Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Mark THOMAS
W
elcome to our beautiful city and the fourteenth edition of “The Sibenik
Times”. When I started thinking about the smaller things that have in
changed in life since I moved to Croatia I realised that there were too
many to squeeze into one column so this is a continuation of “the little things
in life” from last week. These little things that surrounded everyone everyday
make life interesting. Most of them are we take for granted and we somehow
subconsciously push them out of our minds. Its not until we are met with a
situation were these things are changed do we really notice them. The majority NUDIST FRIENDLY FIGS FEST
BEACHES
of tourists only scratch the surface into life here on their holiday, only after being As a part of ‘Days of Jezera’, first time appearance had ‘Figs
here for some time do you can into contact with the millions of differences. An
fest’. Of course, everything was in theme so one could
average day is filled with differences. Not having to drive a least an hour to get
to work is a pleasant change. And while I’m on driving I must mention zebra
Croatia is emerging as a top destination for ‘naked’ tou- see fig bread, cakes, pies, rolls and even fig cocktail. ‘Tale
crossings. The zebra crossing in England is a blessed area that is the possession rism with the countries nudist beaches attracting inter- of figs’ was told by folk people and proper competitions
of the pedestrians at all times. I almost failed my driving test because I didn’t national attention. Tourists looking to strip off on holiday were held where one had to eat the whole plate of figs,
slow down when approaching a zebra crossing with a pedestrian. The fact that should head to Valalta in Istria which has one of the best following by small drink of rakia. It is said that this fest will
the pedestrian was leaning against a wall reading a newspaper didn’t matter, as nudist beaches in Europe, according to an online pollster. probably be held next year as well.
my driving instructor said “He could have stopped reading and crossed the road”, Travellers are cautioned that if they do decide to visit such
whereas zebra crossings here are like Russian roulette. I often see tourists striding a beach they will be obliged to remove their clothing, or
confidently across them without paying much attention to the traffic along to risk being thrown out. Nadine Hallak, travel expert for the
be met with a screech of brakes or a scooter swerving to avoid them. You can website, adds suncream is essential for skinny-dippers
tell the tourists who have been here for a few days because they wait cautiously to avoid any unfortunate burning. She adds: “If you’ve
before slowly extending a leg out as if testing the sea to see if it’s cold. Drinking
already burnt any areas where the sun doesn’t normally
coffee in the morning instead of the ritual and obligatory cup of tea, I noticed this
change in my drinking habit the most when I go back to England and my mother
shine, some effective natural remedies includes milk
comments that she has to buy extra coffee when I turn up. In fact when I think compresses, refrigerated Aloe Vera gel and bathing in la-
about the whole ceremony of drinking coffee outside in a café on a work day is vender oil. “Failing that, you could always reach for some
new. I can honestly say that I never sat for a coffee outside with my colleagues anti-inflammatory tablets.” Meanwhile, Homes Worldwide
in London; it was always a situation of buying a take away coffee and drinking it recently claimed the Istrian peninsula is “one of Croatia’s
either in the car or at my desk while I worked. And not to forget there is the joy most bewitching areas”, enjoying the high points of the
of being able to smoke whilst enjoying your coffee and not being made to stand Italian region of Tuscany without the same level of ex-
outside like a leper with some mega contagious disease, although I’m not sure pense. According to the publication, the north Adriatic
how long that pleasure will last. Not only have my drinking habits changed but coastline is a major attraction for those wishing to travel
also have my eating habits. Instead of having a light lunch, normally sandwiches, to Croatia.
and a heavy evening meal which is the system I was used to. I as now accustomed
to, if I have the time, a full lunch and easy meal in the evening. When we revert
Hacienda closed
• More than 50 percent of total amount of berths that
belong to the marines on the Croatian part of the Adria-
Popular discotheque in Vodice, Hacienda, home to a tic Sea are located in the Sibenik-Knin County.
multiple celebrities and artists during summer, is closed for • Sibenik’s Town Library was founded on the 17th Febru-
this season. Until next year, of course. And to go in style, ary 1922 and during its first days it only had 1105 books,
weekend was truly to remember. First, one of ‘top guns’ in while it had only 26 inhabitants of Sibenik as its mem-
the business, DJ Chris Lake, performed on Friday, mostly bers.
known for his remixes of popular groups like Eurythmics • On Sibenik’s coast there are two biggest and most fa-
and Prodigy. His last remix of Rihanna’s ‘Umbrella’ is mous discotheques in Dalmatia - Aurora and Hacienda.
currently number one club hit in the world. Following • From October 1990, eight months before Croatia dec-
on Saturday is last Slice Me Nice and on Sunday, party is lared independence (June 25th, 1991) from Yugoslavia,
organized by Hacienda’s resident DJ, Sasha Gardijan. Knin became the main stronghold for the Serbs in the
Knin region.
ATTRACTIVE
FOR INVESTORS
Investors are set to continue being attracted to Croatia
due to Exchange Traded Funds (ETF), it is claimed. Accor-
ding Jakov Kozina, portfolio manager at financial services
group Fima, the country will gain more assets from ETFs
as its capital market becomes “more transparent”, reports
emportal.co.yu. He suggests this should help reverse the • Sibenik was mentioned for the first time under its pre-
trend of foreign buyers looking to other countries for sent name in 1066 in a Charter of the Croatian King Petar
newer, riskier markets in the hope of generating higher Krešimir IV.
yields. Mr Kozina adds that “initially such funds attract • The summer sea temperature reaches 26 ºc.
large hedge funds, pension funds and other professional • Zirje is the furthest inhabited island from Sibenik and is
risk-takers with longer investment horizons”. Meanwhile,
Egyptian property developer West Side Village has recom- DIAL 112 situated 20.4 kilometers south-west of the city.
• Murter is the largest island in the Sibenik County.
FOR EMERGENCY
mended British property investors look to buy in countri- • Only divers who have finished a course in diving and
es outside the eurozone like Croatia. Stephen Smith, sales have the required certificates are allowed to dive in the
and marketing director at the organisation, explained the Adriatic.
pound will go further in these areas, leading to better va- Replacing an older system involving separate call centres • Croatia has 68 airports and airfields in use.
lue for money. He also suggested investors will be able and multiple numbers, Croatia now has a single number • Croatia won the Davis cup in 2005.
to maximise rents by purchasing “quality investment pro- to call when quick help is needed. In an emergency, a • Croatia is bigger than Belgium, Denmark, Holland and
perties in good locations”. phone call can mean life or death, and the last thing you Switzerland.
want is to have to fumble for the right number. In the past, • There are 1,185 Islands of the coast of Croatia, 66 of
Croats had to memorise three separate numbers -- 92 for them are inhabited
police, 93 for the fire brigade and 94 for medical personnel • Krka was proclaimed a national park in 1985 it is loca-
-- and it was easy to confuse them. But the situation has ted entirely within the territory of Šibenik - Knin County
changed. This year, authorities introduced 112 as a single and encompasses an area of 109 square kilometres.
number covering all emergency services and also esta- • George Bernard Shaw once visited the Kornati islands,
blished a centralised emergency call centre. By dialing and wrote the following “On the last day of the Creati-
112, members of the public can reach any type of rescue on God desired to crown his work, and thus created the
service -- ambulance crews, firefighters, alpine rescuers, Kornati Islands out of tears, stars and breath”
even veterinarians. Knowing what digits to dial is essen-
tial not only for residents, but for tourists too. Crowds of
visitors arrive each year, and there are always incidents. In
July, for instance, two young scuba divers -- a Czech and
a Slovenian -- fatally overestimated their diving capacity.
The same month, two men died of heart attacks at a Dal-
matian sea resort, and a surfer drowned days earlier. Hi-
kers intent on exploring the stunning Croatian landscape
sometimes get lost or venture into hazardous terrain.
RECORD NUMBER
OF IMPORTS SPEAK UP!
According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, in the first
six months of 2008 Croatia imported agricultural and
foodstuffs worth 1.3 billion US dollars. At the same time
We would love to hear from you.
exports of those same products amounted to just 629 mi- Please write or send an e-mail to
llion US dollars. Compared with the same period last year, us about your stay in Sibenik. Your
the value of imported agricultural and food products in- comments are valuable to us and
creased by 36 per cent in the first six months of 2008, whi- the most interesting letters will be
le exports increased by 17 per cent. In the first half of the published every week. Thanks.
2008, Croatia imported 27,000 tons of meat products to
the value of more than 80 million US dollars. Croatia also
imported 77 000 tons of vegetables and 38,000 tons of Mark Thomas
fruit and vegetables. The country’s major export destina- The Sibenik Times,
tions are Bosnia and Herzegovina, followed by Slovenia, B. Petranovića 3,
Italy and Serbia, while Croatia imported most of its food 22000, Šibenik.
from Italy, Germany, Brazil and Hungary.
mark.thomas@sibenik-times.com
Issue 14
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The Sibenik Times 06. 09. 2008.
Issue 14
06. 09. 2008.
The Sibenik Times 5
Issue 14
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The Sibenik Times 06. 09. 2008.
FAMOUS CITIZENS
ANTUN VRANČIĆ hines”, which contained 49 of his projects, sketches
A writer, Latinist, historian, diplomat, royal ambas- and drawings, among which was the first published
sadors, cardinal and the most educated and learned parachute sketch, the Flying Man. His other major
man of his time. His public work and cultural crea- work is the Dictionary of five most noble European
tion, patriotism and humanism secured him a high languages, Latin, Italian, German, Dalmatian and
position in the cultural history of Croatian people and Hungarian. This Dictionary was the first printed
made him the most honorable member in Sibenik’s dictionary in Croatia and the first more extensive
hall of fame. (1504. - 1573.) one in Hungary. (1551. - 1617.)
16.09.
CYCLING RACE VODICE- ZATON- ŠIBENIK BRIDGE
SKRADIN
– VODICE BRIDGE –VODICE „HEART AGAINST 08.09.
STEEL „ “MALA GOSPA “ PILGRIMAGE
Issue 14
06. 09. 2008.
The Sibenik Times 13
BOTTLENOSE DOLPHINS
The bottlenose can measure between inhabit almost all oceans and seas thro-
1.9m to 4m when adult and weighs ughout the world. However there is no
anything from 100kg to 500kg. In Cro- current worldwide estimation of popu-
atia, the population is of the coastal lation, although in the Mediterranean
eco-type, with a maximum adult size of current numbers are estimated to be
around 3m. Bottlenose dolphins can re- fewer than 10,000 individuals. Polluti-
main submerged for 4 - 5 minutes fora- on, over fishing and habitat destructi-
ging for fish. The longest time recorded on is not only reducing the numbers of
in Croatia is 6 minutes and 55 seconds. these dolphins but restricting the avai-
Bottlenose dolphins feed on fish, small lable habitats for them to live.
squid and crustacea, and are often fo-
und in direct competition with fisher-
men. They are famous for their curiosity
and this makes them prone to entan-
glement, particularly in gillnets. This is
a major form of premature death in this
species of dolphin. Bottlenose dolphins
Powered by Šibenski list The telephone code for Croatia is 00385 and
Božidara Petranovića 3, 22000 Šibenik, Tel: 022/311-300, fax: for Sibenik and the Sibenik county dial 022
SKRADIN
022/330-100
Tourist Board tel. 771-306. Phar-
Director: Srđan Bužančić Police 92 and 347-111
macy - clinic of general medici-
Fire brigade 93 and 212-222 ne works Mondays, Wednesdays
Editor-in-chief: Zdravko Pilić zdravko.pilic@sibenski-list.hr HAK roadside assistance 987 and Fridays from 7,30 do 13,30, and
Information 988 Tuesdays and Thursday from 13.30
Assistant editor: Mark Thomas mark.thomas@sibenik-times.com
Bus Station 060 368-368 to 19.30. tel. 771-099, 771-049;
Reporters: Nevena Banić, Joško Čelar, Jadran Kale, Mil- Tow away parking service 098/975 4196
ko Kronja, Nikola Urukalo Jadrolinija – ferries 218-663
Photography: Vilson Polić, Nikolina Vuković, CROPIX
Croatian Railways 9830, 333-696 TISNO / JEZERA
General Hospital 246-246
Graphic editing: Luka Čanković, Orsat Lasić, Nino Milin County council 244-200 Tourist Board, Put Zaratića 3,
City council 332-021 Jezera, tel. 022/439 – 120. Tourist
Marketing: Nikolina Čvorak nikolina.cvorak@sibenski-list.hr; Board Tel. 438-604. Pharmacy
Port authority 217-217
091/302-0122 , Elida Slavica tel. 438 - 427; Doctor’s Clinic tel.
Meteorological station 338-585 438-427, Jadranska banka tel.
Printer: Slobodna Dalmacija Sibenik University 311-060 438-486; Post Office tel. 439-
State archive 330-370 210; Port Authority tel. 439-313;
In association with Tourist Board Šibenik: City sanitation 332-325 Firebrigade tel. 438-751;
Goran Bulat, director
Tourist info centre 214-411
060
VODICE
368
Tourist Board City of Vodice, Ive
Čače 1a, tel. 443-888; City Council
tel 444-900; Police tel. 443-150;
Preparation
Joanna Brkich Clean and slice the potatoes into discs and arrange at the
USA Ludmila Luda bottom of an oiled pan. On top of the potatoes arrange
Ukraine the sardines, which have been cleaned, then add a layer
My father is originally from Croatia, so I know a lot of potatoes, a layer of sardines until the top of the pan.
about the country, although I don’t speak Croatian, I’m so sorry now because I came only on a daily trip to After this add garlic, parsley, olive oil, wine, pepper, salt
because even my father was born in the USA. This Sibenik, because it’s so beautiful I don’t know where and a little water. Cover the pan with foil and bake for
is my first time in Sibenik and I can say it is really to look. Everything is so nice and so magnificant and between 30 – 40 minutes at 160ºc.
beautiful. I love the stairs, the cathedral, the narrow especially the old houses in the town. I’m coming Bon appetite.
old streets, the beautiful people... again for sure.
Crossword
DOWN
1. COLOUR Sudoku
2. HEAD COVERING
3. WITHOUT CHARGE
ACROSS
4. SPORT
4. RIVER IN LONDON
5. FORM OF FUEL
6. BODY OF WATER
7. CROATIAN CAPITAL
10. THANK YOU IN CROATIAN
8. HIGHEST WORLD
11. BEER IN CROATIAN
MOUNTAIN
12. HOSPITAL EMPLOYEE
9. NATIONAL PARK IN
13. DAY OF THE WEEK
SIBENIK
14. GO IN
Issue 14
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The Sibenik Times 06. 09. 2008.
SUNDAY
PARTLY CLOUDY
HIGH 29 ºc
LOW 19 ºc
MONDAY
MOSTLY SUNNY
HIGH 30 ºc
LOW 19 ºc
TUESDAY
CLOUDS AND SUN
HIGH 27 ºc The Vodice promenade as it once looked at around the turn
LOW 14 ºc of the century. As you can see the main industry at that time
wasn’t tourism from the barrels on the dockside.
wednesday
SUNNY
HIGH 23 ºc
LOW 16 ºc
thursday
SUNNY
HIGH 22 ºc
LOW 15 ºc
friday
MOSTLY CLOUDY
HIGH 18 ºc
LOW 9 ºc
The same promenade today but in a totally
different function.