ZAGREB, 19 Sept, 2021 - In the past 24 hours 875 coronavirus cases and seven deaths have been registered in Croatia, the national COVID-19 crisis management team said on Sunday.

There are 8,286 active cases and 683 hospitalised patients, including 81 on ventilators, while 21,151 persons are self-isolating.

Croatia has registered 391,984 coronavirus cases to date, including 8,500 deaths and 375,198 recoveries, of which 1,028 in the past 24 hours.

To date 2,72,130 persons have been tested for the virus, including 9,621 in the past 24 hours, and 43.92% of the population has been vaccinated, including 52.72% of adults, of whom 49.48% fully.

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September 19, 2021 - The National Geographic Croatia program airs tonight from 9 pm, kicking off with Gordon Ramsay's Unchartered! 

Thanks to National Geographic, the whole world will be able to discover the beauties of Croatia on TV tonight, reports 24 Sata.

After Gordan Ramsay's Unchartered in Istria at 9 pm, an entire episode of Europe from Above's third season will showcase Croatia through the unique locations chosen by the production team. The episode was filmed throughout last year and covered all seasons, thus fully evoking the beauty of each destination. 

National Geographic was fascinated by the unusual 5.5-kilometer-long zigzag walls, which extend beyond the town of Ston to the nearby hills. The walls are believed to have been built to prevent the theft of salt from the saltworks there, as salt was a precious commodity in the Middle Ages.

But the walls are not only protected by the saltworks. Aerial footage reveals that the wall stretches across the peninsula and has 41 defensive towers and six fortresses. The rulers of Ston did not build a wall to protect the salt pans; they intended to protect the entire peninsula from its disobedient neighbors. The saltworks are still in operation today, after 4,000 years, and the locals harvest hundreds of tons of salt every year. All this makes it the oldest active saltworks in Europe, and after the Great Wall of China, it is the second-largest wall in the world.

The episode about Croatia will introduce viewers worldwide to the Osijek bank of the Drava, Lonjsko polje, the Neretva valley, and footage of the Pelješac bridge, the demolition of the Zagreb Cathedral tower and repairs, to rock climbing at Paklenica National Park.

The National Geographic Croatia program will air three shows in total tonight. The Croatia episode of Gordon Ramsay's "Unchartered" will air at 9 pm, followed by "Europe from Above" about Croatia at 10 pm. At 11 pm, "Dreamcars - Inside the Factory" will feature Rimac Automobili. 

The new season shows some of the best cultural and geographical sights in Europe through ‘hyper-lapse aerial photography. Impressive aerial shots offer a unique insight into how tradition, engineering, and natural landmarks have helped shape the continent. 

This season, six episodes will be broadcast dedicated to Croatia, Norway, Portugal, Switzerland, Ireland, and Iceland. This promotion is huge for Croatia as National Geographic reaches about 433 million households in 171 countries through all its platforms.

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September 19, 2021 - On the last weekend of September, locals and visitors will be able to welcome autumn in the best way at the Vukovar Ethno Fair, enjoying the best products, crafts, and traditions of the city.

From September 24 to 26, the city of Vukovar will hold its 14th Ethno Fair, in which the best of its local products, crafts, gastronomy, music, and folklore will be displayed, reports Turističke Priče. Both city residents and tourists will witness the arrival of autumn feeling the true essence of Vukovar and its people.

(Photo: Vukovar Tourist Board Official Facebook Page)

The focus will again be on the fair of traditional products and arts and crafts, handicrafts and antiques, and food and beverage producers, where products and services are exhibited by producers from the entire Vukovar-Srijem County, but also Croatia.

We believe that in the three days of the fair, everyone will find something for themselves. Children will be able to participate in one of the five announced workshops in which they will make wooden toys, flower wreaths, shape clay…

(Photo: Vukovar Tourist Board Official Facebook Page)

Lovers of tradition will enjoy the richness of folk costumes and performances by cultural and artistic societies, both domestic and guest. Namely, after the performance of KUD Kolo from Vukovar on Friday, the Croatian Cultural and Cultural Music Society Danube will host on Saturday the traditional 13th Meeting of folklore societies "The Danube to its city". On Sunday, the folklore part of the Fair will be rounded off by the "International Folklore Festival Zagreb - City of Vukovar".

(Photo: Vukovar Tourist Board Official Facebook Page)

In Vukovar, you will be able to try gastronomic specialties from all over Croatia, as part of the fifth gastronomic event "Tastes of Croatia", but also to refresh yourself with Vukovarsko and other beers with a cultural and artistic program with beer tasting on the "Vukovar OktoBierFest".

The music part of the program of the Vukovar Ethno Fair will be opened on Friday by tamburitza players, the Tamburitza ensemble Sremci, and on Saturday visitors will be able to enjoy the performance of the popular and favorite Vanna. Tamburitza players will play on the last evenings of the Fair, but this time visitors will be entertained by the band Libero.

(Photo: Vukovar Tourist Board Official Facebook Page)

On Sunday, September 26, as part of the Vukovar Ethno Fair, the Day of National Minorities of Vukovar-Srijem County will be marked. On the occasion of World Tourism Day, the Guides Association organizes a city tour on the same day, accompanied by costumed guides called Tourist in their city.

Therefore, book the last weekend in September for Vukovar, which always offers you more than you expect.

To learn more about the city of Vukovar, visit Total Croatia's complete guide, Vukovar in a page. Now in your language!

For more, check out our dedicated travel section.

September 19, 2021 - The new 2CELLOS "Dedicated" album has been released alongside a music video covering the Guns' N' Roses hit "Sweet Child O 'Mine."

The globally popular 2CELLOS - Stjepan Hauser and Luka Šulić have released the long-awaited, sixth studio album "Dedicated" (Sony Masterworks / Menart) and released a new music video for "Sweet Child O 'Mine," a cover of the Guns' N' Roses hit, reports Glas Istre. 

The video was shot in the former Svetica military hangar in Šišan, produced again by Medvid. Pula drummer Dušan Kranjc joined Hauser and Šulić, and their performance has already been called "damn epic" in one comment.

"It's one of the legendary classics, which we had to cover! We've been thinking about recording a song for a long time. This is our typical 2CELLOS style - rock 'n' roll with cello! That's how we started and what we're back to now. We needed it so much, and we are happy that we finally did it!" said Stjepan Hauser and Luka Šulić about the new release.

After taking the time for their successful solo projects, the cello duo used the pandemic to reconnect, enter the studio, and record pop anthems and timeless rock songs. The song list is a combination of instinct, study, and exercise. Šulić and Hauser researched a diverse catalog and gave selected songs their recognizable trademark, breaking all boundaries.

Among the songs they covered in the new album are "Bad guy" by Billie Eilish, "Shallow" by Lady Gaga, "Halo" by Beyonce, "Livin 'on a Prayer" by Bon Jovi, "Cryin'" by Aerosmith, "Demons" by Imagine Dragons, "Wherever I Go" by One Republic and "Sound of Silence" by Simon and Garfunkel.

"As you listen to us, we hope you realize how versatile the cello is, that it is possible to play the fiercest rock, the most tender ballad, and contemporary music. It powerfully drives you. It has a whole range of emotions, ups and downs. We want to give you an experience that you can’t get it anywhere else," they added. 

With "Dedicated," 2CELLOS celebrate their 10th anniversary. The album name is appropriate because of their continued commitment to the band, fans, cello, and recognizable playing style. The album will also be promoted on a long-awaited tour starting next year in the US.

For more, follow our lifestyle section.

September 19, 2021 - The Vučedol Archaeological Park project was presented at the Museum of Vučedol Culture to introduce the events that will follow in the next two years.

Namely, this extensive project includes the construction, reconstruction, and revitalization of the archeological site, communal and catering infrastructure, and the tourist promotion of the entire project on an area of slightly more than 28 hectares, reports HRTurizam.

“The Vučedol Archaeological Park project is conceived as a platform, backbone, and initiator of a complex program of systematic interdisciplinary research of the Vučedol archaeological site, which expands the area of Vučedol. It presents as an archeological-historical, but also a tourist-catering and sports-recreational center," said the director of the Museum of Vučedol Culture, Mirela Hutinec.

At the future site, there will be a planetarium, info point and scientific research center, restaurant, area for the presentation of Vučedol livestock, a museum square, Vučedol labyrinth and children's playground, reconstruction of the Megaron and Vučedol settlement, a stilt house on Orlov otok, and passenger and communal port for boats. These are big plans that, once realized, will be the backbone of tourism in Slavonia and Baranja and an important place for scientists and researchers.

The project's specific objectives are preserving the Vučedol archaeological site and enriching the cultural (archaeological) and tourist offer by using creative, innovative, and technologically advanced solutions in education, presentation, and promotion of the Vučedol Archaeological Park.

The partners of this vital project are the Croatian Ministry of Culture and Media, the City of Vukovar, the Public Institution Port Authority of Vukovar, and the Vukovar Tourist Board. The project value is 117,299,998.51 kuna, of which 85%, or 99,704,998.72 kuna, are grants from the European Regional Development Fund.

In the entire locality of Vučedol, after 40 years of systematic research, only 10 to 12% of the area has been explored. So, we can still expect new knowledge about the Vučedol culture.

"In Europe, the highest level of civilization was developed by the Vučedol culture, which began here on Vučedol around three thousand years ago. As far as we know, this is the oldest locality of the Vučedol culture, and everything started from this area. Here we have the oldest Indo-European calendar, excavated at the site in Vinkovci. If we can recognize and read it, then we have the oldest pictorial letter of Indo-Europe," said Professor Aleksandar Durman, who has been working on researching Vučedol culture for many years.

For more on travel in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

September 19, 2021 - Skradinski buk pond turtles have returned to their ideal living conditions in Krka National Park, primarily thanks to fewer visitors caused by the pandemic. 

After a long absence, the strictly protected pond turtle species (Emys orbicularis) has found a haven at the foot of Europe's longest travertine barrier. An adult and two young individuals have been confirmed, reports Sibenik.in.

The pond turtle has ideal living conditions in Krka National Park. It is most numerous in the middle and upper course of the Krka river, especially along the banks near the Krka monastery: the marsh at the foot Carigradska draga is its essential habitat. Thanks to the reduction in the number of visitors caused by the pandemic, the pond turtle returned to the area of Skradinski Buk after many years. The swimming ban in Skradinski Buk has further reduced the pressure on the aquatic ecosystem, so this year they lay eggs. The natural habitats of pond turtles are stagnant and slow-flowing freshwater rich in vegetation, such as muddy-bottomed lakes, ponds, rivers, canals, floodplain forests, and brackish waters. Since it is a cold-blooded animal, it is suitable for quiet places to sunbathe, mostly on stumps and rocks.

The pond turtle is a strictly protected species: protected by the Nature Protection Act, the European Union Directive on the Protection of Natural Habitats and Wild Fauna and Flora (Habitats Directive), and the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (Bern Convention). Furthermore, Emys orbicularis is the target species of the ecological network Natura 2000, a conservation area important for species and habitat types HR2000918 Krka and the surrounding plateau. The name Emys comes from the Greek word "emys" (ὲμύς), which means "freshwater turtle".

The pond turtle is also active at night when it hunts and searches the surroundings but never moves away from the water. It feeds mainly on invertebrates, most often beetles, snails, shrimp, earthworms, and tadpoles, less often on amphibians and smaller fish, and least on aquatic plants. It has a hard shell, more flattened than a land turtle and slightly wider at the back. In populations in the Mediterranean, the shell is about fifteen centimeters long. It has five well-visible toes with claws on its front legs and four on its hind legs.

Males and females are easily recognizable, primarily by size: females are larger than males. As the animal grows, so do the plates that cover the carapace (upper) and plastron (lower part of the shell). They form growth zones, with which the age of the individual can be determined by counting the rings. Like rings on a tree, they grow in concentric rings spreading from one corner. Growth largely depends on the climatic conditions where the turtle lives, so it is slowed down in winter or during the dry season. In the unfavorable season for growth, certain parts of the rings tear and darken, and in the good season, they expand. Other factors that affect growth rate are sex, habitat characteristics, diet type, and food availability.

The pond turtle chooses land-laying areas with sandy surfaces rich in necessary food and safe from predators. They have the so-called temperature-dependent determination of embryonic sex: eggs incubated at temperatures below 25° C only males will develop, and those incubated above 30° C only females will develop. The ratio of males to females due to different natural conditions during the day and night is generally 50:50. Pond turtles reach sexual maturity from 6 to 8 when they grow to a length of about 12.5 cm. They are then considered fully developed adult individuals. Their development is sensitive and depends on ecological, genetic factors, food availability, and habitat quality. The oldest record of the presence of a pond turtle in "Kerka" at "Scardone" dates from 1780 (in the work of Pietro Nutrizi Chrisogon Notizie per servire alla storia naturale della Dalmazia).

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September the 19th, 2021 - The very skilled Croatian diver Vitomir Maricic has broken the Guinness World Record by walking underwater for four entire minutes in just one breath in a swimming pool in Opatija, Kvarner.

For such a small country, the Republic of Croatia certainly delivers the world some amazing talent across a very wide variety of fields, from science and medicine to sport, athletics and everything in between. From Rudjer Boskovic (science) to Luka Modric (football), this Adriatic country continues to impress the international public through the ages. Vitomir Maricic from Rijeka is the latest Croatian name to pop up as he breaks records.

As Morski writes, the Rijeka freediver Vitomir Maricic has officially broken the world record in the longest underwater walk done in one single breath. He took on this Guinness World Record challenge as part of the very first Croatian Congress of Preventive and Sports Medicine and Cardiac Rehabilitation which began in the beautiful coastal town of Opatija.

Vitomir Maricic breathed more than four lengths of the entire pool belonging to the Thalassotherapia Special Hospital for the Medical Rehabilitation of Heart, Lungs and Rheumatism in Opatija, which lasted a little more than four minutes.

Despite his success and his breaking of this amazing world record, there is no rest for the owner of the new Guinness World Record, because he is already travelling with the national team to Cyprus for the World Deep Diving Championships.

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated lifestyle section.

September the 19th, 2021 - The Pag cadastral land survey is set to begin as part of a large island project which will be divided into two separate phases, which will last for years to come.

As Morski writes, the Council of the City of Pag has given its consent for the conclusion of the Agreement of the City of Pag with the State Geodetic Administration. It was said at the session that the Pag cadastral land survey is an extremely important project for Pag and it will be worked on for a longer period of time.

''This will be the beginning of the realisation of the large and long-awaited land cadastral survey project covering the entire City of Pag, from Misković to Simun,'' the Mayor of the City of Pag, Ante Fabijanic, told the local Radio Pag.

''This is a large project that is going to be divided into two phases. In the first phase, which will last for about two years, a cadastral survey of Pag's construction areas will be done, and in the second phase, which will last for about seven years, a cadastral survey of Pag's agricultural land will be done. This project is important for the inhabitants of all settlements in the City of Pag, because their land will be cadastrally regulated, but it is also important because the survey will determine the boundaries of maritime domain, the coastal zone and it will also determine the boundaries of unclassified roads,''

In order to initiate the Pag cadastral land survey, the City Council should also make a decision on amending the budget. The value of the first phase of cadastral survey is 11 million kuna. Of this amount, 60 percent will be provided from the state budget, and 40 percent will be provided by the City of Pag, meaning that the City of Pag will be an intermediary in concluding contracts with landowners. Mayor Fabijanic added that, in accordance with the law, citizens will be invited to participate in the proceedings.

According to the Law on State Surveys and Real Estate Cadastre, and according to the Ordinance on Cadastral Survey, cadastral surveys are the collection and processing of all of the necessary data for the purpose of establishing cadastral parcels, registering buildings, and recording special legal regimes on land and the use of it.

Cadastral surveying is an extremely important procedure for every owner/possessor of any land or buildings and everyone should, primarily for the protection of their rights, participate in the procedure. The aim of the Pag cadastral land survey is to put the land parcels in proper order and to clearly determine the boundaries between the land parcels. The participation of the island's landowners in the survey procedure is important, because the cadastral survey will confirm the existing right to the land.

The owners of land and buildings can only protect their rights to that land by engaging in these proceedings. Participation in the Pag cadastral land survey procedure primarily means the regular monitoring of public announcements related to this procedure, marking out the boundaries of your property, checking the cadastral study and, if necessary, filing objections in a timely manner.

Special attention is needed in the process of presenting the study. In that part of the procedure, the holder of the right of possession must confirm that the data has been presented to them and sign a statement confirming that they agree with the data presented in the census sheet and with the excerpt from the cadastral plan, with the coordinates of the cadastral parcel included.

The presented census sheet from the cadastral plan should, in this case, be inspected extremely carefully, and if necessary, the advice of certified surveyors can be sought. No part of the cadastral survey procedure should be neglected.

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