"The best thing about Zagreb is the highway towards the sea."
Even though Zagreb was named Number One Destination in Europe in 2017 by Lonely Planet, it seems that not everyone agrees that the capital earned the title.
According to Spiegel Online’s Anne Haeming, the best thing about Zagreb is its highway towards the sea, and she offered a few pieces of advice on how to survive “Zagreb sadness” if you find yourself in the capital, Index.hr reports on October 12, 2017.
The author ironically states that the most important event over the summer was Duran Duran’s concert that you could hear even in the outskirts of the city. She goes on to say that the pedestrian zone in the centre looks like provincial German towns, such as Rostock or Bochum, and that the cafes have the lounge look that was in at the beginning of the century, adding that the national currency, kuna, is named after the most provincial of all animals – the pine marten.
She doesn’t think Dolac and the Upper Town are any less boring, and it doesn’t stop there – “The outskirts of Zagreb sometimes enable you to experience some adventure among all the dullness in a metropolis which could easily win the title of the most boring city, at least in Europe.” The author advises tourists to take the tram because you can only ride your bikes slowly, and there are no separate bike lines other than the ones you see on the sidewalk.
Youth Bridge is described as an example of concrete brutalism, while Bundek lacks water and looks sad, and Jarun is even worse.
Hrelić is mentioned as a place where old pieces of junk are sold, stating that you can normally see what people have in excess at flea markets, and it’s obvious that people in Zagreb don’t have anything in excess. She spent three hours at the Museum of Contemporary Art, and she hadn’t met anyone else while there. “Time for art is a luxury here, it appears.”
A rare example of giving compliments to places in Zagreb went to Art park, Krivi put, pancakes in Latina, and the view from Sljeme, which is spectacular.
“The best thing about Zagreb is its highway towards the sea,” she says, adding that that was what took her to Rijeka, European Capital of Art 2020. She thought Rijeka beaches were interesting because people swim there with big metal containers in the back and then eat fish specialities at night, noting that Tito’s ship is guarded by three security guards.
She ends the article by recommending rakija as something everyone should try, and that you can buy it at every supermarket.
However, it seems that Spiegel Online readers didn’t share her opinion and many commented that they experienced Zagreb in a completely different way and that they liked its atmosphere.
Excerpts translated from Index.hr.
