Milice!", rekao je dok je vadio maramicu iz džepa da obriše štetu.
En: "It's okay, Milica!" he said as he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe the damage.

Sr: "Samo neka je veselje, a košulja se može oprati."
En: "As long as there's joy, the shirt can be washed."

Sr: I tada je Petar, mudar kao i uvek, podigao svoju čašu uvis i rekao, "Da se nećka nošenja, nego dobrog druženja! Nek se piće prosipa, ako će ljubav da kvasi naša srca."
En: Then Peter, wise as always, raised his glass and said, "Better to spill the drink than to hesitate, good company is what matters! Let the drink spill, if it will moisten our hearts with love."

Sr: Ljudi su se ponovo nasmejali i podstaknuti Petrom, brzo su nastavili da igraju, čak življe nego pre.
En: People laughed again, and encouraged by Peter, they quickly continued the dance, even more lively than before.

Sr: Milica je ispružila ruku prema Nikoli, a on ju je primio i povukao nazad u kolo.
En: Milica reached out to Nikola, and he took her hand and pulled her back into the circle.

Sr: Noć je odmicala, a kolo je postajalo sve šire; rakija se opet punila, ali ovoga puta čvršće u ruci.
En: As the night progressed, the circle grew wider; the rakia was filled again, but this time held more tightly.

Sr: Kroz smeh i igru, tri prijatelja su učvrstila vezu, shvativši da su nezgode deo života i da su trenuci provedeni zajedno vredniji od bilo koje mrlje na košulji.
En: Through laughter and dance, the three friends strengthened their bond, realizing that mishaps are part of life and that moments spent together are more valuable than any stain on a shirt.

Sr: Kada je zora obasjala nebo, kafana je još uvek bila puna radosti.
En: As dawn lit up the sky, the tavern was still full of joy.

Sr: Milica, Nikola i Petar izašli su na svež vazduh, srećni što su deo ovog šarenog tepiha tradicije i prijateljstva.
En: Milica, Nikola, and Petar stepped outside into the fresh air, happy to be part of this colorful tapestry of tradition and friendship.

Sr: I dok su se prvi zraci sunca probijali kroz grane starih hrastova, znali su da će ova noć ostati u sećanju - ne po prosutoj rakiji, već po plesu koji je ujedinio srca.
En: And as the first rays of the sun broke through the branches of the old oaks, they knew that this night would be remembered - not for the spilled rakia, but for the dance that united their hearts.


Vocabulary Words:

• warm: topla
• evening: večeri
• old: stara
• tavern: kafana
• heart: srce
• Serbia: Srbije
• sparkling: svetlucavi
• lanterns: fenjeri
• illuminated: osvetljavali
• faces: lica
• cheerful: veselih
• people: ljudi
• braid: pletenica
• waist: struka
• danced: igrala
• circle dance: kolo
• friends: prijateljima
• loud: glasna
• sounds: zvuci
• accordion: harmonika
• mingled: mjesali
• laughter: smehom
• clinking: čašama koje su zveckale
• wide: širokog
• smile: osmeha
• warm: toplih
• eyes: očiju
• known: poznat
• best: najbolji
• dancer: igrač