Some even have electric power inside.
Others thought it was a good idea to show off ones wealth.
Now there are more houses than tombstones in the cemetery.
A mausoleum at a cemetery in the village of Sapine, Serbia.
The money went into building new homes.
Competition among villagers have ensured that each new house built is larger and grander than its neighbor.
There are plaster eagles on the fences, gilded doors and lawns with dwarfs and little fountains.
Some of the houses were built to look like small castles with towers.
The competition is same in the graveyard.
The phenomenon is not unique to Smoljinac.
Over a million Serbs are currently living and working abroad.
In 2015, remittances to the Balkan country amounted to 9.2 percent of national output.
Having a house instead of a tombstone is not a bad idea though, says one resident.
Photo credit: Marko Djurica/Reuters
An unfinished mausoleum at a cemetery in the village of Sapine, Serbia.
Photo credit: Marko Djurica/Reuters
Gravediggers work at a cemetery in the village of Smoljinac, Serbia.
Photo credit: Marko Djurica/Reuters
Mausoleums at a cemetery in the village of Trnovce, Serbia.
Photo credit: Marko Djurica/Reuters
Mausoleums at a cemetery in the village of Smoljinac, Serbia.
Photo credit: Marko Djurica/Reuters
Entrance of a mausoleum at a cemetery in the village of Smoljinac, Serbia.
Photo credit: Marko Djurica/Reuters
Sources:IOL/Reuters
