August 6, 2020 - The Istria County Tourist Board brought in several foreign journalists, influencers and bloggers to help promote the region during the coronavirus pandemic. 

Glas Istre writes that the tourism sector has found itself in big trouble and a rather tricky situation given the extraordinary circumstances due to COVID-19. Nevertheless, in the first half of 2020, the Istria County Tourist Board managed to animate several prominent foreign journalists, influencers and bloggers who visited Istria as part of individual and group trips and agent trips from various countries in cooperation with the Croatian Tourist Board and various partners, points out Denis Ivosevic, director of the Istria County Tourist Board.

"From the very beginning, the situation was very uncertain, and now, as the circumstances improve over time, the PR activities of the Istria County Tourist Board are intensifying. In cooperation with the PR partner for the German and Austrian market ART RedaktionsTeam, we organized the reception of journalist teams from several important German and Austrian media, including Fallstaff, "a la carte", Kronen Zeitung, Freizeit & Kulinarik and many others. Through the Croatian National Tourist Board Representation in the United States, Istria was visited at the end of July by American agents, owners of boutique agencies specializing in luxury eno-gastronomic experiences," says Ivosevic.

The Istria County Tourist Board, together with the tourist boards of Rovinj and Pula and the CNTB Representation in Paris, is preparing a large project for promotion on the French market in the coming period.

Namely, the region will be featured on the leading travel show in France "Echappées Belles" which provides excellent visibility. There are plans to record a new show about Croatia from August 10 to 23. The ninety-minute show will be aired in May 2021 on the national TV channel France 5 in a prime time slot. The show is watched by an average of more than a million viewers on French national television.

"In cooperation with the PR partner for the German and Austrian markets, a group of 12 very important Austrian and German journalists will come to Istria in September and the first half of October, accompanied by the owner of the ART RedaktionsTeam agency. We hope that the situation will continue to improve everywhere in the world and that the coming period will bring us at least a little relief and some new optimism. The investments we are investing in this year, which are investments in PR agencies, promotional campaigns, and in air transport, will have a direct effect on the next tourist year. This will be most visible in the partnership projects and the increase of airlines to Pula," Ivosevic concluded.

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August 6, 2020 - Continuing our series on Zagreb’s international food offer and the stories behind these cuisines and businesses. This time, the spicy but light takeaway lunches of Khaos Thai.


Rinrampai Lateja and Saralee Madnui standing outside the Khaos Thai kiosk, next to Importanne Gallery on Vlaška ulica © Mateo Henec

Saralee Madnui: We’re both from Thailand. I’m from the south of Thailand, close to the border with Malaysia.

Rinrampai Lateja: I’m from Bangkok, the capital city. It’s in the centre.

Saralee: I’ve been here for five years, her for ten. We’re both here for the same reason; we’re married to Croatians. I met my husband when he was visiting Thailand. She met her’s while she was working on a cruise ship.

Saralee: Every region of Thailand has a different taste. In the north, the food is a little bit soft, but still spicy from curry paste. In the northeast, their flavours are really strong, spicy and sour, but they use much less fat. The land in that region is not so rich and the food is fast and simple, cooked quickly on the grill or in a pan. In the south, where I’m from, we have all the food; coconut, fish from the sea. The climate is good and anything can grow there. It’s a very rich cuisine. In central Thailand, the taste is more smooth, but flavoursome from strong seasoning.


Khaos Thai © Mateo Henec

Saralee: The food at Khaos Thai is more like central Thai cuisine. We make some of the most well-known dishes from Thailand. Although, we also make Larb, which is from the northeast. It’s meat, fresh herbs, chilli, lime juice and rice. Salad is one of our most popular dishes here. Ours is salty, sour, crunchy and spicy, with dried shrimps, peanuts, green papaya, long beans, red tomato and chilli. It’s a very colourful dish. This is very typical of Thai cuisine; lots of different textures, flavours and colours. Like with Thai curry – the meat is cooked until it is soft, but we also add bamboo, for texture. The dish from this region that most reminds me of Thai food is goulash. It’s not the same, but it looks very similar to Massaman curry; red and with oil floating on the top. Goulash is spicy from paprika, whereas Massaman is spicy from herbs, a little more sour and it also has coconut.

Saralee: The first food that impressed me when I came to Croatia was cevapi. But, now I like more sarma. It has that sour taste that Thai people like, from the pickled cabbage. I also like it made with the green leaf (blitva). Interesting.

Saralee: When we are not working, we both very much like cycling. Cycling changed our lives.

Rinrampai: You cannot cycle in Bangkok. You would probably die. There’s so much traffic. And people just drive how they want. Never mind the rules. But, here it’s so easy to use a bicycle. You can get anywhere in Zagreb in 5 or 10 minutes on a bicycle. In Thailand, you must use a motorbike or a car.

Saralee: We love our bicycles here. We travel to work every day on bicycles. When we’re not at work we’re always riding our bicycles. I ride with my husband. I’ve ridden to Velika Gorica, Rakitje, Samobor and all over Zagreb.

TCN: You went all the way to Samobor on a bicycle?

Saralee: Yes. With my poor husband. But, he knows the tricks. He said “OK, we go Samobor for kremnšita. Then I will have power for the journey.” Ha! He was the same when we went to Velika Gorica. When we arrived, he said, “Ooh, do you remember that restaurant that is here..?"


Pad Thai, one of Thailand's most famous dishes © Mateo Henec

Saralee: The dish people come back the most for here is Pad Thai. When we first opened, I thought maybe this might be too sweet for them. But, they really like it. They like the Thai Green Curry too. Some of our customers have been to Bangkok or other places in Thailand and they like to come here because our food reminds them of their visit. People tend to get the curry if they think Pad Thai is too soft for them in spiciness, or too light.

In the first week we worked, we opened at 12 midday until 8pm. There were queues around the corner. We couldn’t finish before 9pm. It was too much. There’s only the two of us. Nobody else can make this food. So, we had to reduce the hours. Now, we only work in the afternoons; midday until 5pm. But, that works very well.

Thai food is perfect for lunch; it’s all in one dish, you can hold it in your hands, it’s quite light food. The chilli and spice wakes you up and the lime and the herbs refresh you, so you are ready for the afternoon at work. It’s particularly good food for the summer.


Larb, a salad full of flavour from northeast Thailand and Pad Thai © Mateo Henec

Rinrampai: Life in Croatia is much easier than it is in Thailand. Less people, less traffic, it’s smaller, you can go anywhere. In Bangkok, if you have an appointment at 1pm, you must leave your house at 11am, sometimes earlier. The whole city is a traffic jam all day.

Saralee: Thai people and Croatian people are very similar in being very helpful, particularly to strangers. Any questions I had when I arrived, people were always happy to answer. Croatians are also a lot more friendly than other Europeans, in my experience. They are very open people. This is like Thai people too. Although Croatians follow the rules better than Thai people. Thai people ignore them all.

You can visit the Khaos Thai kiosk outside Importanne Gallery, at Trg Drage Iblera 10, on the corner of Vlaška ulica.

You can read the introduction to our series on Zagreb international cuisine and the first installment here

To follow our whole series on international cuisine and to follow the Croatian restaurant and gastro scene, keep an eye on our Gourmet pages here

August 6, 2020 - Residents of Poljana on Ugljan island celebrate the 25th anniversary of Day Of Croatian Liberation And Defenders

The day is special to Croatians each year. Even more so on the 25th anniversary. Nothing could have stopped the celebrations; not Coronavirus, not social distancing. Everyone was made to feel welcome.

Though the following images are specific to the village of Poljana, centrally located on Ugljan island, similar scenes were observed across the country. Fireworks lit up the night sky above the city of Zadar, just a few kilometres across the water. Children in the village watched them while swimming in the warm waters at 11pm.

A young lady from Zagreb helps out in the children's tug-of-war. It wasn't enough. The kids from 'gornji grad' won this year.

Going back for seconds.

These handsome guys kept supplying us with drinks. I'm not sure if they were selling them or giving them out for free. They were super friendly and drunker than most of their customers. The beer ran out at around 10.45pm. After that, it was the eternally challenging choice of "rakija or bed". Most chose rakija.

Unlike many Croatians, quite a few islanders on Ugljan island have blond hair, like this guy, who looks a bit like a Viking. The cow rib he is chewing kinda helps with that leap of imagination.

Watermelon for the kiddiewinks

They roasted a whole cow over an open fire for the celebrations. The cooking time was twelve hours. It was worth it - delicious. There are no cows on island Ugljan. It was brought on a boat from a farm near Zadar, especially for the occasion. The cow was already dead when it made the journey. Partygoers said it was a male cow. One of the chefs told me it was a female. I'm not sure it matters.

Nobody seemed to know who this guy was, why he was dressed as a Mexican, nor what Mexico has to do with the tug-of-war he appeared to be adjudicating on, or with Croatian liberation. Maybe he was the mayor? Who cares? "Ay caramba!"

It didn't end well for the first-placed losers on the rope in the tug-of-war. It was worse a few years earlier when the competition was held across the water. Aside from some of the losing team getting wet, during the final year in this format, residents managed to destroy much of a building with their shenanigans. The details were difficult to ascertain. The annual competition has been held on dry land ever since.

That's what the remnants of a whole spit-roasted cow look like. Croatians might be familiar with this sight. British people are not. This is testosterone-fuelled barbequing taken to levels unimaginable in most countries. Svaka cast!

Few airs and graces were observed as the cow meat was running out. This lady was absolutely delightful, good-humoured, and didn't object to being pictured mid-bite. She was the kind of lady you wished was your aunt.

A view of the village of Poljana, on Ugljan island before the sunset. The cow they cooked weighed 270 kilograms. This feast cost around 11, 000 kuna (1,332.50 British Pounds).

August 5, 2020 – Cigarette butts are a bigger problem for the environment than we think. That’s why an organisation named FLAG Škoji launched a campaign to reduce their numbers in the sea by providing recyclable ashtrays for beaches.

The Fisheries Local Action Group Škoji, or FLAG Škoji for short, is an organisation that operates on the islands of Hvar, Vis, and Šolta. Earlier this season, they decided to launch the “Our responsibility “campaign to raise awareness about environmental protection, especially by the sea.

The campaign was launched in cooperation with the cities and municipalities of the area in which they operate, as well as local tourist boards, all to make individuals more aware of the fact that their actions can significantly contribute to the preservation of this area of ​​high-value heritage.

Source: FLAG Škoji

“The entire FLAG area requires a strengthening of the public policies related to the protection and sustainable use of our region,'' says Adela Duboković, head of FLAG Škoji, adding that they strive to achieve this with several more prominent marketing activities each year.

The primary activity of FLAG Škoji is the implementation of the local development strategy in fisheries, as well as the protection of the environment and natural heritage.

A solution for cigarette butts

Aware of the pollution of the sea and the coast, they realised that preserving the environment is the responsibility of all of us, starting with small steps like stopping throwing cigarette butts into the sea. Cigarette butts are the most numerous type of waste in the sea, which is often underestimated and contains plastics, chemicals, and heavy metals.

Therefore, as part of the ''Our responsibility'' campaign, they designed portable Eko-bin recyclable ashtrays for beaches from environmentally friendly, non-combustible, recycled plastic.

Source: FLAG Škoji

''There are about 3,000 portable ashtrays under the same slogan and visual that will be distributed to tourist communities so that they can share them with interested citizens and tourists, all to preserve the environment by reducing cigarette butts on beaches that then end up in the sea,'' explains Duboković.

In addition to the ashtrays that are available to visitors in the Hvar Tourist Board office, signs and stickers with a ban on throwing waste into the sea have been designed. As Duboković says, ''boards and labels are currently being installed on beaches, marinas, public toilets,'' and in the town of Hvar, they have already been installed on the beaches of Pokonji Dol and Majerovica.

Source: FLAG Škoji

In addition, this year, beach and sea belt cleaning actions will be organised. These activities will be organised in cooperation with local environmental associations such as ''Plavi svijet'' and “Geopark Vis Archipelago “on Vis. All those interested are welcome to join the actions.

Protected areas

The FLAG ​​Škoji area is almost entirely under the largest European ecological network of NATURA 2000 protected areas. Therefore, the preservation of this environment is paramount.

''Species such as bottlenose dolphins and loggerhead sea turtles, which are considered indicator organisms for monitoring the good condition of the marine environment, also live here in our area,'' Duboković points out.

There are also two categories of protected areas: a significant landscape and a natural monument.

The islands of Šćedro and Zečevo, the Paklinski islands, and the island of Ravnik with their islets are in the category of the significant landscape. Natural monuments in this area are the Green Cave on Vis, the Grapčeva Cave on the island of Hvar, the Blue Cave, and the Medvidina Cave on Biševo.

The islands formed by an volcanic eruption, Brusnik, and Jabuka, are two of a total of seven natural geological monuments in Croatia, and both are located in the FLAG area. So far, more than 217 speleological objects have also been registered here.

Source: FLAG Škoji

Petar Razović, the director of the Hvar Tourist Board, says the campaign has been well accepted so far.

“Positive results are already visible through just raising awareness about preserving beaches and the sea,” says Razović.

Adela Duboković says that for now, they are receiving positive comments and that other organizations recognize them as an example of good practice. They hope that pollution with cigarette butts will be less and less.

ZAGREB, Aug 5, 2020 - Foreign and European Affairs Minister Gordan Grlic Radman has said that the celebration of the 25th anniversary of Operation Storm in Knin was dignified and that the attendance of Deputy Prime Minister Boris Milosevic of the Independent Democratic Serb Party was a turning point in relations between Croats and Serbs.

Speaking to reporters after the ceremony, held in Knin on Wednesday on the occasion of Victory Day and Homeland Thanksgiving and War Veterans Day, Grlic Radman said that the proposal for Milosevic's presence at the Knin ceremony had come from Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic.

Milosevic's arrival in Knin fantastic message to Serbia

"Finally, (Milosevic) is a citizen of Croatia. I think this is a turning point in our relations. Serbs are represented in the Croatian parliament, and I would describe this as a fantastic message to Serbia which should not be surprised but should welcome the fact that Serbs in Croatia regulate their issues with a democratically elected government," said Grlic Radman.

He noted that Milosevic's presence at today's ceremony in Knin could contribute to improving relations and resolving more outstanding issues as well as set an example for Serbia to turn to the future.

Grlic Radman described the Knin celebration as dignified, and addresses by top state officials as statesmanlike speeches.

Asked what kind of reception today's speeches by President Zoran Milanovic and Prime Minister Plenkovic could have in Serbia, Grlic Radman said that all the speeches at today's event were about inclusion, tolerance, future, reconciliation as well as the need to learn from the past.

Serbia owes answers about missing persons

Grlic Radman said that the war in Croatia had been imposed on the country and that in present-day Europe there was no room anymore for the policy of aggression.

"We advocate stability, peace, respect, tolerance. We expect to work on outstanding issues with Serbia," he said.

Speaking about people gone missing in the 1991-95 war who remain unaccounted for, the minister said that Serbia has a duty and obligation to give answers to their families.

"In order to achieve that, we have to talk with Serbia, it owes us answers," Grlic Radman said.

ZAGREB, Aug 5, 2020 - Any innocent victim of the war, be they of Croat, Serb or any other ethnicity, deserves respect, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said at a ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of Operation Storm in Knin on Wednesday.

In his address, he recalled a message of reconciliation addressed by the late President Franjo Tudjman in Vukovar in June 1997 to Croatian returnees and the local Serb population: "A victor who cannot forgive sows the seeds of future rifts and evils, and the Croatian people do not want that."

Plenkovic said that this message should be borne in mind in building an inclusive, tolerant, and forward-looking Croatia. "As a country that won a war that was imposed on it, with numerous innocent civilian victims, we regret all the casualties, especially civilians, and not just Croats, but Serbs and members of all other ethnic communities as well."

Legitimate right to defence is not and cannot be excused for wrongdoing

Plenkovic expressed regret for war crimes committed by Croats, saying that "a legitimate right to defence is not and cannot be an excuse for wrongdoing." "Any such act is painful for the families of the victims and an ugly scar on the righteous face and defensive nature of the Homeland War," he added.

"We are aware that our victory in Operation Storm was traumatic for many Croatian Serbs who primarily associate it with the departure of a portion of the Serb population from their homes in what were previously occupied areas. While for the majority of Croats this was a forced exodus organised and ordered by leaders of the Serb rebellion in Knin, many Serbs still see it as an exodus before Croatian forces," the prime minister said.

Plenkovic said that 25 years on it was time to look at the complexity of what had happened then with equanimity. After Operation Storm, the Croatian state has made great efforts to ensure that Serb refugees who so wish a return to their homeland and much has been done in that regard, There are still difficulties that need to be removed so that they can feel equal and live in dignity, he added.

"We know that the whole time many Croatian Serbs in free areas of the country shared the fate of their Croatian compatriots, and many of them were in the Croatian army, of which we should be proud," Plenkovic stressed.

It is important that in Operation Storm the Croatian Serbs do not see only the exodus of their people but also the end of the war that paved the way for their return to Croatia, for everyone who so wishes.

"Finally, respects are due to every innocent victim, be they of Croat, Serb, or any other ethnicity. Respects to thousands of innocent Croat victims from Vukovar to Dubrovnik ... Respects to innocent Serb victims from Paulin Dvor to Varivode," Plenkovic said.

"We do not question the legitimacy or righteousness of the Homeland War nor do we downplay the victory won in Operation Storm," he added.

The humanity of a victor who regrets every lapse or war crime not prevented 

Plenkovic said that this shows the magnanimity and humanity of a victor "who, despite everything, regrets every lapse or war crime that was not prevented."

"We expect the same from all sections of Croatian society, especially from representatives of the Serbs in Croatia, who should also clearly condemn all the war crimes committed against Croats," he stressed.

True reconciliation can only be built on the truth that is based on fact, on full cooperation in discovering all those still listed as missing and in seeking justice for all the victims, Plenkovic said, adding that all war crimes that do not fall under a statute of limitations will continue to be prosecuted regardless of the ethnicity of the victim or the perpetrator.

"Today, as the world copes with the biggest health threat in the last hundred years and with the gravest economic crisis since the Second World War, we must again strengthen our national unity around Croatian strategic goals. That's why we should be inspired by the courage and self-abnegation of Croatian defenders and we will be able to cope with the great challenges facing us," the prime minister said.

Plenkovic reiterated that Operation Storm was "legally legitimate, militarily inevitable and politically necessary," adding that it was imperative for the Croatian leadership at the time to make it possible for displaced Croats to return to their homes and to reconnect parts of the country that had been severed until then.

With more than 20,000 dead and 15% of the housing stock damaged, Croatia suffered huge damage in the war which set it back 15 years in terms of development, Plenkovic said, noting that Operation Storm was also a turning point for peace and stability in southeastern Europe "which is why we can rightfully regard it as our greatest victory."

The prime minister announced that a special law on civilian casualties of the Homeland War would be adopted to resolve painful issues still burdening Croatian society.

ZAGREB, Aug 5, 2020 - Several hundred HOS veterans, including those wearing T-shirts with the inscription "For the Homeland Ready" and those shouting this Ustasha salute, were barred entry into the main square in Knin during a ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of Operation Storm on Wednesday but were allowed in afterward.

A spokeswoman for the Sibenik-Knin County Police Marica Kosor told Hina that several hundred veterans of the Croatian Defence Force (HOS), the wartime armed wing of the Croatian Party of Rights (HSP), and other units whom the police did not allow to enter Ante Starcevic Square, sang patriotic songs for the duration of the official programme, unhappy that they were denied entry.

Several shouts of "For the Homeland Ready", a salute used by the pro-Nazi Ustasha regime during the Second World War, could be heard, and some wore T-shirts displaying inappropriate content, the police spokeswoman said.

Asked why the veterans were not allowed into the square to watch the programme, Kosor said that they did not have accreditation and the venue could take only about 600 guests because of the epidemiological measures in place to contain the spread of the coronavirus outbreak.

No incidents were reported.

Mladen Todoric, head of a veterans association from Split, told reporters earlier that they had liberated Knin in 1995 and "now there is no room for us, while there is room for Milosevic and the likes of him, apparently because of the coronavirus."

He expressed regret that "our police colleagues have been put in an awkward situation, with them on one side of the barricade and us on the other."

"We hope that this will never happen again, that veterans are barred entry into the square in Knin to pay tribute to their fallen comrades in arms and to celebrate our victory," Todoric said, adding that after the official programme "we will pay our respects and light candles."

Media said that among the HOS veterans was MP Hrvoje Zekanovic of the Croatian Sovereignists party.

ZAGREB, Aug 5, 2020 - Retired lieutenant general Ante Gotovina said during the celebration of the 25th anniversary of Operation Storm in Knin on Wednesday, that by learning lessons from the past Croatians have become stronger and better people, ready to think optimistically and work today for a better tomorrow.

Speaking as a representative of veterans, he congratulated those present and underscored that Operation Storm, which took place a quarter of a century ago, had determined the country's future and marked the beginning of the end of the war and the establishment of peace.

"The courage, sacrifice, determination, and unity of our people from the start of the Homeland War and under the leadership of the first Croatian President Franjo Tudjman, wartime defence minister Gojko Susak and all the commanders of the General Staff were crucial for us to build a Croatian army is particularly unfavourable and difficult war circumstances, ready and capable of defending itself, putting an end to an imposed war and creating preconditions for lasting peace," said Gotovina.

Horrors of war in the collective conscience of the people and foundation of Croatian statehood

Gotovina added that the horrors of war and years of suffering of innocent people, the sacrifice of young soldiers, and those who lost their lives and health, were part of the collective conscience of the Croatian people, having been built into the foundations of Croatian statehood.

"It is with pride and sorrow that we remember our friends, fallen and deceased comrades in arms. I greet you, dear families, with profound respect," he said.

Gotovina said that 25 years of living in peace and security, Croatia is developing into a modern European democracy, a socially just state that cares for the smallest and most needy, a state in which all people, regardless of their differences, enjoy safety and freedom, equal rights and equal obligations.

"With the unity of all of us, from the first at the helm to the smallest, we will achieve the objectives and know how to respond to all the challenges of the time that we live in," concluded Gotovina.

Asked by reporters later to say why members of wartime HOS forces and some other war units were not allowed to attend the ceremony in the main square in Knin, Gotovina said that "discipline has to exist in everything, even in freedom."

Asked whether he was glad that Deputy Prime Minister Boris Milosevic from the ranks of the Independent Democratic Serb Party (SDSS) had attended today's event, Gotovina said that the celebration was dignified and "that is good."