The German carrier is one of the largest providers of passenger transport services in Europe, employing more than 60,000 people and achieving more than 2.2 billion journeys. Is Rijeka's Autotrolej, which has found itself enfeebled by a lack of drivers, forcing it to cut certain routes, in for a stroke of luck?

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 17th of January, 2019, the Croatian subsidiary of the popular German carrier Arriva wants to take over Rijeka's Autotrolej, as has since been confirmed by Arriva Croatia itself, which has already acquired ownership of Autotrans, one of the largest passenger carriers in the segment of passenger transport in the Republic of Croatia.

"We're interested in all forms of cooperation, so taking the entire share of ownership of KD Autotrolej also comes into it, of course, provided that there is a common interest and a healthy economic base," stated Marina Pandurević, Managing Director of Arriva Croatia for Novi list.

This very concise response came after the company was asked about the situation following information about Arriva's taking over of Autotrans and potential interest in taking over or entering into some sort of business partnership with Rijeka's Autotrolej having surfaced.

The large transport company confirmed that they are definitely interested in buying Autotrolej or entering into a sort of partnership with the current co-owners, therefore entering into business with Autotrolej as a logical continuation of their business in the Republic of Croatia, based on the experience of public transport in very many other European cities.

As stated, Arriva is one of Europe's largest passenger transport service providers, employing more than 60,000 people and achieving more than 2.2 billion journeys. The group operates in fourteen European countries offering a wide range of public transport services to suit all needs.

Make sure to stay up to date with the situation with Autotrolej and on public transport in Croatia in general by following our dedicated news, business and lifestyle pages for much more.

Cuts are happening in almost every sector across Croatia and in many other countries. While sometimes these cuts occur in sectors that we are fortunate enough to be able to overlook for the most part, public transport isn't one of them. The public transport cuts made in Rijeka, which have occurred primarily owing to a drop in the number of drivers, has seen some citizens of the Rijeka area left completely without a direct connection to the city centre.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 15th of January, 2019, as has been announced by Rijeka's public transport company, Autotrolej is unfortunately being forced into planning to abolish a number of departure points on their public transport lines, while part of the lines will have to run on a shortened route.

The new scheme for departures for Rijeka's public transport company has been put down to the gradually diminishing number of drivers. Thankfully, the Rijeka company has made sure to soften the blow somewhat by pointing out that during their most frequented times during working days, the existing number of departures will remain as it is, meaning that Autotrolej's services are set to remain at the same level for the typical arrival and departure times of people going to work and kids going to school, according to a report by Novi list.

Milan Popadić, the chairman of the council of the Municipal Board of Kantrida has spoken out on the occasion of this rather unwelcome "correction" of Autotrolej's transport timetable. He pointed out that Autotrolej's ''correction'' of their timetable means that the unfortunate inhabitants of Marčeljeva Draga have now been left without any direct connection to Rijeka's city centre whatsoever, for the very first time.

Make sure to stay up to date with our dedicated news page for information on public transport all over the country, events as they happen across Croatia and much more.

The relationship between China and Croatia is continuing to grow ever closer, and bringing the Chinese to the Croatian coast is potentially just an introductory step in their much wider engagement on the development of Rijeka's traffic connections, both operationally and financially.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 14th of January, 2019, Minister of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butković, will travel to China later this month, where he will discuss, among other things, the opportunity for them to take the concession for a new Rijeka container terminal on the coast with Chinese shipowners and port operators, according a report from Novi list.

Butković will meet with the Chinese traffic minister, representatives of CRBC, who will build Pelješac Bridge, and will also meet with representatives of the naval giant COSCO, as well as several large Chinese shipping and port companies, the potential leasers of the container terminal on that part of the Croatian coast, for which the concession would have to be announced by the middle of this year.

As China and Croatia's bond grows deeper still, the Chinese companies will start with the concession on that particular part of the Croatian coast, the development of a logistics centre and a back terminal in the entrepreneurial Miklavlje zone will probably be offered.

If an interest in making such a move is shown, then the competent Croatian ministry and the Croatian Government will begin seriously contemplating their involvement in far larger infrastructure projects on Rijeka's traffic connections, primarily the construction of a railway line from Rijeka all the way to the Hungarian border, and when looking at much longer-term plans, the possible construction of a large container terminal on the island of Krk, along with a new road-rail bridge.

Make sure to stay up to date with everything you need to know on the growing relationship between China and Croatia and much, much more by following our dedicated business page.

January 13, 2019 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for new flights to Croatia, with updates from Pula, Rijeka, Zadar, Split, and Dubrovnik. 

Flights to Croatia: LOT boosts operations from Poland

Polish national carrier LOT Polish Airlines, a Star Alliance member, announced the introduction of a new line from Poland in their 2019 summer timetable. In 2018, LOT introduced the Dubrovnik-Warsaw line, which ran six times per week - or every day except Tuesday. 

While this line will remain in traffic this summer with the same number of weekly flights, a new route between Dubrovnik and Krakow (“Pope John Paul II) will operate once a week, on Saturdays, from May 25 to September 28, 2019, AvioRadar reported. The Embraer ERJ-195LR will be used on this line. 

The line between Dubrovnik and Krakow already operated in the past by Slovakian low-cost carrier SkyEurope, which ran two flights a week but halted operations in 2009. Following them, Polish regional carrier EuroLOT managed this route, though they also cut off all traffic in 2015. 

Flights to Croatia: Eurowings increases operations from Cologne 

German low-cost carrier Eurowings has extended their flight offer from Cologne to Croatia for the peak season. Namely, additional flights will operate from July 15 to August 23, 2019, from Cologne to Pula, Rijeka, Split, and Zadar, announced AvioRadar. 

On the Cologne/Bonn - Pula line, there will be an additional rotation on Monday. On the line to Rijeka, there will be two additional flights in the heart of the season - on Tuesdays and Fridays. The route to Split will now fly every day with the addition of the Wednesday service, and an additional flight on Thursday will boost the line to Zadar. 

Flights to Croatia: Air Transat confirms cancelation of Toronto-Split service

While we reported earlier this week that it looked as if Air Transat canceled their new service between Toronto and Split for 2019, Air Transat's Marketing Director, Debbie Cabana, confirmed the news for EX-YU Aviation. 

"For commercial reasons, we have decided to cancel our summer 2019 program for Split, Croatia. Nevertheless, Croatia remains a key destination for Transat and, given the interest shown by Canadians in the summer of 2018 and its potential for tourism development, we will be adding a third weekly departure from Toronto to Zagreb. Flights will be on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays during peak season. Passengers from Montreal and Vancouver will also benefit from a connecting flight to Toronto to take advantage of this added flight to Croatia. This third flight will make Zagreb accessible from Calgary as well, via return connecting flights to Toronto". 

The carrier was to fly between the two cities once a week from June 20 to September 12.

To read more about travel in Croatia, follow TCN’s dedicated page. 

As Morski writes on the 5th of January, 2019, the complete overhaul of Tito's "Galeb" ship is undoubtedly the largest projects thought up by the mayor of Rijeka, Vojko Obersnel, in the past few years. Will his critics stop him? Unlikely, but the cost might.

For years, Rijeka's longtime mayor Vojko Obersnel has been subject to a lot of understandable criticism for his buying and desire to maintain Tito's "Galeb", which has cost more than a million kuna to date, but those protesting Obersnel's to completely repair Galeb would typically shut up when told that the overhaul of Tito's former vessel would be largely financed by European Union funds.

After the official acknowledgment that this is really true came, there were no longer any real obstacles to a tender for the job. Obersnel's critics have mostly remained quiet, even if temporarily, and even some of the furniture from the ship has been renovated.

At the beginning of 2019, more precisely on the 3rd of January, a public tender was concluded for Galeb's renovation, and although they hoped from the City of Rijeka that there might be at least a few bids, only one bid arrived wanting the job of bringing Tito's ship back to life.

The City of Rijeka's administration were likely finding it difficult to come across at least one shipyard ready to take up this truly demanding job, the cost of which is estimated at approximately 27.6 million kuna. As the Fiuman.hr portal exclusively reports from a well-informed source, the only offer came from the Viktor Lenac shipyard, but they have set the cost of the forecast twice as high as initially expected. If their offer is accepted, it will cost about 60 million kuna to breathe new life back into Tito's Galeb.

The City of Rijeka now has two options in this situation. One of them is to secure the remaining 32 million kuna from their own sources, and the only realistic possibility for it is to take out a new loan, which must be approved by the City Council of the City of Rijeka, where Obersnel has, at least officially, no actual majority.

It's no secret that the City of Rijeka has been living on credit for years now, and at this moment, owing primarily to poor management of the city's budget, this amounts to as much as 277 million kuna. To briefly recall, Maribor in Slovenia was also once the proud owner of the title of European Capital of Culture, and for this reason the city almost suffered bankruptcy, and many well-informed individuals are afraid that a similar path is currently being taken by Rijeka, especially if a loan is taken out solely for the purpose of bringing Tito's vessel into the 21st century.

Rijeka's second option is to cancel the tender entirely, and given the huge difference between the forecasts and actual costs of the ship's overhaul, the announcement of a new tender is not reasonable and it is questionable whether or not, should that be the case, Galeb's overhaul would be completed by the end of 2020 as the current deadline is quite stretched.

Make sure to stay up to date by following our dedicated lifestyle page for much more.

Click here for the original article by Zoran Zdelar for Fiuman.hr

ZAGREB, January 4, 2019 - The Rijeka-based Commercial Court on Friday launched procedure to establish the prerequisites for the approval of official receivership for 3.Maj Rijeka shipyard and appointed Zdravko Čupković temporary official receiver.

The next hearing at which a final decision on official receivership will be made is set for 6 February.

A week ago, the Financial Agency submitted a request with the local commercial court for official receivership proceedings for the 3.Maj dock, which is part of the ailing Uljanik Group.

The request was submitted after the dock's account was blocked for 120 days due to overdue liabilities higher than 72 million kuna.

Local unionists have informed the public that 3.Maj shipyard owes about 150 million kuna to suppliers and subcontractors, whereas the Uljanik Gorup is supposed to pay back to the Rijeka shipyard 600 million kuna of the loan 3.Maj gave to the Pula-based group. The sum includes also interest rate.

This past Monday, 3. Maj shareholders held an extraordinary meeting to amend the company's rule book whereby a possibility of appointing up to five members of the management board was reintroduced.

In late December, the supervisory board of the Uljanik shipyard decided to terminate the strategic partnership with the Kermas Energija company of businessman Danko Končar and to seek another partner who will be willing to invest in the group's restructuring.

Uljanik invited all interested investors to express their interest in a strategic partnership and recapitalisation in accordance with decisions reached at shareholders' meetings of February 16 and October 16 this year. A data room is being opened for all prospective strategic partners.

More news on Croatia’s troubled shipbuilding industry can be found in our Business section.

December 19, 2018 — A time capsule buried deep in a staircase in the Croatian National Theater Ivan pl. Zajc in Rijeka will finally see daylight after decades spent gathering dust. The capsule's contents will be part of an exhibition called “Unknown Klimt,” open during Rijeka’s reign as the European Capital of Culture in 2020, according to Novi List.

Famous Rijeka mayor Giovanni Ciotta buried the time capsule as part of the capstone to the theatre’s construction in 1885. The ornately-decorated tube was unearthed during the Croatian theater’s last major restoration in 1970. It has sat in the building’s archives ever since.

It remained forgotten until the Museum of the City of Rijeka’s director Ervin Dubrović intervened. The organization coveted the time capsule and its collection of rare posters, hoping to add them to its collection.

The director’s gumption and Rijeka’s role as the European Capital of Culture were enough to bring the capsule out to the public. 

The capsule and its contents will feature in a large exhibition called "Unknown Klimt" prepared by the City of Rijeka Museum. The show includes the paintings by the brothers Klimt (Ernest and Gustav) and Franz Matsch.

Rijeka's theater was considered a masterpiece of architecture at the time it opened on Oct. 4, 1885. 

The famous Venetian sculptor August Benvenuti created at the theater’s imposing figures and ornaments. The ceiling painter Franz Matsch collaborated with the brothers Gustavo and Ernest Klimt for many of its drawings.

The time capsule itself has a strange history of discovery followed by neglect. The mayor entombed the highly-ornamented lead tube in a small cavity beneath the front door.

It contained documentation about the theater’s construction, a poster from the first show and the currency in circulation at the time. 

Despite their gorgeous appearance, both the time capsule and its posters were almost forgotten.

Workers overseeing the theater’s 1970 renovation knew of the capsule, but couldn’t find it. Then, the foreman at the time obtained a newspaper article describing the opening ceremony in detail. It mentioned the symbolic laying of the final stone at the bottom of a staircase near the entrance.

The time capsule finally saw daylight again, after nearly a century underground. But then the theater relegated it to the archives.

The poster became one of the time capsule’s better-known treasures and a slight obsession for the Museum’s director Dubrović. It is the only multicolored lithographic poster of Rijeka, and only preserved poster from the 19th century.

For more stories about history and the arts in Croatia, check TCN’s Lifestyle page.

December 17, 2018 — Learn about Rijeka's ProDesign studio and how they introduced VR technology to Croatia's interior design market.

We're living in a time when advancements in the tech industry are reshaping pretty much every aspect of our lives, and with more new technologies entering the playing field, the business of interior design is also going through a major transformation.

Accepting changes in technology is important if you want to keep up the pace and move forward with your business, and so today many companies have started embracing the numerous innovations and investing in tech education.

One such company is Rijeka's ProDesign which recently started pioneering the use of VR technology for interior design in Croatia. They caught our eye at the 2018 Rovinj Design District held in November.

Founded in 2010, ProDesign has a core business in architectural 3D modeling and interior design, and today, they are striving to become one of the leading Croatian companies in the field. ProDesign offers interior design and landscaping for homeowners, but also residential and commercial design which brings even more business opportunities to the table.

Urban villa overlooking the Kvarner Bay

ProDesign's founder and managing director Alen Kukić says that this is the first Croatian company — and so far the only one, to his knowledge — that started using VR technology as an integral part of the interior design process. This not only attracts more potential clients but it also immensely helps those clients visualize all the possibilities, and makes them more determined and confident in their buying decisions.

Another great plus is that there are no unsatisfied customers. In other words — with design presentations in virtual reality — there are no more discrepancies between the desired and expected design and the remodeling outcome.

Since decorating your home or business place involves a significant investment of both time and money, mistakes can be quite expensive. With VR, they are practically 100% avoidable, and every client has the opportunity to be a part of the process and tailor the design to personal taste and preferences down to the minutest of details.

Urban villa interior

Having a team of experienced professionals, ProDesign is established as a full-service design studio whose area of expertise covers not only basic organization of space and furnishing, but also professional architectural planning and re-planning, customization of all interior installations and fixtures, furniture design, detailed 3D visualizations followed by a VR experience, and finally, remodeling project coordination on-site, if desired.

So whether you're remodeling your apartment, planning on going glamping in Dalmatian hinterland but missing the whole glam part, or buying an old stone villa that needs a facelift, make sure to check out ProDesign's official website, if only just for inspiration.

Stay tuned for more related content by following TCN's lifestyle page.

December 13, 2018 — Though the season hasn't even officially started yet, here in Rijeka the forthcoming winter has already shown its hand and oh baby, it's cold outside!

Despite the unseasonably warm weather we experienced in November, the days are now noticeably shorter and colder, reminding us it's time to embrace the magic of winter and make the best of it.

One way to do so is to give yourself a nice warming boost every now and then by casually indulging in hot drinks, typical wintertime foods, and decadent desserts. Just wrap up in something warm and come out for brunch or evening cocktails; or you can set aside a couple of hours just for coffee — an absolute favorite waste of time among Croatians.

Apart from its ongoing traditional Advent festivities, Rijeka is full of cozy little cafés, slick bars, and charming eateries so take a look at our pick of some of the best places to hang out at during the chilly days and nights in the "city that flows."

Bar Bar
This popular tapas bar is located in the heart of the historic old town and boasts a cute little terrace overlooking one of the city's archaeological sites. With elegantly assorted appetizer boards meant for sharing, Bar Bar is the perfect choice for meetups with friends, dates, or an after-work happy hour. And if you're feeling hungry, but you can't make it to Bar Bar, I recommend you stay away from their Instagram. On top of delicious foods and a wide selection of drinks, this stylish bar offers occasional live music and dance parties.

Bard
Most known for friendly staff, good selection of beers, and great atmosphere, the Celtic-themed Bard pub is usually packed on weekend nights so make sure you get there early. When the place is full, people regularly enjoy their drinks sitting on the sidewalk in front of the St Vitus Cathedral that's just across the pub. Since it's wintertime, a far better solution is to simply share a table with some random strangers and make new friends because in Bard, that's always an option.

Boa Privé
This fancy cafe and wine bar opened about a year ago and quickly became popular among the locals. Boa Privé's friendly staff along with outstanding service and an overall chill atmosphere will make you return again and again. Their wines are fairly priced, and the list is impressive, while an amazing ambiance makes it a great place to spend some quality time in the evening.

Book Caffe Dnevni Boravak
The name of this cute little book cafe translates to "living room" and that perfectly sums up both the atmosphere and the level of coziness you'll find there. Dnevni boravak boravak is one of those places where you immediately feel at home. During the day you can enjoy some peace and quiet while having coffee, while the evenings are reserved for book promotions, public readings, workshops, and other events, with occasional live music, cocktail parties, etc. On top of that, for non-smokers, there is a separate room which doubles as a gallery.

Bordel La Grotta
When the current owners started renovating this place, they found a peculiar price list dated from 1944. Back then, while Rijeka was under Italian occupation, La Grotta was one of the city's most elite brothels. The whole story, including the said price list and other curiosities of the house, inspired La Grotta's interior design, and the owners also decided to keep the name, but the offer is slightly different. Today, the locals flock to La Grotta for some delicious heartwarming comfort food and a great selection of beers. Oh, and the prices are ridiculously low — they might have rewritten the 1944 brothel's menu items, but kept the fees? We can't tell for sure.

Cukarikafe Bar
This adorable place decorated in a shabby chic vintage style with refurbished grandma-style furniture, flea market finds, and numerous trinkets donated by a number of regular guests has been one of Rijeka's favorite cafés ever since it opened. What makes Cukarikafe stand out is its special energy but also a variety of events that his cafe is hosting — here you will find anything from local artists exhibitions, handmade crafts and design fairs, cocktail parties, various thematic evenings, etc. Cukarikafe also boasts an impressive selection of coffee, spirits, wine, and craft beer, in addition to some really great foods like artisan charcuterie, breakfasts, daily specials, quiches, cakes, and pastries.

Filodrammatica
The beautiful Filodrammatica building was designed by architect Giacomo Zammatti and constructed in 1890 to be used by the Italian Philharmonic Drama Association — hence the name — and in 1992, the house was declared a protected cultural heritage site. Today, Filodrammatica is one of Rijeka's favorite coffee houses but also doubles as an art gallery, and it is conveniently adjacent to the Rijeka City Library's central department. The place offers some of the best coffee in town but also a decent selection of cocktails, fresh juices, snacks, and desserts.

Kancelarija Bar
"The only 'kancelarija' (lit. chancellery; office) where having fun and relaxing over a cup of coffee is mandatory," their motto says. This stylish little bar located within the Galerija Rijecka business and housing complex opened just this summer and instantly became a favorite spot among the locals. Though the place will occasionally host night-long parties, with its regular closing time at 9 PM, Kancelarija caters mostly to working people who flock there on a daily basis whether to enjoy that first morning coffee, or after-work cocktails and delicious liquor spiked desserts.
 

Kavana Grad
This fashionably decorated cafeteria/bar invites people to "eat, drink & mingle," as their motto says. They offer an amazing selection of coffee, tea, wine, craft beer, mixed drinks, various appetizers, finger foods, etc. Plus you will really want to leave some room for dessert as Grad offers a daily selection of KaoKakao pastries. They always aim for top quality food and beverages, and so their menu is continuously changing depending on the availability of seasonal produce. On top of that, on weekend nights, this is one of the places where you can enjoy live music or occasional DJ parties.
 

King's Caffe & Pub
You will find King's at two separate locations in downtown Rijeka, and you really can't go wrong by visiting either one. Depending on whether you're hungry or in the mood for drinks only, you can choose between King's Food Pub and King's Caffe. Both places boast an extensive beer list, while the food pub offers some of the best burgers in town, but also various grilled meat dishes, sandwiches, finger food, and desserts.

Kod Zajca
Here at Zajc, one of Rijeka's favorite cafe and wine bars, not only will you find an extensive wine list and friendly staff who will gladly help you choose from it, but there's also a great selection of craft beers and mixed drinks, plus a variety of delicious tapas dishes, to accompany whatever you're having. Zajc also offers regular wine presentations and tastings in a really nice, relaxed atmosphere, and in addition, there is occasional live music which is always a plus.
 

La Bodega
While a glass of wine on its own is always nice, when paired with an assorted charcuterie and cheese board with pickles, the experience can be exquisite. La Bodega offers exactly that and much more. Domestic and imported wines are available by the glass or bottle, but there's also an impressive list of cocktails and spirits to choose from, and the presentation of each dish is assembled with attention to detail.

La Guardia
You will find this charming little café located on the eponymous street in a somewhat off-beat spot, but it's definitely worth a visit. During the day, La Guardia is the perfect choice if you want to relax over a cup of coffee in a cozy, laid-back atmosphere, whereas at night the place often offers live music and transforms into a cool bar with a divey vibe that beats overpriced nightclubs any day of the week. This quaint café where the locals gather to drink and socialize is decorated with all kinds of memorabilia which adds to its quirky character, and what people probably love the most about this place are the owner's daily thoughts, quotes, and scribbles written on a chalkboard hanging outside. And the best part is you can take home some of that La Guardia vibe: those messages du jour are made into souvenir magnets which are handed out at the cafe in exchange for a symbolic donation, and the entire profit goes for a good cause.
 

Premier Bar
Remember the American 1980s sitcom Cheers? Of course you do. Now I don't mean to indulge in nostalgia, but if Rijeka had its version of Cheers — Premier would be it. And it's not just the decor, it's much more than that: it's the people, the story, the vibe. Premier is the city's first privately owned café and has been operating for over 40 years. Since it closes at 10 PM, it probably won't be your best choice for a night out on the town, but it's more than suitable for the precedent warmup, or even daytime drinking, because why not? Also, "sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name, and they're always glad you came."

Rakhia Bar
The name says it all — Rakhia bar is the house of the "fire water that fuels the Balkans." So if you are out and about Rijeka looking for something to warm you up, this is one of the places you simply shouldn't miss visiting. Apart from an extensive selection of rakija and other spirits and liqueurs, the bar that started trending the hashtag #DajJošJednu (lit. GimmeAnotherOne) offers various music themed parties and tastings, including the so-called "rakhiada," a blind rakija tasting contest; and also occasional speed drinking contests for the bravest.

Samovar Bar
Fancy a cup o' tea? Look no further. Here at Samovar bar, you will find a carefully curated selection of more than 250 of world's finest teas and tisanes but also a number of interesting domestic blends like the Croatian Velebit mountain tea, the Kornati islands tea, the Sunny meadow wild herbal tea, etc. In addition, this dainty little tea shop offers great coffee -- seriously, it's hard to imagine how we could ever live without it -- and let's not forget wintertime classics like mulled wine and hot chocolate. Should I go on? Didn't think so.

Tapas Bar Pet Jedan
Rijeka's favorite tapas bar, Pet Jedan is one of those places where you can indulge all your senses at once: eat, drink, and enjoy live background music in a cozy, intimate atmosphere. Whether you're craving breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner — Pet Jedan has you covered. Apart from their versatile daily menus, every Tuesday, you can enjoy the Chefs' evening, a gourmet multi-course dinner accompanied by professionally selected wines, beers, and other complementary drinks. Pet Jedan is usually packed, but they do take reservations so don't shy away.

Teatro Lounge Bar
Hear ye, hear ye, Teatro is all the rage, life is a theatre and all the world's a stage! Did I just quote Shakespeare? Yes, kind of. But the sophisticated Teatro bar does have a certain theatrical vibe to it. This cozy place operates somewhere between a daytime coffee shop and an evening lounge bar, and it occasionally hosts various arts and entertainment events, but also DJ and after-work parties. Drinks selection? Just as versatile.

Three Monkeys
Caffe by day, cocktail bar by night — and a really good one at that. The Three Monkeys opened recently, in the very heart of downtown Rijeka. They are very serious about becoming the best cocktail bar in town, and they definitely got off to a good start. In addition to an impressive cocktail list and friendly, well-educated staff, this dimly-lit bar is tastefully decorated and has a really cozy feel to it, so once you stop by, you'll be definitely coming back for more.

Tunel

Another must-visit place in downtown Rijeka. As you may have already guessed by its name, Tunel was once an actual railway tunnel. And according to their motto, "the light at the end of the tunnel is actually — music," though you will find much more in this unique cafe that doubles as a nightclub. During the day, stop by for some coffee, but comes nighttime, Tunel is your go-to place for great DJ parties, concerts, and various other performances, while a pretty decent selection of drinks is always a plus.

For more related topics, keep up with our lifestyle page.

The international governing body of association football (FIFA) will compensate the football clubs whose players participated in national team preparations and at the World Cup itself. Among them are three Croatian clubs, reports HRT on December 5, 2018. 

“The FIFA World Cup is the pinnacle of football, generating passion and emotion from every player and every fan in every corner of the world. It is FIFA’s responsibility to redistribute the revenues of this unique competition among the entire football community, and clubs, obviously, deserve to share in this success as they were key contributors. I’m very pleased to see that teams from so many different regions will benefit from this programme, which will help to develop football even further around the globe,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino on the FIFA website on Tuesday. 

FIFA announced that they would pay $209 million as compensation to clubs who had players participating in the World Cup in Russia this summer. Among them are three Croatian clubs - Dinamo, Rijeka, and Hajduk.

Dinamo will receive the most ($680,615), followed by Rijeka ($547,605) and Hajduk ($66,505).

Almost 76 percent of this money will be awarded to European clubs, or precisely - $157.8 million. In first place is Manchester City, who will receive $5 million in compensation, followed by the European Champion Real Madrid ($4.803 million) and Tottenham in third ($4.385). Barcelona will receive $4.145 million. 

England clubs will receive a total of $37.4 million in compensation. Behind them are the clubs from Spain ($22.5 million), Germany ($18.9), Italy ($17.45) and France ($15.3).

As far as clubs from other continents are concerned, Saudi club Al Hilal will receive $2.02 million and Egyptian club Al Ahly will receive $1.7 million. 

Boca Juniors front south American clubs (to receive $1.13) and Mexican club Pachuca (to earn $1.035 million) stands out among the CONCACAF clubs.

The full list of clubs and their benefits can be found here. 

To read more about the World Cup in Russia this year, follow TCN’s dedicated page here.