Hrvatska (Croatia`s real name!)

This is our second holiday of the year together, and we are starting out in the capital of Croatia, Zagreb.

There are no direct flights from Edinburgh, so we decided to fly BA via London. Thankfully, we didn’t have to get up at the crack of dawn so we enjoyed a longer lie before setting off for the airport. It didn’t take long to settle into the lounge, both in Edinburgh and on our arrival in London, although we did need to navigate our way to Terminal 3 rather than the home of BA, terminal 5.

We were slightly delayed out of London as the baggage handlers managed to “bump” the plane, this meant a wait for some engineers to make sure we could take off! An hour later we were on our way, albeit a bit cranky but i did enjoy a Champagne afternoon tea on the journey over.

After waiting in a reasonably long queue at passport control we made it to our taxi pick up location and within 15 minutes, we were checking into the Hotel Dubrovnik (in Zagreb!). This is very confusing, and I did have to check the booking a few times.

We deposited our passports and valuables in the most complicated safety deposit box, then headed out for a drink. We didn’t need to head far as our hotel was just off the main square, everywhere was bouncing as it was a Saturday night. The quietest place was an Indian restaurant called Namaste, so we sat outside and enjoyed a local beer, Ožujsko. 

It was about 11.30pm when we headed back to the hotel for a sleep, and to sober up!

You just can’t beat a walking tour….

We started the day with breakfast in the hotel, it was average, but it was all that was needed to set us up for the day. I dare say the chocolate donut with Nutella filling was not needed, but I enjoyed it nevertheless.

At 10am we set off to find the meeting point of the walking tour, it was only 3 minutes away and one of the reasons I chose this hotel as the location is central and perfect for exploring.

We met Petra our guide in Park Zrinjevac, and embarked on an 2.5 hour walking tour of the city along with 12 other people. The park is one of 7 parks in Zagreb, and is part of the “green horsehoe” which circles lower Zagreb. The park houses a meteorological column built in 1884, and even today it is an important landmark for the city. Each side of the station is different as it is fitted with scientific instruments which record temperature, humidity and air pressure over time. It’s even someone’s job to come and change the paper weekly so that they can record humidity.

From the park, we headed towards the main square and the statue of Ban Josip Jelačić. The square is located below Zagreb`s old city which is known as Upper Zagreb as it is set on two hills, one called Gradec and the other Kaptol. Originally, the statue was pointing towards the old town of Zagreb, but it was removed during the communist era and stored in the basement of a museum. When it was found, it was decided to reinstall the statue, but now he would be pointing the other way; the majority of Zagreb, now lower Zagreb is the opposite direction.

We took a short walk up the hill to Kaptol to see the cathedral, but unfortunately due to the earthquake of 2020 it is still undergoing repairs. The earthquake measured 5.5 on the Richter scale, and both spires were impacted. The right fell on the building beside it, while the left managed to turn itself and was perched perilously. Almost 8 out of 10 people in Croatia are Roman Catholic so this is a place of great significance. As it was lockdown, they broadcast the whole operation to bring the spire down on live TV, it took 5 hours and apparently people were glued to it.

There is also a funny story to the cathedral, apparently a man called Matija Juričić wanted to become a fireman but he did not get the job because he was deemed too weak. In order to prove he wasn’t, he climbed the spire without any help and protested. Obviously, the police and fire brigade were called, and due to bad weather, he eventually came down on his own. The man was promptly arrested, but after a short visit from the fire commander, he was given a job. Turns out he was the best firefighter in Croatias history, and there is an award to this day to celebrate him. Who says breaking the law doesn’t pay?

After visiting the first hill, we wandered back to the square via Dolac Market; this is a farmers market and the place locals buy their food. It operates every single day and is famous for the ladies selling homemade food. After passing through the market we walked along to the funicular. Unfortunately, it wasn’t working as they are in the process of upgrading it, but we were just in time to see the 12pm cannon firing. Now if you are familiar with Edinburgh, you know the 1 o’clock gun, well this is also a cannon and its pretty loud, 142db to be exact. Thankfully, the guide did warn us. 

We thought because the funicular wasn’t working, we got away with climbing the stairs, but no such luck. This area, along with Kaptol is the medieval part of the city and is located on the hill of Grič. We wandered to St Marks Square, the home of the Church of St Mark as well as the seat of the Government of Croatia. From there, we walked through the only remaining Stone Gate of the city, stopping briefly to take a picture of artwork of Mary and child, which was apparently the only remaining thing to survive a fire.

After a short walk back down the hill, and via a shop with a very big tie outside (apparently the tie was invented by the Croatian Army, and the French copied them!), we got to the WW2 tunnel. We only went inside for 50metres or so, but it was cold, and I can imagine back it the day, it wasn’t; very pleasant; at least now, they are maintained and are used as a shortcut to downtown. 

The second last stop on the tour was an area called Tkalčićeva Street, this used to be the red light district at the turn of the 20th century. Prostitution was legal at the time, and this was advertised as a tourist attraction. Apparently, if a woman was busy with a client, she would lay a statue on its side outside the door, if she was free it was standing up and the client could enter. Now prostitution is illegal, and the area is full of loads of cafes, bars and restaurants, so still a tourist attraction, just in a slightly different way.

The last stop on the tour was the Venus planetary sculpture! Okay, sidenote, there is a massive Sun globe in the middle of a street. An artist had made it and it was there for all to see. What he didn’t mention to anyone was that he made ALL the other planets too, and placed them around Zagreb in a size and scale, and distance from the Sun. Venus, being closest to the sun, can be found a few hundred metres away, but it’s tiny! The others are in random places, with Jupiter 5KM away, We only found Venus… But it sounds like a fun day finding them all.

We had been walking for almost 2.5hours and it was now 21 degrees so we decided to go for a beer and some food. So far, we have realised beer is cheap, 4 EUR for a large. 

After an hour or so to recuperate, we decided to walk back up the hill to the Lotrščak Tower, a fortified tower where you can get a 360 degree view of Zagreb. It was only 3 EUR per person, and given it is still early in the holiday season, we were the only ones at the top. We also got a close-up view of the cannon which was pretty cool!

After the tower, we decided to brave it and go to the Museum of Broken Relationships; apparently set up by a couple who parted company, the museum grew from a travelling exhibition. There is a diverse collection of some very weird things, including a frozen piece of cake, a knife, a broom, and there are some very weird stories to go with the objects. Like the women whose husband absolutely hated bananas, so as a joke she hid one so he could smell it, but when she came back from a weekend away she found the peel in the bin and she realised he was having an affair! People all over the world send in items with their story and the collection is forever changing; all I can say is that it is very weird!

After the museum, we thought it best to go for a drink to decompress. We only stayed for one, before heading back to the hotel to pick up a jacket then find a restaurant for dinner. Everywhere was starting to get busy so chose the first place we came across; I decided to have ribs, I just didn’t think the portion would be quite as big! I did not bad, and thankfully I only had a small beer to go with it.

I was full, and even though it was early, we thought we would have an early night. There is a tobacco shop just beside the hotel, so we picked up a few supplies (beer, water) and turned in for the night, hoping the Museum of Broken Relationships hasn’t scarred us for life!