Our last stop in Croatia was Zagreb, the capital. We'd heard not so positive reviews from other people at hostels about Zagreb. Most of them eluded to a boring city with not much going on. What a diamond in the rough Zagreb is. First off, the temperatures in the midst of August heat everywhere else in Europe is a wonderful 23 C(74 F). On top of that, we discovered a lively city not brimming with tourists that is easy to get around with the well connected tram network. It also doesn't have a beach. We're pretty sure we discovered why they gave us the misinformation. For us, Zagreb was a welcome break from the overcrowded beach towns down south. It sits right at the base of a large mountain. It provides the city with winter ski resorts and a barrier from cold harsh winters. Like most cities around the crossroads of eastern and western Europe, Zagreb's origins are associated with Roman settlements. The city formally united under ban Josip Jelacic. He was able to bring together the two sections, the clergy based Kaptol and the farmed based Gradec. He is commemorated with the statue below in a square named for him as well. It changed names under the Republic of Yugoslavia but since its dissolution, it was renamed for Jelacic.
The well below is part of a legend of how Zagreb got its name. The word zagrabiti means to scoop. The legend goes that a general was leading soldiers across the area when he stuck his sword in the ground and water came out. Now the fountain below is said to be the spot where he stuck his sword and the naming of Zagreb came about from the water.
Burza Square and the home to the Croatian stock market exchange.
Everything to the right. Just one thing to the left.
The Cathedral of Zagreb is in a part of the city known as the Kaptol. It has had clergy and religious figures since the 11th century. The original structure was built in 1094 and added on to over the centuries. An earthquake in 1880 damaged the Cathedral to the point of needing a major reconstruction, thus the more modern architectural style. The golden statue outside is the Virgin Mary.
The Cathedral was surrounded by a turreted wall in the Renaissance style. The wall was added when the encroaching Ottoman Turks threatened to destroy the city and Cathedral. The walls are now some of the best preserved of their style in Europe.
Inside the Cathedral, one of the walls has a large wall with lots of writing on it.
Outside of the church along the Renaissance walls, there is an old clock.
Below is the Donac Market. It's located near the Cathedral and is one of the most famous markets in the city. There are tons of people selling fruits, veggies, and other food stuffs.
The streets in Zagreb embody the image of the old images of European capitals.
We wandered through the streets of upper town and we found the St. Mark's Church. Some scholars think that there is evidence this church dates back to the 13th century. It's important as a landmark and is famous for its tiled roof. The tiles are shaped to show the coat of arms of Zagreb and the Dalmatia kingdom.
Down the street from St. Mark's is the Museum of Naive Arts. Izzy was intrigued by what the naive arts were and we found out that its full of paintings from artists who were never formally trained or schooled. Here are some of their works.
A little further down the street from the Naive Museum is the Museum of
Broken Relationships. It's full of artifacts that people have submitted that remind them of their failed relationships. Below are some fake breasts one girl was forced to wear by her husband and the other a love letter a girl glued to a mirror and broke it. It's an interesting and large collection of artifacts from all over.
After we finished at the museum, we strolled around the down town checking out old architectural delights. Below is the Opera House. It was built under the Austro-Hungarian empire and now sits on the square dedicated to the Yugoslav leader Tito.
Across from the theater is the Mimara museum on Roosevelt Square. It houses many pieces of artwork.
We took a picture of this Government Archives building because it has some nice owl sculptures on top.
The Zagreb train station was built in 1892 in order to connect the city to Vienna and Budapest. Across from it is King Tomislav Square. He was the first king of Croatia and united all of the lands into one country after defending them from the Hungarians. The square is a great place and lots of locals hang out there in the summer to enjoy being outside.
One of the neat things about Zagreb is that they have gas lighted lanterns on the streets. Most of them are in the Kaptol area and each night, two men walk around lighting them. We tried to find them and watch them do it but they had already lit the lanterns at 7 pm when we got there. We had dinner across the street from Cathedral. We searched for a restaurant that serves Cevapcici(pronounced Chevapchichi). It's a sausage made of pork, beef, and veal. They serve them in large portions and they are delicious.
Early the next morning, we caught a train to Ljubljana, Slovenia for the last leg of our 5 week journey.
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