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Day 17 of 35: Zagreb

Today, the last full day of our Smartours “Jewels of the Adriatic”, was spent in Zagreb. It’s the capital of Croatia, with a little over a million inhabitants in the metropolitan area; that’s about 25% of the country’s inhabitants. It was the epicenter of a 5.3 earthquake in 2020; many museums are still closed for repair & scaffolding is everywhere.

When the country was part of communist Yugoslavia, many residents fled & the government claimed their properties. Now the residents still don’t own the buildings, & the owners don’t maintain them, so sadly graffiti is everywhere.

Nonetheless the many parks are beautiful & the Old Town is still a center of activity & life.

Many buildings damaged in the 2020 earthquake are still being repaired
The art exposition center partially restored
Josip Juraj Strossmayer Park
Many cities have these metal 3-D models to help orient yourself
The Cathedral still being renovated
The Cathedral renovating will triage per- quality limestone with better stone
Monument to the Annunciation
Part of Old Town Zagreb where many locals dine
Chapel in one of the city gates
St Mark’s Church, incredible ceramic tile roof
Loved these decorations
Lunch as suggested by Jonathan Mesinger. A local favorite
The open market where locals still shop ; meat & perishables are in the cooler downstairs
This modern art museum is a converted mosque
A weather station in the park

We ended the day with a traditional Croatian meal & a performance by the excellent folklore group “Hearts of Zagreb” (https://www.facebook.com/firstcroatianfolkloreshow?mibextid=ZbWKwL)

After entertaining us for an hour with songs, fans, & stories, they taught us dances & a game with brooms. They then gifted each of us with a traditional Zagreb gingerbread heart, personalized with our names. And I came in second in the broom game, so I got a consolation prize as well.