Postcard from Zagreb

The last leg of my interrailing adventure took me to Croatia’s capital city, Zagreb. Everyone knows that Dubrovnik, Split and the surrounding islands are must visit destinations in Croatia (and I agree, they most definitely are!) but what does Zagreb have to offer? My postcard from Zagreb will give you an idea.

Zagreb is located in the north west of Croatia and although it’s the country’s largest city, it’s often overlooked by tourists and travellers. To be honest it was a last minute addition to my itinerary, but I’m glad I decided to go.

These are some of my highlights.

Zagreb 360º

By the time I arrived in Zagreb, the 7th European City of my trip, it had become a bit of a tradition for me to climb (or ride) to the highest point of each city’s observation deck as my first port of call. I arrived in Zagreb late afternoon and had soon found the Zagreb 360º Observation Tower next to the main square (Ban Jelačić Square), right slap bang in the middle of the city.

For a small fee, an elevator took me to a bar on the 16th floor of the building. The bar has floor to ceiling windows on 3 sides and you can walk the perimeter of the building on an outside balcony.

Zagreb 360º is 182 metres high so it was by no means the highest observation deck I’d been to. And if I’m honest, the views weren’t anywhere near as spectacular as some of the others I’d seen. But seeing Zagreb from above helped me get my bearings and I arrived just at the right time to watch a pleasant sunset.

Zagreb Cathedral from the Observation Tower

It was also nice to relax for an hour or so in the 360º Bar, whilst playing a couple of games of Ludo (one of the many board games that were dotted around the bar) and looking out over the city.

Free Spirit Walking Tour

After a relaxing first evening in Zagreb I decided I’d start the next day with a Free Spirit walking tour. I had high expectations following the excellent Ljubljana walking tour that I’d joined a few days earlier. But the Free Spirit Walking Tour totally exceeded my expectations.

Our guide, Luka, is a proud Historian and he really knew his stuff. As we walked around Zagreb’s most interesting, historic, popular and hidden landmarks, I learned all about the history of Zagreb. Luka’s personality, fantastically dry sense of humour and immense knowledge made this tour interesting and at times, really funny.

Ban Josip Jelacic

The guy you see in the photo below is a hero in Croatia. His name is Ban Josip Jelacic. He was the the Chief Government Official in Croatia between 1848 and 1859 and he supported Croatian independence.

His statue was erected in Zagreb’s main square in 1866. In 1947 the Yugoslavian Communist Government removed the statue as it was seen as a symbol of Croatian Nationalism. But it was returned to the square in 1990 following the fall of Yugoslavia and has remained there since.

Ban Josip Jelacic Statue

Strossmarte Promenade

Instead of taking the Zagreb Funicular to the Old Town, we climbed the steps. Slightly out of breath, we arrived at Strossmarte Promenade, the most romantic area in the city according to Luka. We saw some cool street art up there as well, like the 3D turtle in the photo below.

3D Turtle Street Art at Strossmarte

The Stone Gate

The Stone Gate is the last remaining medieval gate between Zagreb’s old and new towns. It’s actually a small tunnel where a painting of the Virgin Mary was uncovered. It was the only thing that survived a devastating fire here in the 17th century.

Inside the tiny tunnel, there are a few pews on one side and a small alter on the other, a candle tray that always burns and, most beautiful of all in my opinion, many ‘thank you’ tiles, like the ones in the photo below.

It’s a really beautiful and unique place – there were people sitting on pews or kneeling at the alter quietly praying whilst tourists stopped for a few minuets to take photos or light candles, and others hurriedly went about their business.

The Stone Gate ‘Thank You’ Tiles

Gas Lanterns

Did you know there is a man who’s job it is to walk the streets of Zagreb and light every one of the 364 gas lanterns every single evening?

Photo by Jorge Lascar

Lotrščak Tower and Grič Cannon

Lotrščak Tower is a fortified tower in Zagreb’s Old Town. It might not be much to look at, but here’s the thing. Every day at 12 noon the Grič cannon is fired out of the top floor window. I was standing right underneath when the cannon was fired. It was loud, much louder than I expected – and then the man who fired the cannon hung out of the window and waved at us. I wasn’t expecting that.

The cannon was originally fired to to let the church bell ringers know it was time to ring the bells, and this tradition which dates back to 1877, has continued to this day.

Lotrščak Tower

World War 2 Bomb Shelter

Around a year ago, an underground tunnel that was used as a bomb shelter during World War 2 opened its doors to the public so I couldn’t resist having a look inside.

Bomb Shelter under the streets of Zagreb

I love that the bomb shelter is now used for various events including exhibitions and lectures. Parts of the tunnel were decorated with colourful lighting and flowers when I was there.

Flower Festival in the Underground Bomb Shelter

Museum of Broken Relationships

At last I now know the answer to that mind boggling question asked by Whitney Houston back in the 80’s. ‘Where do broken hearts go?’

The Museum of Broken Relationships is located in Zagreb’s old town between Lotrščak Tower and St Mark’s Church. Its completely out of place amidst all the historic landmarks. But that’s part of what makes it so great.

I’s a unique museum dedicated to failed relationships. On display are personal memento’s of lost love, and the stories behind them, all donated by people from around the world.

A basketball shirt donated by a lady from the Phillipines, hangs in a frame. The caption? “He was a player”. A white toaster was perched on a shelf with a note that read “When I moved out and across the country, I took the toaster. That’ll show you. How are you going to toast anything now?” In another room there was what looked like a diamond ring. The note cleverly stated “S(he) be(lie)ve(d)”.

It’s an interesting, at times sad, frequently weird but mostly very very funny voyage into life and love of ordinary people. And I thoroughly enjoyed the hour or so I spent there.

Love letter by a guy trying to save his long distance relationship

Plitvice Lakes

Plitvice Lakes had been on my bucket list for ages so there was no way I was going to Zagreb without paying Plitvice a visit.

A UNESCO World Heritage site, Plitvice Lakes is located about half way between Zagreb (approximately 2 hours by car) and Zadar. There are 16 lakes joined by waterfalls that flow into a limestone canyon with various walking trails that wind around and over the water.