November 12, 2019 - Gibonni, Petar Graso, Mate Bulic, Miroslav Skoro, Domenica, Indira Forza, Prljavo kazaliste, Mladen Grdovic, Klapa Rispet and Zeljko Bebek will perform at the Croatian Night in Frankfurt this weekend. 

Namely, Dalmacija Danas reports that Croatia’s biggest music stars can be found in the same place on Saturday, November 16, in Frankfurt, where they will perform at the largest Croatian diaspora concert for an estimated 12,000 Croats and their guests at the Fraport Arena.

“As organizers, we are proud that 'Croatian Night' is recognized all over the world and has established itself as the most significant event of Croats abroad. Every year we strive, and fortunately, we manage to bring the best possible Croatian music team. This year, on the day of the concert, our Vatreni is playing for a spot at the European Championships, and we believe that the support of the 12,000 people in the arena will be felt and heard all the way to Rijeka. We believe that the atmosphere will be special and celebratory at the end of the game,” says Robert Martinovic on behalf of the Croatian Night organizers. 

Croatian Night gathers thousands of visitors every year at Frankfurt's Fraport Arena with the biggest music stars from the homeland. 

{youtube}v=JQKARWkUPIw{/youtube} 

This year, the audience is eagerly awaiting Miroslav Skoro.

“Yet another Croatian Night in Frankfurt will be held this November, and I will have the honor of performing again at the largest gathering of us all outside Croatia. Come and have a good time with us in Frankfurt,” said Skoro. 

“We hope that this year, a lot of Croatians from Germany and Europe and all over the world respond and come to the largest manifestation of Croatian music in the world among the Diaspora. It is a beautiful occasion for all of us to gather and socialize. We are honored to have the luck to build even stronger ties between Croatians, those in the Diaspora and in our homeland,” the organizers added.

Just how eager our Diaspora is to experience Croatian music is shown by the fact that they come from all over the world: from Europe, Australia, America, and Canada.

To read more about the Croatian Diaspora, follow TCN’s dedicated page.

The economic situation in Croatia is far from promising, and with more and more Croats flocking to Western European countries like the United Kingdom, Ireland and Germany, it seems that the country's massive staff shortages and concerning demographic crisis aren't about to be over any time soon. 

However, just how much milk and honey really flows through the rivers of Western Europe, or is it all just a myth? Having been raised in the UK and having lived in Croatia for years now, I can quite confidently state that neither milk nor honey can be found at least in the British isles, and while the economic conditions are indeed more stable and safe, the idea that huge wage packets and a perfect life are waiting for you when you step off the plane in London is farfetched, to say the very least.

Wages typically (not always, of course) match the cost of living, and when you need to pay over £100 for council tax per month and have your heating turned on for several months per year to cope with the cold temperatures and miserable weather, suddenly that fatter pay packet doesn't seem as appealing as it did at first.

As Croats from all corners of the country continue to go and try their hand abroad, thanks to Croatia's accession to the EU and the freedom of labour, many are faced with shocks which only longer than three months in their newly adopted Western European countries can show up.

As Novac writes on the 27th of April, 2019, Marko Mihaljević, a 27-year old Croat with a Masters degree, went from Babina Greda in Vukovar-Srijem County (Eastern Croatia) to the bustling German city of Frankfurt seven months ago, and managed to get a job in construction. He is one of the very many young Croats who haven't been able to find a job in Croatia, so they placed their hopes and dreams for a better future in the hands of one of the Croats' favourite countries to go and seek work - Germany.

However, just like in the United Kingdom, there are no rivers flowing with milk and honey in Germany either, and Marko soon found that out for himself.

"I thought it would get easier in time, but everything's harder," Mihaljević explains in a short Facebook video he posted in which he discusses the matter.

He shared his experiences of leaving Croatia and working in Germany via the aforementioned Facebook video, and told his fellow young Croats still in Croatia not to go abroad if they weren't absolutely sure of everything, because he himself thought things would be very different.

''I'm spending my days doing this job. I'm not trying to throw anyone under the bus, nor am I trying to talk badly about any job, because I've never underestimated anyone in my life, but I'm doing a job for which I don't even need a primary school education. Having a Master's degree sounds nice, but I've got to break my back here from morning til night for my bare existence because that's [gaining respectable employment with a Master's degree] not allowed in Croatia. Why is it not allowed? Because I'm not in any political party,'' Marko stated bluntly.

He says he's angry that as a man with a Master's degree, he has to work in the construction industry, but he currently has no choice,'' writes Fenix ​​Magazine.

Make sure to follow our dedicated lifestyle  page for much more on the Croatian demographic crisis and the mass exodus of Croats to Western Europe.