Split Police Warns Citizens: No Picigin, Riva and Popular Beaches Monitored
April 3, 2020 - Even with the warm weather this weekend, citizens should not be tempted to ignore the measures of the National Civil Protection Headquarters. A message from the Split Police.
“Given that sunny and warmer weather is announced for the weekend, we would like to draw our attention once again to Decision on strict restraint on streets and other public places. This Decision applies to streets, squares, waterfronts, parks and all other public areas where a large number of persons can move and gather,” began today's statement by the Split-Dalmatia Police Directorate, in which they urge citizens to abide by the rules, reports Slobodna Dalmacija.
“We know that Znjan, Bacvice and the Split waterfront are favorite places for citizens to gather, but in this situation, you cannot stay in these public areas. Especially not in large numbers because then you are not able to adhere to the rules on the distance between people.
Given the current situation, to prevent the spread of the infection, adjust your habits and exercise your leisure and outdoor activities in a shorter time, in places that you know are not visited by a large number of people. If you want to go outside, go to places where you are sure that more citizens will not gather.
We know that you follow the recommendations of doctors and epidemiologists, and we just want to remind you of their advice that when you are outdoors, keep the recommended distance. In this way, we will positively all contribute to reducing the spread of the infection.
Police officers supervise and implement the measures of the Headquarters daily, including these Decisions on the measure of strict restraint on streets and other public places, and will continue to do so throughout the weekend. Please follow the advice and warnings of police officers on the ground.
We thank all citizens who respect the Decisions of the Civil Protection Headquarters of the Republic of Croatia. With responsible behavior, they protect themselves and all of us,” the police bulletin says.
The police also responded to a request from a Dalmatinski Portal journalist about playing picigin at Bacvice.
“Such behavior is contrary to the decision of the National Headquarters. Had police officers been there, they would have certainly warned the participants to disperse. You can walk, but picigin cannot be played under these circumstances,” Split police said.
Follow TCN's live updates on the coronavirus crisis in Croatia
Foreigners Self-Isolating in Croatia: Do You Feel Safer? Valeria from Hong Kong in Split
April 3, 2020 - Do foreigners in Croatia feel more or less safe sitting out COVID-19 here than in their home country, and what are their experiences? A new series on TCN, with Valeria Teo from Hong Kong in Split as our 17th contributor.
Oxford University recently published some research on government responses to coronavirus which showed that Croatia currently has the strictest measures in the world. While inconvenient, this is a good thing in terms of reducing the spread of the virus, and I am certainly not alone in my admiration of the official Croatian handling of this crisis in recent weeks, both in terms of action and communication.
But what do other expats here think? And how does it compare with the response in their home country? Would they rather sit this one out here or there? In the first of a new series on TCN, we will be featuring expats from all over the world to see what their views are on life in corona Croatia rather than back home. So far we have heard from expats in Croatia from Romania, USA, Ireland, UK, Mexico, Argentina, Spain, Singapore, Holland, Canada, India and Germany. Next up, Valeria Teo from Hong Kong in Split.
If you would like to contribute to this series, full details are below. Now, over to Valeria.
(The most popular hang out place for expatriates in Hong Kong a week or so before all bars in Hong Kong were forced to close.)
Firstly, how are you? Are you alone/with someone? Tell us a little about your situation and sanity levels.
Having previous experience with SARS in 2003 in Hong Kong helps me enormously in this pandemic even though the situation is a lot worse than last time. I have no problem at all with self isolation. When I was writing my books, I locked myself up for months each time. But it is a whole new experience for the two Croatians who are trapped with me. I let the older one do all the grocery shopping to keep his sanity and mine. The younger one, aged 8, misses his school friends and the play time with them. I have no choice but to spill some bold truths about the coronavirus. I feel triumphant when he wants to keep me safe by staying home willingly. But my nerves are still under constant test when his homework shows up in the inbox every day. Having a dad who understands the language but is not that academically savvy plus a mum who grasps schoolwork but is not that lingually fluent, my boy loses it from time to time as well. But we always get through the day after some typical Dalmatian swearing. Thank God, there is so far no harm nor damage.
What do you think about the economic measures the government is taking, are they helping your business?
I have not really looked into that, to be honest. Late March or early April is usually the time I get out of my hibernation to take care of guests in the apartments. Our neighbourhood is so quiet that we can sometimes hear the other apartment owners whine about the lost pre-season. Luckily, I have more operating expenses than fixed ones. But I do understand that it hits many people badly. A responsible government should really help weather the storm. I am glad that the Croatian government is doing that.
When did you realise that corona was going to be a big issue?
I knew that it was something serious as soon as it got worse in early January in Wuhan. I read news and received tonnes of messages from Hong Kong. There were reports about the virus in December. When the Chinese government said that it was not serious, people in Hong Kong smelt something fishy. When Wuhan was locked down on January 23, I was thinking that SARS 2.0 was on the way.
Although I thought that most European countries were not well prepared in late January or early February, I did not expect that it would be that bad in Europe. When the infection numbers in Italy surged in a couple of days after February 19 and new cases started popping up all over Europe, I realized that all hell had broken loose.
What is your impression of the way Croatia is dealing with the crisis? How safe do you feel?
The outbreak in Italy obviously alerted the Croatian government. The disaster in Italy started with one unchecked infected person. Croatia cannot afford the same slip. I am pretty impressed with how the Croatian government is dealing with the crisis so far. When people have no experience in pandemic or infection control, I do believe that governments at all levels have to do more to prevent the spread in the community. The shops have also adapted quickly to unprecedented hygienic measures. It is easier to maintain social distance in Split (than in Hong Kong). All in all, I feel safe here. The only wish I have is that Croatia increases testing sooner rather than later. I do believe that there are asymptomatic carriers everywhere in Croatia, Europe, Asia and Americas. Extensive testing and wearing masks are unavoidable if we want to return to any normality.
(Hong Kong medical workers working at a temporary screening centre next to the airport.)
Now compare that to your home country and how they are handling it. What is Croatia doing better/worse?
SARS was a total nightmare and a painful lesson for people in Hong Kong. Hospitals were collapsed and 299 people died even though the number of confirmed cases was "merely" 1755 persons over a 4-month period. Therefore, epidemiologists and the citizens were io full alert this time even though the Hong Kong government was (and still is) slow in action every step of the way. People resumed all the hygienic and disinfection practices on both personal and community levels to protect themselves and each other. Most importantly, a large number of Hong Kong people do not believe what WHO says nor follow what WHO recommends. When people know how the last and current Director-General were installed, it is the only sensible thing to do. Hong Kong has its own top epidemiologists and medical experts with experience in combating such an epidemic. So the people, instead of the government, are leading the fight.
The Croatian government is actually doing much better and more than the Hong Kong government (who has some other political agenda than simply fighting this epidemic). The Croatian Health Minister has done what needs to be done so far. It is really important to have a leader who knows what he is doing in such an ever-evolving emergency. It instills confidence in times of great uncertainty.
The general public in Croatia has some catching up to do though. But I do not want to be too judgmental. I still maintain that the Chinese Communist Party regime and its puppet, WHO, should bear the major responsibility in the present mess.
A bigger surprise for me is the number of medical professionals who got infected. According to the numbers released by the Splitsko-dalmatinski zupanija on April 2, 25% of the 148 confirmed cases are medical workers. Community infection kicks off quickly once the virus gets to medical workers in the hospitals. It happened in Hong Kong in 2003. And Italy is the latest victim. History indeed repeats itself. With this year's experience, everybody should hopefully be better prepared next time. And yes, I do believe that there will be a next time.
What about official communications from the authorities, compared to your home country?
Both Croatia and Hong Kong hold daily press conferences to give the latest figures and updates. The official website for the coronavirus in Croatia also helps a lot. I do not use the Viber message. There are already too many WhatsApp messages from various friends' groups. But I'd like the Croatian officials to disclose sources of infection again. Stories of patients being stigmatized are difficult to read.
What's the one thing you wish you had taken with you into self-isolation?
I do not think that we are lacking anything despite the lockdown. Living near the city centre of Split helps a lot.
One thing you have learned about yourself, and one thing you have learned about others during this crisis.
Getting older helps me go through this pandemic with peace of mind. I worried a lot more about the infection, job prospects, financial and economic aftermath 17 years ago. It is not that easy as I am the worrying type.
As the epidemic is sweeping across the globe, I see the good, the bad and the ugly in different countries in a fairly similar fashion. This minute and inanimate virus shows us true indiscrimination. So human beings can definitely do better.
About Valeria Teo:
I left Hong Kong and moved to Split in January 2011 after meeting my husband outside kazaliste in 2007 and getting married in 2008. We have been welcoming guests to our apartments in Radunica since 2014. I also work as a tour leader whenever I feel like having a break from the craziness of being a full-time work at home mother. You may check out and follow our Facebook page.
Thanks, Valeria, stay safe and see you on the other side.
TCN is starting a new feature series on foreign experiences of sitting out covid-19 here in Croatia compared to their home country. If you would like to contribute, the questions are below. Please also include a para about yourself and where you are from, and a link to your website if you would like. Please also send 3-4 photos minimum to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Subject Corona Foreigner
If you would be interested to record a video version for our partners www.rplus.video please let us know in the email. Thanks and stay safe.
Foreigners Self-Isolating in Croatia: Do You Feel Safer Than in Your Home Country?
Firstly, how are you? Are you alone/with someone? Tell us a little about your situation and sanity levels.
What do you think about the economic measures the government is taking, are they helping your business? (PLEASE IGNORE IF THIS DOES NOT AFFECT YOU)
When did you realise that corona was going to be a big issue?
What is your impression of the way Croatia is dealing with the crisis? How safe do you feel?
Now compare that to your home country and how they are handling it. What is Croatia doing better/worse?
What about official communications from the authorities, compared to your home country?
What's the one thing you wish you had taken with you into self-isolation.
One thing you have learned about yourself, and one thing you have learned about others during this crisis.
TCN has recently become a partner in Robert Tomic Zuber's new R+ video channel, initially telling stories about corona experiences. You can see the first TCN contribution from this morning, my video from Jelsa talking about the realities of running a news portal in the corona era below. If you would like to also submit a video interview, please find Robert's guidelines below
VIDEO RECORDING GUIDE
The video footage should be recorded so that the cell phone is turned horizontally (landscape mode).
There are several rules for television and video news:- length is not a virtue- a picture speaks more than a thousand words
In short, this would mean that your story should not last more than 90 seconds and that everything you say in the report should be shown by video (for example, if you talk about empty streets, we should see those empty streets, etc.).
How to do it with your cell phone? First, use a selfie camera to record yourself telling your story for about a minute and a half. Ideally, it would be taken in the exterior, except in situations where you are reporting on things in the interior (quarantine, hospital, self-isolation, etc.). Also, when shooting, move freely, make sure everything is not static.
After you have recorded your report, you should capture footage that will tell your story with a picture, such as an earlier example with empty streets.
One of the basic rules of TV journalism is that the story is told in the same way as a journalist with his text. Therefore, we ask you for additional effort. Because we work in a very specific situation, sometimes you may not be able to capture footage for each sentence of the report. In this case, record the details on the streets: people walking, the main features of the city where you live, inscriptions on the windows related to the virus, etc.
The same rules apply if you are shooting a story from your apartment, self-isolation, quarantine. We also need you to capture footage that describes your story.
When shooting frames to cover your reports, it is important that you change the angle of the shot (in other words, shoot that empty street from several angles). Also, when shooting a detail, count at least five seconds before removing the camera to another detail.
The material should be about 5 minutes long (90 seconds of your report + frames to cover your story).
After recording everything, send us to Zagreb, preferably via WeTransfer to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Beroš to Young Dalmatians: Stay the F at Home
April 3, 2020 —Croatia’s Civil Protection Directorate earned kudos for its response to the coronavirus crisis and strict measures seemingly followed by everyone — except, apparently, Dalmatians.
The Civil Protection Directorate wanted to deliver positive news, with 48 new infections showing a steep in the virus’s spread yesterday. Instead, Health Minister Vili Beroš and other officials chastised young folks in Croatia’s coastal region for reportedly flouting social distancing measures and restrictions on movement. Data released by Google later in the day confirmed not just Dalmatians, but Croats in general are flouting the rules.
Locals and officials claim many young adults in Zadar, Split and Šibenik continue to congregate in cafes with tinted windows, drinking and socializing. Footage also emerged of Split locals enjoying a casual game of their traditional take on volleyball.
Various reports from around the country suggest social distancing and self-isolation measure have met their match in Dalmatia’s traditional contrarian spirit and self-assurance.
“This is not acceptable behavior,” a visibly irate Beroš said during a press conference yesterday. “In doing so, they endanger themselves, their families and the health of the nation. I would like to tell everyone to be patient and wait for this epidemic to end. There will be time to socialize and relax. Until then, we must be disciplined and extremely cautious.”
Zadar’s Mayor Branko Dukić, a medical doctor himself, is baffled.
“I understand everyone who has a hard time being indoors, I have not spent as much time in my entire life as I have in recent weeks,” he reportedly said in a statement. “But I cannot understand that we are playing so easily with the health and lives of ourselves and our loved ones. Whichever state and whatever city tried the ‘it won’t happen to me’ tactic ended in disaster.”
As the directorate was holding its press conference, locals in Split publicly defied orders to stay at home by continuing to play “picigin,” a local beach-volleyball variant that favors banana hammocks and shallow water.
One day later, police promised to put the kibosh on all games of “picigin.”
“Had police officers found themselves at the ‘picigin’ game, they would have certainly warned the participants to disperse. You can walk, but ‘picigin’ cannot be played under these circumstances,” Split police reportedly said in a statement.
Workers in Dalmatian hospitals took to chastising their neighbors as well. One sent a plea to Dalmacija Danas, with a video of his hospital ward.
“Do you want me to send footage of a man choking and begging to be intubated?” he wrote. “Or are you waiting for the next one to be one of you ?! Hello?! Are we going to do anything?!”
Stipe Čogelja, Head of the Department for Tourism and Maritime Affairs of the Split-Dalmatia County, said in an interview some locals are exploiting the situation to build illegal piers and other structures on the maritime commons, a protected strip of land where the sea meets soil with strict limits on construction.
The head of the Civil Protection Directorate and Interior Ministry Davor Božinović said he won’t introduce stricter police measures or regular patrols, as some neighboring countries have.
“I did not know about young people gathering in cafes, but it does not surprise me,” he said, adding local police forces will be instructed to monitor local cafes and bars. “Young people are often unaware of this and when they do not see and feel that there is an enemy that we all fight together, they think that it is not there.”
Director of the Infectious Diseases Clinic "Dr. Fran Mihaljevic” Alemka Markotic also denounced the relaxed attitude, pointing to the growing number of patients on ventilators. New figures from the United States and other western countries offer a grim forecast for any critically-ill patient requiring a breathing machine, with a majority dying anyway.
Markotić said it’s best to limit any situation that might spread the virus.
“I am sure that Split may be the first in everything, but that it does not want to be the first in the corona,” she said. “Please show the citizens in the south that you are better than others and do not allow the corona to expand.”
The chastising runs against the overall compliance shown by Croats around the country — something reiterated with a trove of data showing Croats have cut back on their movement significantly.
The online giant released a trove of data showing users’ movement during restrictive measures in comparison, showing Croats cut back their outdoors excursions by some 82 percent from Feb. 26 to March 29, compared to Jan. 3 and Feb. 6, before restrictions took force.
Google users cut back their trips to work by 50 percent across the country, while people are overall spending 16 percent more time in residential areas.
But the most telling statistic: visits to parks, which in an era of “stay at home” should be close to zero. Overall, Zagreb County, Varaždin County and Lika saw the biggest drop in visits to the park.
Dalmatians didn’t follow suit. Residents of Šibenik-Knin County curtailed their visits to parks by only 12 percent. Not far behind were Osijek, Karlovac, then Zadar.
Croatian Public Health Institute Director Krunoslav Capak criticized the reports from Split and Zadar, warning the consequences of their nonchalance would come back to haunt them.
“Today, there are half as many new cases as yesterday, which is an extremely favorable situation and we want this trend to continue,” he said at the press conference.
S&P Revises Outlook on Zagrebački Holding's rating from Stable to Negative
ZAGREB, April 3, 2020 - Standard & Poor's ratings agency has reaffirmed the credit rating for the Zagrebački Holding multi-utility conglomerate at 'B+', revising the company's outlook from stable to negative due to uncertainty regarding the city's ability to provide timely support in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and the March 22 earthquake.
In September 2019, S&P reaffirmed the long-term rating for Zagrebački Holding at 'B+' with a stable outlook.
Following a rating downgrade for the City of Zagreb, the owner of the company, the agency revised the outlook on Zagrebački Holding on Wednesday, saying that it was not certain whether the City of Zagreb could provide timely support to the holding because of the combined effects of the coronavirus outbreak and the recent earthquake.
The agency also cited potential pressures on the holding's liquidity in the near term, which could result in a downgrade.
More Zagreb news can be found in the Lifestyle section.
EC Supports Croatian Requests for Aid to Fisheries Sector
ZAGREB, April 3, 2020 - The European Commission has supported Croatian requests for financial aid to the fisheries sector, which is severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic, the Ministry of Agriculture said in a statement on Thursday.
Croatia was one of the initiators of changes to the EU legislative frameworks relating to the allocation of financial aid to the fisheries sector, the statement said.
The economic slowdown caused by the COVID-19 epidemic has considerably hit the fisheries sector, an important economic branch of strategic importance for Croatia.
Intense cooperation with the EU institutions and member states has resulted in a set of measures put forward by the European Commission, including aid for the implementation of the measure for temporary cession of fishing activities and the grant of compensation to freshwater, marine fish and shellfish farmers for the temporary cessation or reduction of production due to the COVID-19 epidemic, the statement said.
Until now temporary cessation of fishing activities was possible only because of biological indicators and resource management, and this change allows for the implementation of this measure from 1 February to 31 December 2020 due to the consequences of the COVID-19 outbreak. The duration of such temporary cessation under the present circumstances does not count towards the maximum possible duration of the temporary cessation of fishing activities of six months per vessel, which is crucial for its implementation in Croatia.
The amended Regulation on the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund also allows for the grant of compensation to the aquaculture sector to reduce the negative effects of this crisis and includes measures concerning producer organisations. The percentage of funds for the implementation of production and marketing plans has been increased from 3% to 12% of the average annual value of production and the implementation of the "Storage Aid" measure will be allowed until 31 December 2020.
Provided that the proposal is adopted by the Council and the European Parliament, and there is no reason why this should not be so, the proposed measures will help protect jobs, preserve the food supply, increase stability on the market, mitigate the risk of loss and prevent the worst-case scenario - the closure of businesses engaging in aquaculture, fisheries and fish processing. The adoption of these amendments will greatly assist this sector and prepare it for a sustainable recovery, along with other measures adopted by the government and rules relating to state aid for the fisheries sector, the statement said.
More news about Croatia and the EU can be found in the Politics section.
Jurgen Klopp & Igor Rudan: the Only COVID-19 Opinions You Need
April 3, 2020 - With hundreds of millions of online corona opinions out there, why there are only two you need to pay attention to - Jurgen Klopp and Igor Rudan.
One of the joys of being a writer in the era of social media, online self-entitlement and short attention spans is the fact that many people comment on an article without reading it (this observation is not directly relevant to the topic of this article, before the abusive comments start). It used to really frustrate me, so much so that I posted on Facebook a couple of years ago a simple request to Facebook - could they introduce a feature whereby only people who had opened the link could comment?
It will not happen, of course, and I soon learned a very effective way of dealing with the problem, which I adhere to 99% of the time.
Simply stop reading the comments.
I start the article with this observation because it came back to me last night. Many countries are now under different forms of lockdown, severe restrictions placed on their citizens. Some unnamed foreign owners of news portals in this region are even getting official threats in an effort to control their content. Allegedly. But people are free to express their opinions and insight about corona.
And, boy, are they exercising their right...
From a socioanthropological point of view, watching people spouting forth about corona over these last few weeks has been absolutely fascinating. People with absolutely no scientific credentials whatsoever posturing as online corona experts, many with a range of opinions which I am sure they would come to regret a week later if someone had screenshotted them.
Perhaps someone has...
In this era of control, I mused, what if Facebook had a feature that you had to have some kind of scientific qualification to post an opinion that can, and does, influence others. It would take a ton of garbage, disinformation, and unqualified scientific opinion out of our lives just like that.
It will not happen, of course - those opinions and the keyboard warriors they send into battle keep us addicted to the big social media networks.
Which brings me to the topic of this article - reaction to yesterday's article by me called As Millions of Croats Self-Isolate Responsibly, Split's Sporting Picigin Tradition Continues.
You can see the traditional Split beach game being played yesterday in the Dalmacija Danas video, as well as more information in their article, including the results of their online poll on whether or not this was deemed responsible behaviour at the current time.
Although I almost never read comments these days, friends do alert me when there is an interesting discussion.
And discussion on this article WAS interesting. And very divided.
My opinion on this is not important as I am not a scientist, but the reaction was very polarised, as one might expect. Some struggling with cabin fever in their apartments were outraged, while others could not see the problem, as they were appropriately socially distanced.
Tim Bourcier was kind enough to contribute yesterday to our series, Foreigners Self-Isolating in Croatia: Do You Feel Safer? It is a worthy read if you have time.
But Tim's response to the picigin article was even worthier, as it has crystallised a REALLY important and confusing topic for many of us.
What is, and what is not, ok? Tim's drawing - you will have to teach me how to do that when all this is over - shows quite correctly that the picigin players are appropriately self-distanced in the video.
Monique Lafitte, saw no problem with this whatsoever - and it should be noted from the post on TCN FB, that there were others who agreed with her. As well as disagreed.
So who is right?
There are only two people whose opinions I follow religiously about COVID-19 - Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp and eminent Croatian scientist, Igor Rudan, Professor at Edinburgh University.
So I asked both Jurgen Klopp and Igor Rudan what they thought about playing picigin in Split at the current time.
First up, the Liverpool legend:
And no, I didn't really ask Jurgen Klopp what he thought about picigin, but his comments a few weeks ago when asked about corona went viral.
And they remain the very best opinion for non-experts.
I DID, however, ask Igor Rudan, for his opinion.
For those of you who do not know Igor, his texts on corona are easily the best I have read, and TCN editor is busy translating them into English. To get a flavour, this was my favourite so far:
Igor Rudan: Cascade of Causes That Led to COVID-19 Tragedy in Italy and Other EU Countries
(You can read others by Igor on TCN here)
For those with cabin fever looking for something to watch, Igor's series on YouTube - Survival: The Story of Global of Health is the most interesting thing I have watched this year. Trailer below and full series here.
In addition to writing these fabulously instructive texts, Igor is also working closely with the Croatian Government to keep us all safe, but he did have a minute at 5am this morning to give his opinion on the picigin incident, and when I mentioned the Jurgen Klopp angle for this article, this was his reply.
Jurgen Klopp is my absolute favourite person! I said many times that if I wasn't a scientist, I would be a football manager.
Yes, ok, Igor, that is great, but can we concentrate on the science for now...
I am preparing a new article for tomorrow, so I will try to clarify many things about life in quarantine.
Lauren will translate this into English as soon as her schedule allows, and we will publish on TCN and share it immediately.
I asked Igor if he had a one-sentence answer while we wait for what could be his most important text so far. In order to encourage him, I promised to post his photo next to his Liverpool idol. Here is what he said:
I can only say that, if you leave home, you are no longer safe, because we still have no idea how this virus can spread so easily. Until we do, I would rather stay in.
I don't know if Tim or Monique follow my writing or not, but I would like to thank them both for highlighting this issue. It is an issue which urgently needs clarity, and if a global expert such as Igor can provide that clarity AND people adhere to that clear advice, lives will undoubtedly be saved. Thank you both.
The only thing that remains is to speculate on whether or not Igor Rudan will be a Premier League manager next season.
I, for one, would not rule it out.
To follow the latest on coronavirus in Croatia, follow the TCN dedicated section.
Bolt Transforms Taxis to Delivery Service During Corona Era
April 3, 2020 - Every crisis is also an opportunity. Thus, Europe's leading on-demand transportation platform saw its opportunity to introduce a new service - Bolt Delivery.
HRTurizam writes that Bolt launched a new service in Croatia, Bolt Delivery, which is a new delivery service in Zagreb, Split, Rijeka, Osijek, Zadar and Dubrovnik.
Bolt Delivery is ideal for shipments that need to be delivered on the same day, and even within just one hour, such as clothing, books, home supplies, game consoles, documents, and whatever you need to send.
Shipments should be lighter than 20 kg and within the given dimensions up to a maximum of 65x55x40 cm. For security, the service will be available only to those who have a valid bank card in their application because cash payment will not be possible. The minimum delivery cost is 20 kuna for all cities.
“On the one hand, we will take advantage of existing technology and a large network of Bolt drivers across Croatia and enable users to stay safe inside their home, at a time when the majority of the population is forced to do so. And on the other hand, we launched the Bolt Delivery service to provide our drivers with the best support, safe work, and an opportunity to generate revenue with their experience and efficiency in business and logistics. In addition to this service, we plan to introduce new delivery services that will also help business customers,” said Tomislav Lukačević, Operations Manager at Bolt, Croatia.
"To use the service, change your payment method to in-app payment, select the Delivery ride-type in the Bolt app, give the driver your package and the recipient's phone number. Easy!
You can share the delivery information with the recipient using the Share Trip feature inside the app.
The dimensions of your parcel should fall within 65 x 55 x 40cm. If you need to deliver larger packages, please notify the driver in advance," writes Bolt in its press release.
Using the existing application, the delivery option offers the opportunity for private and business users to send what they need to their friends, family or business colleagues and associates during this time of limited mobility.
To read more about lifestyle in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page.
Novalja Tourist Board: Stay at Home, See You Soon (VIDEO)
April 3, 2020 - Don't travel now! Stay at home and see you soon!" says the Novalja Tourist Board in a new promotional video.
On Wednesday, Goran Rihelj of HRTurizam penned an article on how national tourist boards should communicate in this time of crisis.
“Now is the perfect time to plan, define new strategies, and prepare your marketing campaigns for the day after the coronavirus, to be ready and to start communicating and promoting immediately when the pandemic is over.
The fact is that everyone is online now, more than ever, and some in this situation see their opportunity to further position and expand their customer base. That is why now is the time to take advantage of all the benefits that the internet brings to us,” Rihelj wrote.
In any case, the worst is not to communicate, especially in a crisis.
So, when it comes to tourism, the narrative is that now is the perfect time to explore, discover and plan your future trip, that is, to create a kind of bucket list for when we’ve all said goodbye to the four walls of our self-isolation chambers.
The Portuguese Tourist Board, for example, has embarked on a "time to stop" campaign, followed by the hashtag #CantSkipHope. The whole campaign is accompanied by the main video with a phenomenal narrative.
The video was, of course, not planned, but made following this emergency. And this is cleverly emphasized in the introduction to the video itself, where the message is that the videos were recorded before the coronavirus and the narrator's voice was recorded over a cellphone in his home isolation.
Using this train of thought, the Novalja Tourist Board posted a video with the message - 'Don’t travel now! Stay at home and see you soon!'
Although it is not a top production, as in the case of VisitPortugal, we can certainly praise the Novalja Tourist Board’s prompt reaction, thought, and effort.
To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.
INA Donates More Than 1.5 Million Kuna to Croatian Health Institutions
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 2nd of April, 2020, aware of the difficult circumstances in which the Croatian health system, institutions and civil society have found themselves in their efforts to curb the spread of coronavirus, which has been further aggravated by a strong earthquake hitting Zagreb, INA wants to facilitate the procurement of materials and equipment and help to repair the damage.
INA has been investing in improving the health care system in Croatia for many years now, and following the utterly unprecedented situation in which we're all now in - facing two extraordinary circumstances - a coronavirus pandemic and the aftermath of a severe earthquake in Zagreb, the company feels even more responsibility to provide assistance.
In order to help the extraordinary efforts of health professionals, INA donated a massive 250,000 kuna each to the Dr. Fran Mihaljević Clinic for Infectious Diseases and the Primorje-Gorski Kotar County Health Centre, and the Sisak General Hospital (Dr Ivo Pedisic) and the Croatian Red Cross were donated 100,000 kuna each.
The Special Hospital for Chronic Pediatric Diseases in Gornja Bistra and the Croatian Institute for Emergency Medicine were also donated 50,000 kuna each by INA. These huge donations will be used to procure protective equipment, medical supplies, disinfection devices and supplies, and medical equipment and devices needed to care for patients and to facilitate the organisation of emergency services.
The Rebro Pediatric Oncology Foundation was donated 200,000 kuna for the construction and equipping of their pediatric hematology and oncology departments, and 100,000 kuna was donated for the Pediatric Department at the Pula General Hospital. On top of all of that, INA donated a further 50,000 kuna to the Kamensko Association, which sews cotton masks for the Association of the Blind, DVD Selce, homeless people, users of soup kitchens and homes for the elderly and infirm, while the Ruđer Bošković Technical School from Vinkovci was donated 10,000 kuna to make visors on 3D printers that the school will then donate to Croatian hospitals.
To help repair the damage caused by the recent Zagreb earthquake, INA donated an additional 250,000 kuna to the Together for Zagreb campaign and another 100,000 kuna to the Zagreb Children's Diseases Clinic.
"The circumstances we're facing are truly unprecedented. This is the moment when we all need to come together, because only by working together can we overcome the challenges we're face these days. INA has been continuously supporting the Croatian healthcare system for many years through numerous donations to hospitals. We're now back once again side by side with our health care system and with all those who can help prevent the spread of the coronavirus pandemic and repair the effects of the Zagreb earthquake. As always, we want to help those who need it the most, join them, support them and thank them for everything they do,'' said INA's CEO Sándor Fasimon.
INA also helped supply the Civil Protection Headquarters of the Republic of Croatia by donating 720 liters of INA Denizol, a new product that INA LUBRICANTS began producing last week. For their utterly exceptional dedication to their life saving work, INA would like to thank all health professionals and is offering them free coffee at selected retail locations within the "Coffee for Heroes" campaign.
INA is also helping things run smoothly in the business sense during this difficult situation by ensuring the smooth supply of fuel to the Croatian market. By following all instructions and measures to combat the spread of coronavirus, business continuity has been ensured.
For rolling information and updates on coronavirus in Croatia, follow our dedicated section.
Amway Donates Makes Generous Donation to Croatian Red Cross
One amazing thing the ongoing coronavirus epidemic is doing is bringing out all of the big hearts across the world out of the woodwork, and from places you wouldn't have imagined. Many companies have made generous donations to health institutions, associations and hospitals across Croatia, and Amway is yet another to show it cares about the incredible crisis the country and the rest of the world now finds itself in - by donating to the Croatian Red Cross.
As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 2nd of April, 2020, Amway, which operates across almost seventy markets worldwide, has laid the foundation for the fight against the coronavirus outbreak, with a total donation of 110,000 US dollars.
On top of that, a generous donation to the Croatian Red Cross of 2.5 thousand euros is foreseen for the Republic of Croatia in its fight against the spread of COVID-19. The funds will be used for activities to prevent the spread of the virus and to eliminate the increasingly negative effects of the epidemic.
Under the slogan ''Together we can! Amway to fight the COVID-19 virus,'' Amway will support local communities in the countries where it operates located across Europe and down in South Africa.
The COVID-19 virus pandemic has engaged the entire world in the fight against its spread, with as many people as possible making themselves available to help doctors, nurses, scientists and epidemiologists around the world battling to put a stop to its exponential spread. Many citizens have already made their contribution to research and healthcare. Amway has made it clear that it wants to help overcome this global health crisis with its donations.
In addition to the aforementioned donation, Amway Croatia has invited all of its registered users to join in their initiative and contribute themselves. You can donate 7.50 US dollars to the Amway Portal to help fight the COVID-19 virus together, and you're free to opt in to the campaign by April the 20th, 2020.
Follow our dedicated section for rolling information and updates on coronavirus in Croatia.
