A dark, cold mist descends on the beautiful Zagreb skyline
as I write this. Just yesterday it was twenty-five degrees C and brilliant
sunshine. Today it’s ten, and pouring biting cold rain! That’s also been the story of
the city of Zagreb in the last few decades…
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| Just like any leading European city! |
I was lucky to catch this beautiful city in all its ‘sunshone
splendour’ yesterday. Landscaped green gardens and lakes dot the city, with
mountains overlooking in the horizon! Humongous buildings and monuments greet
you seemingly at every other corner. Modern trams whiz past you taking
commuters and tourists alike from one place to the next. Wide open roads make traffic seem light even at peak hours. Its an urban paradise!
But all of these are the product of Marshal Tito’s time in
Croatia (one of the socialist republic blocks of the Yugoslav Republic). The
60s & 70s were the sunshine years in the state. Most of the road, rail
& tram systems that we see today functioning in central Zagreb and indeed
in all of Croatia are thanks to that time. But after Tito’s death, and the
break-up of Yugoslavia into Croatia & other states, it’s been dark days.
When I landed, on the face of it, Zagreb looked like any
other Western European city. Good infrastructure, efficient public transport
and some beautifully preserved architectural wonders. Scratch the surface,
though, and it’s not a very happy story. My host, Vladimir, talks of a sense of
despondency amongst the public, of a sense of what was (the great 70s), and
what should have been – but for the war. The thought s are echoed by the waiter/owner
of the restaurant where I have my lunch… “These are bad times, sir… The margins
are nothing and customers are just not there” – this coming from a restaurant right
in the center of town next to the Cathedral where I had a scrumptious meal for just
10 euros!
The ‘bad times’ have not, though, caused the city to fall
into the hands of crime & such. It is still a safe place, and an absolute
delight for tourists.
I took a long 6-7km walk around the centre of town, spending
time at the tourist hotspots – King Tomislav Square, Marshal Tito Square, Zagreb
Cathedral & Ban Josip Jelacic Square to name a few. There’s also a nice
little statue of the great scientist, Tesla sitting, thinking, on a street
corner. The whole place gave me a vibe of being laid-back and yet a bit on the
edge – almost as if you were lying down but with one eye open looking around
warily.
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| Sight that greets one at Zagreb station |
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Getting to Zagreb was a mini-story in itself. I took a
round-about route from Marseille to get to Barcelona via Toulouse. A quick look
at the map will tell you I traversed two sides of a triangle. But that was the
only routing that saved me a night-stay at a hotel. It set me back by some 140
euros but the train ride was comfortable and even included a first-class coach
from Narbonne to Barcelona with a video of ‘Wonderful creatures of the sea’ playing
on the solitary TV. While the France leg of the journey was cloudy and dark, as
soon as the train crossed the border (and Spanish border inspectors), it was sunny
Spain all the way!
An evening flight from Barcelona meant I had a few hours to
kill. I made it up to Park Guell, one of the few things I had missed on my last
trip. The ‘usual’ insane Gaudi creations welcome you at this historic park. It has
some great views of the city as well and is worth spending a couple of hours
just wandering.
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| Park Guell |
The flight from Barcelona to Zagreb was uneventful but for a
few bursts of lightning that bode of possible rough weather in the coming days
in Croatia.
It took me a whole day of rest to recover from the wedding
party & all the traveling around it. Recharged, I walked entire Zagreb town
dry and today it’s onwards to Osijek.
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Perhaps, Croatia joining the EU next year will provide the
silver lining that this city & this country so desperately need. If all
goes well, Zagreb will be restored to its former glory and will challenge other
major European cities.
To hope!!
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