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| Zagreb - The capital of Croatia |
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2003-07-07 20:37:00
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From the Lonely Planet we learned that Zagreb was not supposed to dazzle us with charm, and that it would take time to appreciate its value. Wrong.
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In Zagreb we expirienced for the first time that it could be difficult to get a place to stay. There are few hotels, and a lot of them are small and have few rooms. We finally managed to settle in at hotel Astoria, the most expensive hotel we have stayed at so far, and also the hotel which has been in the worst condition. It is said that the hotel is under renovation, and that is by all means necessary. One night it rained pretty heavy, and in the morning we found buckets and stuff in the hall to get hold of the dripping water. The personnel however was incredibly serviceminded !
The next day we went to the main square of Zagreb where one of the Tourist Information centers also are located. After picking up some brochures from the Tourist Information we sat down at Grand Cafe to lay our plans.
Zagreb is made up of two towns, Kaptol and Gradec, and they sort of melted together during the 11th to 13th centuries. Today there is a funicular railway (1888) connecting the lower and upper town, and leading up to the Lotrscak Tower. From this tower you have panoramic 360 degree view of the city and especially to the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary which by the way has a beautiful statue just near by. Inside the tower is a cannon which fires a salute at twelve o´clock every day.
Zagreb is well known for its outdoor cafés, and it is truly a lot of them too. But, even there are a lot of them, they are crowded with people all day long, drinking coffe, beer, wine or having a quick lunch. When you were sitting at such a outdoor café listening, you where overwhelmed by the loud humming of voices. We also tried a cafe recommended by the Lonely Planet, Tolkiens House, but that was truly a bad expirience. A good expirience however was the huge pizzaes at Pizzacato, also a recommendation from Lonely Planet.
Some 20 kilometers outside the centrum of Zagreb up in the hill lies an old fortress named Medvedgrad. If you like castles and fortresses at all, this is a must. We took a taxi up, and the fortress is beautiful with an amazing view over the city. The fortress is under renovation, but they have already opened a cafe here where you can buy refreshments. By the staff at hotell Astoria we were recommended to try something called Strûkli at the cafe. Some sort of cheesecake, a little bit sour but really good taste. Inside the fortress area you can find a beautiful chapel too, and the main tower of the fortress is also a magnificient view.
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