October 27, 2020 – The City of Varazdin is planting Croatia's first community orchard – the space will bring together residents of all ages, provide free fruits and play a role in educating about organic produce and cultivation

The first community orchard in this part of Europe is being built in Varazdin. The community orchard will be situated to the west of the city centre, in the Haller alley, just behind the city cemetery. In the first phase, some 250 trees will be planted and be accessible to the public.

Beautifully landscaped in the early 1900s by Herman Haller, the City of Varazdin cemetery is one of its best gardens. It contains works by internationally recognised Croatian sculptors Antun Augustinčić and Roberto Frangeš-Mihanović. Frangeš-Mihanović is responsible for the very famous statue of King Tomislav which faces the main train station in Zagreb. The Varazdin community orchard will be located in Haller's alley, just behind the cemetery © Parkovi d.d. Varaždin

A community orchard, sometimes known as a public orchard, is an increasingly popular use of public land in some areas of western Europe and North America. They are an asset shared by a community and not managed for personal or business profit.

A community orchard has many benefits - it increases community access to healthy, organic fruit, it teaches young people about food, organic produce, agriculture and cultivation and it allows ordinary people to develop cultivation skills. This is particularly useful to those who themselves own no land for growing. They also increase co-operation and inter-generational socialising within a community and can be made into focal points for community activities.

St Ann's Community orchard in Nottinghamshire, England  © Clem Rutter, Rochester, Kent. (www.clemrutter.net)

However, community orchards are not always met with universal approval. Interest in community gardening and cultivation schemes can wane over time, especially if they are started without authorisation. The burden of taking care of such projects then falls on city authorities.

Thankfully, any objections to this brilliant idea in Varazdin have been removed – the Varazdin community orchard will be taken care of by the city's own parks authority. They will decide on which particular fruits and trees are to be planted. Anyone from the community can come and help themselves.

City of Varazdin cemetery, behind which the community orchard will be placed © Turistička zajednica grada Varaždina

Low-lying fruit trees and berries are often chosen for community orchards. Their height level means they are not out of reach for youngsters who are being educated in such areas, and harvest is made safer, easier and more accessible to all age ranges.

The community orchard in Varazdin will be arranged in expanding circles. The first planted trees are expected to bear their first fruits within just a few years. Some residents of Croatia might be of the opinion that their communities already have a community orchard. However, taking fruit from a neighbours trees, even if granted permission to do so, is something different to a community orchard, in which access to pick fruit is opened to the general public at any time, not just community members and with no prior agreement necessary. Stealing fruit from your neighbour's trees and bushes is certainly not comparable to a community orchard.

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ZAGREB, Oct 27, 2020 - Finance Minister Zdravko Maric said on Monday the ruling coalition partners supported the government's 2020 state budget revision and 2021 budget.

"The revision and the budget were presented, the latest numbers and data," he told the press after a coalition meeting.

"They are aware of the circumstances and how much coronavirus has cost the state budget to date. The figure will go up to HRK 28.5 billion by the end of the year. These are increased expenditures that we didn't plan which are first and foremost intended for job retention and the health system."

Maric said challenges still existed and that they were basing the 2021 budget on macroeconomic projections which they would keep to.

He said there remained major negative risks for achieving the GDP projections as well as "certain positive ones, first and foremost related to EU funds, the Next Generation EU, the Recovery and Resilience Facility, something on which we are putting a lot of emphasis already in next year's budget."

Maric explained that Croatia would receive from the React EU fund €210 million this year and €330 million the next for job retention measures. "As for the rest of the €800 million, a smaller part will go to healthcare and the bigger part to support the economy."

As for the Recovery and Resilience Facility, he said 10% of €6 billion in grants would go towards strengthening the government's capacity to help the economy. He underlined that reforms would be key for absorbing the money.

Asked where he found the money for paying hospitals' debts to drug wholesalers, Maric said it would be seen in the revised 2020 budget.

He said liabilities in healthcare exceeded HRK 10.5 billion but added that "by resolving the issue of existing debts, we haven't fully solved the problem because new debts are being generated, about HRK 220 million a month."

Maric went on to say that the dialogue with the social partners would continue this week. "The intention is to present where we're at and begin a dialogue on... salaries in the public sector."

He said a lockdown was not on the table at the moment.

Regional Development and EU Funds Minister Natasa Tramisak said the coalition partners were also presented a national development strategy until 2030 which will soon be put to public consultation.

"We agreed at the meeting... that it is a comprehensive, umbrella, strategic document which provides clear directions and visions of Croatia in the next ten years. We wish to achieve a more competitive and stronger economy in order to improve living and working conditions and so that the state can achieve a better quality of the standard of living," she said.

October 27, 2020 - Plitvice Lakes National Park announces cheaper ticket prices until the end of the year. 

Namely, from October 26 to December 31, one-day ticket prices will be 80.00 kn for an adult, 50.00 kn for students, and 35.00 kn for children (7-18 years). Also, in the same period, the prices of two-day tickets will be 120.00 kn for adults, 70.00 kn for students, and 60.00 kn for children (7-18 years), reports HRTurizam.

"Plitvice Lakes National Park is special in every season, and autumn has a unique magic, so we invite everyone to discover it, surrounded by the colors and smells of forests and the sounds of waterfalls," said Plitvice Lakes National Park.

HRTurizam believes this is certainly an opportunity for travel agencies to make exciting weekend arrangements to offer a much broader tourist story of Lika because anyone can come for a day to Plitvice Lakes National Park, without the need for travel agency services.

Otherwise, Lika is slowly but surely developing from year to year, and thus offers a wide range of activities and facilities, from canoeing on the Gacko river, sleeping in treehouses, Deer Valley, the Velebit House, buggy rides, horseback riding tours, Lika gastronomy, cheese roads, and more. If you are targeting Zagreb, you can offer a full day trip to Karlovac and the surrounding area. From the phenomenal freshwater aquarium Aquatika to the new beer tour in the city of beer, which is on the way to Lika. 

Plitvice Lakes National Park has also prepared a new gastronomic offer in their restaurants. Thus, in all facilities at the Park, you can taste traditional Lika dishes. And better yet? The National Park cooperates with small family farms, as well as local producers within the Lika Quality system, which consists of 57 producers with 160 products.

As Plitvice Lakes National Park points out, chefs from the Lika House have prepared new gastronomic offers for the autumn and winter seasons. Thus, visitors to the National Park will have the opportunity to order dishes such as traditional soup with lamb, potatoes and vegetables, tortellini stuffed with cottage cheese (handmade tortellini with pumpkin cream, arugula pesto, fried pumpkin seeds, sauteed mushrooms, cow cheese) and many others. 

Plitvice Lakes National Park also invites visitors to buy tickets online, and they have even offered promotional prices in their accommodation facilities. Thus, bed and breakfast in a standard double room at the Hotel Jezero begin at 294.00 kn per person.

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October. 27, 2020 - The latest news for flights to Croatia as Lufthansa operates daily between Munich and Zagreb. 

Croatian Aviation reports that since October 24, German airline Lufthansa has been connecting Munich and Zagreb on a daily basis. The line has not operated daily since the outbreak of the pandemic, even in the summer months.

With the end of the summer flight schedule, Lufthansa has suspended traffic to Adriatic airports (Pula, Zadar, Split and Dubrovnik) and will have only one route to Croatia in this year's winter flight schedule, between Munich and Zagreb. 

After the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, Lufthansa reintroduced the Munich-Zagreb route, but it did not operate daily (3 to 5 times a week, even in July and August). As of October 24, Lufthansa offers daily flights on this route in its reservation calendar, which enables passengers from Zagreb to make numerous connections via the hub in Munich to destinations in Europe and the world.

On November 1, 3, and 8, two daily flights on this line have been announced

Lufthansa will use smaller capacity aircraft, type CRJ900, on this route, which has a capacity of 90 seats in the fleet of this carrier. After the outbreak of the pandemic, the company completely canceled the Frankfurt-Zagreb line and has not operated on it since last winter. The first flight has been announced for the spring of 2021.

11:20 Munich - 12:25 Zagreb 13:05 - 14:10 Munich

With one transfer to Munich, it is possible to continue the journey to a number of destinations in Europe, while destinations such as New York, Chicago, Toronto, Montreal, San Francisco, Bangkok and Seoul are available for long-haul flights.

The German national airline will operate on this route in the early afternoon in November. It remains to be seen whether Lufthansa will cancel certain departures according to bookings. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Lufthansa has operated to Croatian destinations in accordance with the announced flight schedule, without ad-hoc cancellations.

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October 27, 2020 - One Dalmatian island with 760 inhabitants, a five-hour ferry ride from Split, has not recorded a single coronavirus case since the first was recorded in Croatia back in February. A closer look at why Lastovo records zero COVID-19 cases to this day.

Slobodna Dalmacija asked the head of the Lastovo Civil Protection Headquarters, Margaret Hropić, how the locals managed to achieve zero patients for nine months.

"We have no concrete explanation as to why no corona cases have been reported on the island all this time. We had a busy summer, quite a few tourists, life is the same as in all other areas. People violate and respect measures; there is no different, more special behavior that we practice in our community. We live like the rest of the world. We are a closed environment. Behind us, from a tourist point of view, it is a successful summer. Maybe we have stronger collective immunity. The area of the island is certainly energetically stronger due to the natural environment.

We are grateful to God and hope that He will keep us going. Maybe the explanation lies in some intangible reason; I have room to believe in such an option," Margaret Hropić said.

One of the largest entrepreneurs in Lastovo, Marčelino Simić, the owner of one of the most famous restaurants in the southern part of the waters, and its marina, is almost of the same opinion. This summer, up to 30 yachts could be anchored on its pontoon simultaneously—and three-hundred people circulated in a small space. But what happened? Nothing. Everyone healthy, everything clean, everything tidy. So what's the secret?

"So many people have passed, and did anyone become infected - no, did anyone have a fever - no, did the corona come - no. We had two, three cases of self-isolation, but from our people who came from outside to the island, so they had to go through that measure as well. And everyone was healthy. Why? It is not in the open, my dear, corona; it cannot survive there. There are few people on the whole island on 50 square kilometers. There are another 50 kilometers of water around us; our whole island is a great self-isolation. Care was taken when going ashore; care was taken on the ferry and catamaran. Each of us really cares about who we will stand with then and how we will behave. The neighbor and every peson on the island are taken care of. Because when I take care of them, I take care of everything and myself. And on Lastovo, there is a special energy that keeps us all together," he says.

Furthermore, the island is experiencing a baby boom, with 10 babies this year! 

Bruna Rizvanović is among the pregnant women expecting a baby in late January to early February. She will be a mom for the first time.

"I know about five pregnant women; they say that there are about ten of them. It is difficult to count because we are connected by doctors in Split. I share the same day of birth with one. And to put it bluntly, we got pregnant at the same time, in April, May, during the lockdown. Well, the term clearly shows that we didn't really keep a social distance," Bruna laughs.

Her friend Martina Bašić Ivčević from Zaklopatica said that this is not the first time she has been in the center of a baby boom; one already passed ten years ago, when she was pregnant with her second child in a row. She is now expecting her fifth.

"And listen, there was a baby boom during corona. But I think it has to do with cycles, with decades. Now, why don't we have a corona? Big cities - several cases, smaller areas, less. There is nobody here. We follow the rules; we wear masks, don't have big gatherings, and we live. We protect each other. And so, everything runs as normal," concludes Martina.

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October the 27th, 2020 - The Zagreb Arena has taken quite a different tone than usual, with fun and events being replaced by hospital beds for coronavirus patients as the limited capacities of Croatian medical facilities continue to be stretched thin.

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic has turned Croatia on its head. The country went from being among the most successful in handling the virus in Europe back in spring when the pandemic first took the continent by storm, with far richer European countries such as the United Kingdom suffering horrendously, to among the worst. Here in the City of Zagreb, the figures have been soaring once again, and the Zagreb Arena is being equipped to deal with patients for whom there may be no hospital beds.

The Zagreb Arena was initially mobilised back in March, when the new coronavirus first managed to penetrate Croatia's first lines of defense, and it's certainly enough to cause concern to know that its capacities may well be needed yet again.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes, on the 25th of October, as part of the announcement of the new anti-epidemic measures from the National Civil Protection Headquarters, the same body also announced that a decision had been made to mobilise the Zagreb Arena as a tertiary centre for the treatment of coronavirus patients who require professional medical help to cope with their symptoms.

Croatian Health Miniter Vili Beros announced that patients with mild to moderate symptoms will be treated in the Zagreb Arena, with those with worse clinical pictures being given hospital care within proper healthcare facilities.

As previously touched on, the Zagreb Arena was originally last mobilised in March, and the beds prepared for the sick were taken out of it in May.

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As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 26th of October, 2020, ZET has reported that they will re-organise the way things are run in regard to Zagreb bus and tram services with All Saints Day in mind. They stated that in this specific epidemiological situation, they are fully prepared to organise transportation through the days before, as well as on the actual days of the feast of All Saints Dat and on All Souls' Day.

"As of Friday, October the 23rd, the traffic situation on the lines whose routes usually pass by larger city cemeteries has been being monitored, and if necessary, additional transport capacities will be included in operation,'' they say from ZET.

The special regulation of public transport for the Zagreb bus and tram services will be in force on Saturday and Sunday (October the 31st and November the 1st), when other bus lines will be established on which transport will be free.

TRAM TRAFFIC

On All Saints' Day, which falls on Sunday, November the 1st, the Sunday tram schedule will apply in terms of tram traffic, but a larger number of trams will run on lines 4, 6, 7, 8, 11, 12, 14 and 17 compared to the usual Sunday schedule. In order to facilitate the transfer of passengers from the tram to the bus lines of the Kaptol terminal, depending on the number of passengers, an additional tram stop will be established in Ilica, next to Ban Josip Jelacic Square. On Saturday, October the 31st, tram traffic will run according to Saturday's schedule, but line 8 will also be in operation.

BUS TRAFFIC

When it comes to Zagreb bus services to the city's cemeteries, and depending on the influx and amount of people, ZET will include additional buses which will run on regular lines.

In order to establish quality traffic connections, on Saturday, October the 31st and Sunday, November the 1st, extraordinary bus lines will run as follows: Kaptol - Mirogoj, Kaptol - Mirogoj - Crematorium, Kvaternikov trg - Srebrnjak, while on Sunday, the 1st of November, the extraordinary lines Dubrava - Mirosevec, Dubec - Markovo Polje and Podsused centar - Poljanica - Gornja Bistra will also be in operation.

TRANSPORT TO MIROGOJ AND THE CREMATORIUM

The extraordinary Zagreb bus lines Kaptol - Mirogoj and Kaptol - Mirogoj - Krematorij will be established on Saturday and Sunday (October the 31st and November the 1st), from 08:00 to 21:00. On the lines Kaptol - Mirogoj and Kaptol - Mirogoj - Krematorij, buses will depart after they're full, without stopping at its regular bus stops, while the line to the crematoriom will stop near the roundabout zone by Mirogoj.

Going towards Kaptol, the buses will stop along the way at Mirogoj, ie at the temporarily established stop on Remetska cesta, in the area of ​​the intersection with Mirogojska cesta.

One line will follow the route: Kaptol - Mirogoj: Kaptol - Zvonarnicka - Degenova - Grskoviceva - Bijenicka - Aleja Hermanna Bollea - Mirogoj. In return: Mirogoj - Mirogojska - Gupceva zvijezda - Vranciceva - Nova Ves - Kaptol.

Another line will follow the route: Kaptol - Mirogoj - Crematorium: Kaptol - Zvonarnicka - Degenova - Grskoviceva - Bijenicka - Aleja Hermanna Bollea - Mirogoj - Mirogojska - Remetska cesta - Crematorium. In return: Crematorium - Remetska cesta - Mirogojska - Gupceva zvijezda - Vranciceva - Nova Ves - Kaptol.

Passengers boarding buses for Mirogoj and the crematorium will be at Kaptol, at the stops of regular Zagreb bus lines. In the opposite direction, passengers will enter the buses to Kaptol at Mirogoj in front of the morgue, and at the crematorium, at the entrance of the regular bus line Kaptol - Mirogoj - Crematorium.

For the people who intend to visit the Mirogoj cemetery, for easier navigation, there is a free application (app) of the branch City Cemeteries, which also serves as a guide with which you can find out additional information about the history of the cemetery and famous people buried there.

The extraordinary Zagreb bus line 297 (Kvaternikov trg - Srebrnjak) will run on Saturday and Sunday, (October the 31st and November the 1st), from 08:00 to 21:00.

The line route will be as follows: Terminal Kvaternikov trg - Heinzelova - Kvaternikov trg - Domjaniceva - Srebrnjak - Bijenicka cesta (bus turnaround) and the same route will be taken in return. Buses running on the extraordinary line 297 will stop only at the Srebrnjak / Petrova ulica stop.

Passengers will enter the buses to Srebrnjak on the platform of line 201, and exit on the western part of Heinzelova street. Passengers will enter the buses for Kvaternikov trg in the area of ​​the intersection of Bijenicka cesta with Srebrnjak street. Passengers will leave at Srebrnjak on Bijenicka cesta, east of the intersection with Srebrnjak street.

The Zagreb bus line 207 (Kvaternikov trg - Rim - Kvaternikov trg) will run on Saturday and Sunday on a partially altered route: Kvaternikov trg - the regular route to the intersection of Domjaniceva and Petrova streets - Petrova - Lascinska - Bijenicka and then along the usual route to Rim street. On the way back, the bus will take the same route.

Changes on Zagreb bus lines whose routes pass through areas with special traffic regulation:

Lines 106 (Kaptol - Mirogoj - Crematorium) and 201 (Kaptol - Kvaternikov trg) will not run on Saturday and Sunday (October the 31st and November the 1st), from 08:00 to 21:00, due to special traffic regulations.

Zagreb bus lines 203 (Svetice - Vinec - Kaptol) and 226 (Kaptol - Remete - Svetice) on Saturday and Sunday (October the 31st and November the 1st), from 08:00 to 21:00, will run on their regular route to the crematorium.

For the duration of the special traffic regulations, on Saturday and Sunday (October the 31st and November the 1st) from 08:00 to 21:00, the route of the regular bus line 105 (Kaptol - Britanski trg) will change. Towards Britanski trg, buses will run on the following route: Kaptol - Zvonarnicka - Degenova - Medvescak street - Gupceva zvijezda - Vranciceva.

A temporary stop will also be established in Vranciceva street, in the area of ​​the intersection with Medvedgradska street. In the direction of Kaptol, the buses will run on their usual route.

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As Morski writes on the 26th of October, 2020, passionate young fisherman Ivo Radulic still goes to kindergarten. Despite this, he has already fished all kinds of marine life out of the sea in his short but rich fishing career. He's even caught things some much older anglers wouldn't be ashamed of. Rivanj's youngest fisherman is only six years old, and his love for the sea knows no bounds.

Six year old Ivo Radulic, who is always after something from the deep, has become a real sensation on social media. Aside from being Rivanj's cutest fisherman, the truly sensational thing is actually that little Ivo is a passionate fisherman with plenty of experience under his belt. He was out catching fish before he could even pronounce the word, and he learned everything he knows traditionally, from his father Mate and his grandfather Ivo, after whom he is named. The story of Rivanj's youngest fisherman was told by HRT.

Ivo Radulic's grandfather, after whom six-year-old Ivo was named, enjoys adventures around the island of Rivanj with his keenly interested grandson every weekend and throughout the summer. Ivo junior's childhood is imbued with nature and the sea, so every free moment when he is not in kindergarten in town, is spent on Rivanj.

''As soon as he started coming to Rivanj, he immediately fell in love with boats and the sea and fish. He goes to the sea with his grandfather and father every weekend and a great love for it has been created. He likes to be in Rivanj more than anywhere else, so he counts the days every week until the weekend. Every day he asks how many more days there are until the weekend. He can't wait to come here,'' said the boy's mother, Ivana Radulic.

Ivo's mother and father are from Rivanj, and it was precisely them who passed the love that this six-year-old has for this region today down to him. His games in Rivanj are a bit different from those he plays in town with his peers and friends from kindergarten. When Ivo is on the island, he's totally "in his own field".

Nothing special needs to be explained to this child about the sea. He already knows everything that is done at sea - from boats, through hooking the hook to throwing the line. Fishing is his game, and the interest doesn’t stop for what he loves, as he has already learned all about fish and catching them.

''The colourful Mediterranean rainbow wrasse (Croatian: knez) is a girl, and the black one is a body,'' explained Rivanj's youngest fisherman, Ivo. His grandfather, Ivo senior, is more than happy that his grandson loves the sea as much as he does.

Less than fifteen inhabitants live permanently on Rivanj. As with many other islands, people have moved to the cities and towns and return mostly during the summer. However, Ivo is the only child who comes to Rivanj throughout winter. The time he spends here with his parents is always active, and he is always at sea. For Ivo and his father, this is the most beautiful way to spend their free time together.

''He was always watching everything that we were doing. He fell in love with the sea and just wanted to try everything. We let him do it himself. It’s all through some play and fun. When I give him a choice whether to go to football, fishing or something else, he usually chooses fishing,'' Ivo's dad told HRT.

He emphasised that it means a lot to him to spend time with his son, because both of them love it. Little Ivo still doesn't know if fishing will be his life's calling or just a hobby, but it is certain that precious moments from this kind of childhood are priceless. Growing up in coexistence with the sea with the support of his family with a hobby he enjoys more than anything will leave an indelible mark on the playful and curious six-year-old fisherman of Rivanj.

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