Croatia Travel Blog

Archive for the ‘Events’ Category

The gay and lesbian community in Croatia is preparing for the annual Pride Parade to be held on June 19 in Zagreb. The theme of this year’s parade is “Freedom of sexual expression and diversity of sexual practice”. Although there is certainly a lot of the latter in Croatia, the “freedom” part of the theme is a long way from being achieved. For historical and religious reasons, Croatia has long clung to rigid definitions of sexual identity which has disadvantaged the LGBT community. Discrimination is rampant and violent attacks on gays are not rare.

The Pride Parade has taken place yearly since 2002 and often draws angry and hateful crowds. This year may be no exception, particularly since a proposed constitutional change will protect sexual orientation. Introduced under pressure from the EU to bring Croatia’s human rights legislation into line with European standards, the proposed change has already provoked a public outcry.

The Pride Parade is the culmination of “Zagreb Pride” a series of local events celebrating LGBT identity and agitating for political change. This year’s schedule includes a roundtable with government representatives to discuss the proposed constitutional change. Despite this year’s slogan, “Croatia can swallow this”, it’s not at all clear that it can.

See more on Zagreb Pride and on gay travel in Croatia.

This week’s Telegraph has a wonderful article about Croatia’s Summer Festivals. Sure, everyone’s heard of the Dubrovnik Summer Festival. It’s great but how about something less, ahem, touristy? The article suggests a number of great festivals where you can enjoy the arts and avoid the mobs. For example, there’s the Rapska Fjera in Rab Town, a startlingly original medieval festival. A film buff? Try the Motovun Film Festival in beautiful Motovun. Foodies flock to the October Truffle Festivals in Istria. Music lovers are serenaded at Groznjan (contrary to the article, it’s not only jazz available) and the Lubenice musical nights in Cres Island.

See more about when to go to Croatia.

If you happen to be in  Dubrovnik today, lucky you. If not, try again next year.

Dubrovnik celebrates its patron saint today, St Blaise (Sv Vlaho) in a series of processions, prayers and festivities that combine the solemnity of a religious occasion with the exuberance of a local blow-out. It’s an occasion to recall that Dubrovnik is not just a tourist attraction but the culmination of a remarkable cultural efflorescence.

The feast of St Blaise starts on February 2 and ends on February 3. Traditional costumes, music and dance are interspersed with processsions down Stradun, special blessings and of course, a wonderful lunch.

Read more about the Feast of St Blaise.

Zagreb is no slouch on the arts scene. In December a brand new Museum of Contemporary Art will open which should be the cultural event of the season. As a lead-up, Zagreb just hosted a highly successful Film Festival that broke all attendance records. Next up is the Vip Zagreb Jazz Festival which will boast an extraordinarily strong line-up. In only three nights (November 5-7) jazz lovers get to hear the Sonny Rollins Sextet, the Branford Marsalis Quartet and the Terence Blanchard Quintet. The Jazz Festival is only in its 5th year but to attract such a star-filled lineup, they must be doing something right.

Get more information about the Vip Zagreb Jazz Festival and more festivals in Zagreb.

July is here which heralds the start of Croatia’s summer festival season. No matter where you are, you can participate with the locals in festivals celebrating music, theatre, film or traditional culture. Nearly all islands and coastal towns present nightly music in the town square but there are some festivals that are true stand-outs.Here is a sampling of the season’s best festivals:

• Dubrovnik Summer Festival
  Dubrovnik
  July 10-August 25
  Classical concerts, theatre, dance, jazz and folklore ensembles keep the Old Town jumping nearly every night. Every year there’s  the traditional production of Hamlet staged at Fort Lovrijenac. Heartthrob Goran Visnjic of “ER” fame once played the brooding prince there. See the Dubrovnik Summer Festival website for schedules and tickets.
  More Dubrovnik events & festivals

• Histria Festival
  Pula
  July 25-August 21
  All Istria descends on Pula on certain festival nights to enjoy the concerts in Pula’s Roman Amphitheatre. This year’s highlight is Elton John but there are also classical concerts and ballet drawn from Europe’s finest ensembles and presented in venues around town. See the Histria Festival website for program and tickets.
  More Pula festivals & events.

• Motovun Film Festival
  Motovun
  July 27-31
  With 65 films in five days, this festival is truly a movie freak’s delight. There are no starlets, few paparazzi and there’s no need to drag out a ball gown. Just enjoy the movies. See the Motovun Film Festival website for the program and tickets.

• International Folklore Festival
  Zagreb
  July 15-19
  Despite the name, the accent here is on Croatian folklore from a variety of regions. From the traditional circle dance to puppet theatre, the festival provides a good overview of Croatia’s rich cultural heritage and puts it in context by including a smattering of other European groups. See the International Folklore Festival website for the program and booking info.
  More Zagreb festivals & events.

• Split Summer Festival
  Split
  July 14-August 14
  This is a smorgasboard of delights with an emphasis on classical music, opera, art exhibitions and theatre. Many events are within Diocletian’s Palace. See the Split Summer Festival website (in Croatian) for program information.
  More on Split festivals & events.