My beautiful Croatia! (Part 2)

Day 1,482, 09:01 • Published in Croatia Croatia • by dRobi1990


Hi there, dear readers.

My goal is to make 50 articles about our small country and show the world all the beauty Croatia has.

So far, I`ve noted that foreigners have great interest in Croatia.

In future articles, I`ll do my best to show you Croatia most honest and with great honour.

Thanks for suggestions and nice words!

Part 3 will be published on 12th December 2011

! Notice: These article is only made to promote Croatia and Croatian nature, culture, cities, heritage, history, art, cuisine, sports and people (either born in Croatia or others) and is not made to usurp, tease or start any sort of controversy, so please have this on your mind when you post comment.

Added Croatian wattle and avatar for each theme (nature, people, sport, city, cuisine) and I hope you will like it and recognise it in future articles.

Enjoy!













Old City and Old Harbour



Old City at night



Old City - air photo

Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik, with a population of 42,641.

It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county.

In 1979, the city of Dubrovnik joined the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

! Video: Dubrovnik, Pearl of the Adriatic, Tour by Audi
! More info on: Dubrovnik on Wikipedia
! Tourist info: Dubrovnik - Croatian Tourist Board











Rijeka Carnival



Halubajski zvončari (Bellmen from Halubje) - added on UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2009.

The Rijeka Carnival is held each year before Lent in Rijeka, Croatia.

One of the biggest and most distinctive European carnivals is a special combination of European urban carnivals, relying primarily on Venetian and Austrian folklore elements and old Slavic mythology.

Starting with only three local carnival groups and a hundred participants in 1982, Rijeka Carnival has developed into an international event that now attracts over ten thousand participants from a dozen countries.

! Video: Rijeka YouTube video
! More info on: Rijeka Carnival
! Tourist info: Rijeka









Dado Pršo, playing for Croatian National Football Team

Miladin "Dado" Pršo (born on 5 November 1974 in Zadar) is a Croatian former professional footballer who played as a striker.

He was part of the Monaco team that reached the Uefa Champions League final in 2004, and part of the Rangers team that won the League and cup double in 2005.

Pršo received 32 caps, scored 9 goals for Croatia and was part of the squad at Euro 2004 and World Cup 2006.

He retired in June 2007 from the Scottish Premier League club Rangers.

! Video: Dado Pršo Tribute
! More info on: Dado Prso on Wikipedia











Velika Paklenica gorge



Bojinac



The Paklenica karst river canyon is a national park in Croatia.

Located in Starigrad, northern Dalmatia, at the southern slopes of Velebit mountain, not far from Zadar.

Paklenica National Park streches on 64 km2 in Zadar county, and 31 km2 in Lika-Senj county.

Geological Features

The most attractive and most valuable parts of South Velebit are surely the impressive canyons of Velika Paklenica and Mala Paklenica. Velika Paklenica canyon is 14 km long and 500–800 m wide. Vertical cliffs rise above both sides of the canyon up to a height of over 700 m. Mala Paklenica Canyon is of smaller dimension, and the torrent running through it is much less powerful. It is 12 km long and 400-500 wide.

Flora

The wealth of flora is reflected in the list of 1,000 plant species and subspecies recorded to date, 79 of them endemic. The great diversity, the presence of relict, endemic, rare, statutorily protected species make the Park a very valuable floristic area, not just in Croatia, but in Europe and the world as well.

Fauna

The diverse habitats in Paklenica and the vertical stratification provide home to a diverse fauna. Invertebrates are relatively poorly explored, attractive insects like diurnal butterflies are well explored. Over 40 species of amphibians and reptiles are found, the endangered Orsini's Viper is a highlight.

There are also 53 species of mammals at the park, the roe deer and chamois are highlights, while the brown bear is the biggest predator.

! Video: Paklenica NP on YouTube
! More info on: Paklenica National Park on Wikipedia
! More info on: Official pages of public institution "Paklenica National Park
! Tourist info: Paklenica NP









Ante Starčević (23 May 1823 – 28 February 1896), born in Žitnik near Gospić , was a Croatian politician and writer whose activities and works laid the foundations for the modern Croatian state.

His works are base for Croatian nationalism, he is often referred to as Father of the Fatherland by Croats.

Starčević was the only Croatian politician from his era respected by writer Miroslav Krleža.

Krleža used to compare Starčević's struggles to those of Don Quijote's.

For Miroslav Krleža Starčević has been the most intelligent Croatian politician.

Krleža, however, did not pay much attention to political aspects of his works.

! More info on: Ante Starčević on Wikipedia











Višnjan



Višnjan is the site of Višnjan Observatory (an astronomical observatory).



Višnjan is also known as one of the last resorts in Istria of autochthon Istrian bovine Boškarin (Croatian link only).

Višnjan (Italian: Visignano) is a village and municipality in Istria, Croatia.

The observatory is home of several long-running international summer programs for youth in astronomy, archeology, marine biology and other disciplines.

Most of Višnjan's economy comes from agriculture mostly olive growing and viticulture.

Did you know?

Boškarin, the first geno-park in Croatia, was founded With the intention of preserving Boškarin in Višnjan.

! Video: Višnjan promo
! More info on: Višnjan on Wikipedia
! More info on: Višnjan School of Astronomy
! Tourist info: Višnjan









In 1959 he painted The Deer Wedding - his most valuable work, according to followers of the Croatian naïve art world.



Sick child, oil on glass, Ivan Generalic

Ivan Generalić (December 21, 1914 – November 27, 1992) was a Croatian naïve art painter.

Generalić was born in Hlebine near Koprivnica.

Originator of the modern Croatian naive art, the central person and mentor to other generations Hlebine painting school.

He mostly drew with pencil on paper bags and some of these sketches were seen by Krsto Hegedušić, at the time (1930) just a student of the art academy, later a professor.

Positive critiques and contacts at the time led to a new era of not only Croatian, but also world art as well.

After World War II, in 1945 he became a member of ULUH (society of Croatian artists).

Generalić has a large number of followers, beside his colleagues who form the first generation - Franjo Mraz and Mirko Virius.

! Video: Croatian Naive Art
! More info on: Ivan Generalić on Wikipedia
! Tourist info: Hlebine
! Tourist info: Koprivnica
! Tourist info: Koprivnica Municipal Museum - The Hlebine Gallery of Naive Art









Historic illustration - Senj and Nehaj Fortress



Goran Sekula photo of Nehaj Fortress



Bird's-eye view of Nehaj Fortress

The fortress is 18 metres tall and 23 metres wide, and square shaped with walls averaging from 2 to 3 metres in thickness. There are five towers situated on top of the Fortress, and eleven large cannon openings along the walls.

The Nehaj Fortress (Croatian: Tvrđava Nehaj is a fortress on the hill Nehaj in the town of Senj, Croatia.

The name Nehaj comes from the Croatian term Ne hajati, which means Don't care.

This name was given to the hill and the Fortress by the Uskoks, who built on the top of this hill the Fortress for defensive purposes.

They gave the hill and the Fortress such a name because they wanted to emphasize to the citizens of the town of Senj, and all of those that lived in the vicinity of the town of Senj that they should not care that someone will conquer this hill or the Fortress until they are there.

It was built by Croatian army general Ivan Lenković, a captain of the Uskoks, on the hill Nehaj.

Finished in 1558, it was built on the remains of ruined churches, monasteries and houses which were situated outside of the walls of the town.

Today, it serves as a museum.

! Video: Fort of Nehaj
! More info on: Nehaj Fortress on Wikipedia
! Tourist info: City of Senj
! Tourist info: senj.hr











Only men born in Sinjska krajina (city of Sinj and surrounding villages) can take part in the Alka and it is considered a great privilege to participate in the tournament. The vojvoda ("Duke") of Alka is a ceremonial title representing the commander of the alkars.



The contestant (called an alkar) rides his horse down the race track and tries to hit the central ring of alka with his spear in full gallop. Depending on which part of the alka he hits, he receives from 1 to 3 points, and no points if he misses.



The costumes worn by the alkar men are the same that were worn by the warriors in the 18th century.



Sinjska alka is a knight tournament which is held every first Sunday of the month of August in Sinj, as the anniversary of victory over Turkish invaders.

On 14th August 1715th 700 Croatian soldiers from Sinj were able to turn the rush of the Turkish army seraskera Mehmed Pasha Čelić consisted of 60,000 soldiers.

Alka consists of an equestrian competition, in which various horsemen attempt to aim their lances at a hanging metal ring (alka) at full gallop.

On 15 November 2010, Sinjska alka was inscribed on the UNESCO list of world intangible heritage in Europe.

Did you know?

Alka is also the name of the object used in the tournament; it is made of two concentric rings connected with three bars.

! Video: Alka Sinj HD - ancient game in modern times
! More info on: Sinjska alka on Wikipedia
! Tourist info: Sinjka alka on Croatian Tourist Board
! Tourist info: City of Sinj









Sarma is a dish of grape, cabbage or chard leaves rolled around a filling usually based on minced meat.

It is found in the cuisines of the former Ottoman Empire from the Middle East to the Balkans and Central Europe.

Sarma means 'a wrapped thing' in Turkish language, from the verb sarmak 'to wrap' or 'to roll'.

Preparation

Minced meat (usually beef, pork, veal, or a combination thereof, but also lamb, goat, sausage and various bird meat such as duck and goose), rice, onions, and various spices, including salt, pepper and various local herbs are mixed together and then rolled into large plant leaves, which may be cabbage (fresh or pickled), chard, sorrel, vine leaf (fresh or pickled) or broadleaf plantain leaves. The combination is then boiled for several hours.

While specific recipes vary across the region, it is uniformly recognized that the best cooking method is slow boiling in large clay pots. A special ingredient, flour browned in fat (called rântaş in Romania, where it may also contain finely chopped onion, or ajmpren in Slovenian), is often added at the end of the process.

Serving

In Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia, Armenia, Bulgaria, Republic of Macedonia and, especially, in Romania, sarmale is a traditional meal for Christmas and other religious holidays (in Serbia also for slava and Easter, in Slovenia and Croatia for New Year's Day, and in Bosnia and Herzegovina for Eid ul-Fitr ). Traditionally, a pot filled with sarme/sarmale is usually prepared for an entire family.

! More info on: Sarma recipe

PART 1