April the 25th, 2023 - The Croatian National Theatre (HNK) in Zagreb recently paid homage to the English music legend John Lennon in the form of an opera written by no less than former Croatian President Ivo Josipovic.

Composers love to play with words, to listen to how they sound when set to music, to write and re-write the notes until they feel the ‘obtained’ amalgamate expresses an emotion, a situation or a story the way they see it in their never resting imagination. I myself think they hear the music constantly, like when walking around a shopping mall - not as a noise, but as some musical syllable or a theme. And so they make our lives indescribably richer and happier. Just try to imagine what we'd be listening to on the radio - news and more news, tales, just words, words, and more words. Imagine.

Zagreb, the capital city of all Croats wherever they may be located around the world, would maybe surprise you with the number of cultural and arts institutions it boasts, and, especially, with the number of cultural happenings every single day. It kind of reminds me, however on an immeasurably smaller scale, of my young days in New York when I wanted to see every single thing, every single day, and kept feeling unjustly deprived because I simply couldn't. The same happens in Zagreb, albeit proportionately.

Zagreb's very first public theatre came to be in the year 1834. The present imposing building of the Croatian National Theatre has been there ever since 1875. It's hard to imagine how many things have taken place there in that time. In the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb, usually only ''big'' pieces of theatre, opera and ballet are performed, and they're not only big, but also so good that every opera evening over the last several months has been a total sellout.

I have a special affinity with that theatre's opera intended for kids up to three years old. It's praiseworthy and a big congratulations to the artists, and to the management, is due. I was surprised fairly recently when a teenager asked who (tf) Paul McCartney is after he released a song with Rihanna and Kanye West, realising how talented he is. That can easily transport us back to those days of a world blooming and flourishing in more sense than one, with The Beatles as an emblematic group of young men who ruled the world ( because they ruled our hearts).

If you weren't around back then, Google is your friend. It will tell you precisely who John Lennon was. Croatian composer Ivo Josipovic, who is also the country's ex president, was among the billions utterly shocked by the murder that suddenly put an end to John Lennon’s life at the age of 40. Intrigued by the psychological profile of Mark Chapman who shot
Lennon in the street while declaring himself to be  true fan, Josipovic felt the urge to dedicate a piece of performative work to Lennon and to his memory. It took years until it finally came out of the nib of his pen as an opera simply entitled ''Lennon''.

''Lennon'' is a big piece of theatre, involving a large ensemble of singers, dancers and a full orchestra. As expected, the music performed has nothing to do with the music of The Beatles. In a modern musical idiom, in brief, it tries to imagine what flashes bolted through Lennon’s mind between the moment he was shot and the moment he died. His grief for the mother, whom he lost when he was just 18, plays out, as do his ambiguous relationships with his first wife Cynthia and with May, his assistant, and the other three musicians from the band (where Paul McCartney appears as the closest to Lennon) and, particularly, naturally and throughout the piece, his relationship with Yoko Ono, his second wife, plays out.

In other words, the last seconds of his natural existence on this Earth play out, lasting for almost two hours, giving shape to his memories, emotions and, especially, to his feelings for the most important people in his life as he slips from this world into the next. Amongst it all, he occasionally alludes to how it is necessary to give peace a chance, the cause Lennon stood for so firmly and profoundly.

Yet another very interesting feature of ''Lennon'' is that it is sung in English. Josipovic's work was clearly a huge undertake, with beautiful artistic delivery among impressing stage sets and a masterful design of lights.

Thanks to the cooperation of the Zagreb Music Biennale and the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb, this project causes feelings of warmth and reminds us that this small nation has always been a participant and a contributor to the artistic memory of the world.

For more, make sure to follow our lifestyle section.

April 25, 2023 - Representatives of the state, the largest creditor of the bankrupt Uljanik Shipyard, decided that Uljanik Shipyard 1856 would be offered at a public auction after a meeting of creditors was held at the Commercial Court in Pazin.

As Index writes, this means that the proposal of bankruptcy administrator Loris Rak was accepted - to abandon the model of sale through a public tender.

The auction is expected in the first half of May when a 54.77 percent stake in Uljanik Shipyard 1856 will be offered at a price that will be higher than that offered by the Czech group CE Industries at the beginning of the year, EUR 20.57 million.

The bankruptcy administrator's proposal

The starting price of Uljanik is 20.73 million euros, which is 75 percent of the estimated value, and the initial proposal of the starting price was increased by the intervention of the representative of the state.

Bankruptcy administrator Loris Rak proposed that 54.77 percent of shares in Uljanik Shipyard be auctioned at an initial price of 20.57 million euros, i.e., 155 million kuna, which was offered by the Czech group CE Industries at the beginning of the year.

"We accepted the bankruptcy administrator's proposal to do a public auction. The state agreed with the proposal but requested a change in determining the initial price below which it could not be sold.

We reasoned that it would be 75 percent of the estimated value, so the initial amount of EUR 20.7 million or HRK 156.2 million was determined," said Deputy County State Attorney Nevenka Kovčalija.

"It's hard to do business when you belong to no one"

She added that the state proposed, and the bankruptcy administrator accepted, that interested business entities be obliged to attach a statement to the documentation that they will maintain the shipbuilding activity.

When asked why the price was changed after the potential buyer proposed EUR 20.5 million and the state EUR 20.7 million, Kovčalija pointed out that she cannot prejudge the buyer and who will apply for the auction and that the state determined that it should be 75 percent of the estimated value, as is usually done in bankruptcy proceedings if the national financial agency manages the sale.

The director of Uljanik Shipyard 1856, Samir Hadžić, stated that more than five months were wasted unnecessarily and that this model should have been used from the beginning.

"It is difficult to do business when you belong to no one, when you have been on sale for a long time, when all existing or future business partners are waiting to see who will be the new owner. We can't wait for this to be completed and to finally talk business," said Hadžić.

"It would be silly to play with a potential customer and add millions"

Asserting that after this decision, "there is light at the end of the tunnel," the head of the Pula office of the Independent Workers Union of Croatia, Boris Cerovac, stated that it would be silly to play with a potential buyer and add, as he said, "little millions".

"The state has obviously played its game and raised the price by HRK 1 million. However, at this moment, it is important to go to the auction in the first half of May and that everything goes well for the benefit of the workers, the shipyard, and the city," said Cerovac.

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

April 25, 2023 - The British Telegraph published a report on Slavonia, which the author Jane Foster presented as "the most wonderful secret region" that is worth visiting and experiencing with regard to its natural, cultural, and eno-gastronomic attractions.

The report titled "The little-known European region that's making wine for the King's Coronation" was created in collaboration with the London representative office of the Croatian Tourist Board and the editorial staff of the Telegraph after the author visited the region in February.

Slavonian cities, nature parks, and numerous well-known wineries that nurture traditional wine production along with the local gastronomic offer are part of the details the Slavonia report highlights, particularly emphasizing places like Iločki Podrumi and the Traminac wine variety.

As they note from the Croatian Tourist Board, that wine has traditionally been consumed at the British Court since the coronation of the late Queen Elizabeth II and will be served at the coronation of King Charles III in London, one of the most important events in recent British history. 

Copyright Romulic and Stojcic

"In 1953, Ilocki Podrumi supplied Traminac for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II; in 2011, they sent ice-harvest Traminac for the wedding of William and Kate; and in 2018, berry harvest Traminac for the wedding of Harry and Meghan. 

Tradition being tradition, they will be sending Traminac Principovac (a semi-sweet white wine, produced in a limited edition) as a gift to Charles III and Camilla for their coronation on May 6, 2023".

In her report, Foster praises the local wine tradition, cultural wealth such as the old city center of Osijek and Ilok, as well as the special features of Vukovar and the wealth of flora and fauna of the Kopački rit nature park.

The Croatian Tourist Board adds that "the synergy of rich cultural heritage, numerous events, and natural beauty makes Slavonia a winning destination with a luxurious tourist offer for all markets, including Great Britain." 

Copyright Romulic and Stojcic

They also note that the new direct Ryanair flight on the London-Osijek route, which will operate four times a week from June and contribute to the traffic availability of Slavonian destinations, will contribute to the additional attractiveness of Slavonia on the UK market.

And the data from the Croatian eVisitor system confirms positive trends from the British market, writes Poslovni. "Positive trends from the British market are also confirmed by the data of the eVisitor system, according to which tourists from that market have spent almost 153,000 overnight stays in Croatia so far this year, or 3 percent more than in the same period of record 2019," concludes Croatian Tourist Board.

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

April 25, 2023 - Croatia supported the Kosovo membership application in the Council of Europe (CoE) at a meeting where Kosovo was given the green light to continue integration into the European organization. With 33 votes in favor, seven against, and five abstentions, the Committee of Ministers of the CoE supported the Kosovo application and sent it to the Parliamentary Assembly and the leading European organizations for the protection of human rights for a vote.

"We strongly supported the Kosovo membership application in the Council of Europe," the head of Croatian diplomacy told reporters. When asked about the Serbian boycott of the elections in the north of Kosovo, Grlić Radman said that the elections "were held in accordance with the constitution" and that they were legitimate, writes Index.

"A boycott is not a good solution; it is not a good model. It does not contribute to any solution to this issue," he added.

Grlić Radman, who participated in the meeting of EU foreign affairs ministers, said they also discussed the situation in Ukraine and Sudan, including the evacuation of EU citizens, the migrant crisis in Tunisia and Moldova, which the EU will help in the fight against cyber attacks.

The ministers spoke with their Ukrainian colleague Dmitr Kuleb and "again condemned the Russian aggression and looked for those instruments, ways that will make our condemnation even more restrictive," Grlić Radman said.

He added that out of about a hundred Croatian citizens, "everyone who wanted" was evacuated from Sudan, except one person he thinks is still on the way.

Grlić Radman thanked the European External Action Service, the Swedish Presidency, European embassies (French, Greek, etc.), and those outside the EU, such as the Saudi Arabian embassy, for their help.

As for Tunisia, Grlić Radman said that the situation in that country is worsening, and there is concern about a new wave of migrants.

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

April the 25th, 2023 - This newly launched platform's Chiriboo Funderbeam campaign hopes to target and successfully break into the markets of neighbouring Slovenia and Serbia.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Josipa Ban writes, the recently launched Chiriboo platform, the first regional digital tool for the presentation and sale of cars, has so far collected 48 thousand euros of capital through a crowdfunding campaign launched just a few days ago on the Funderbeam platform.

Currently, the largest investor is the company Commondo, Chiriboo's strategic partner, which invested 20 thousand euros. The rest of the investors are anonymous.

The aim is for the initiators of Chiriboo to collect between 100 and 200 thousand euros in the next fourteen days, which is the expected duration of this Chiriboo Funderbeam campaign. The money will then be invested back into the development of the platform and into regional expansion, and the first markets where Chiriboo plans to launch, after Croatia, are those of neighbouring Slovenia and Serbia.

Users and investors

The above was revealed by Marko Stojakovic, who is responsible for investments, finance and partnerships and the development of commercial products at Chiriboo, and is also one of the founders and director of the company Make IT Easy, which developed the MobilityOne software for fleet management.

Behind the Chiriboo project, namely, along with Stojakovic and the rest of the Make IT Easy team, there is a group of experienced experts from various fields. Among them is Juraj Sebalj, a rally driver, who is also one of the best connoisseurs of the automotive market and the general manager of Chiriboo, who plans to invest in a tool that should introduce digitalisation into the still very traditional automotive industry, where customers still prefer to see the vehicle "live" before making a purchase.

Stojakovic stated that with the new Chiriboo Funderbeam campaign, they plan to attract small and medium-sized investors who recognise the potential of the platform. Namely, it is a new platform that is aimed at users, that is, customers for whom it should make buying a car easier and more simple. The money they plan to collect will be enough, according to Stojakovic, for development and operations for the first year, after which they hope for a positive business result. So far, he said, they have invested 300,000 euros in software development alone, and they don't intend to stop there.

"The software and application (app) will be upgraded and we will continue to develop them both for years to come in accordance with the reaction of the market, that is, users and their comments and needs," Stojakovic pointed out.

The funderbeam experience

Currently, Chiriboo offers an overview of the prices, photos, technical data and equipment composition for more than 3000 models available on the Croatian automotive market. The main advantages of the platform's founders are two things - the smart "Search Engine" and the "Comparator". The smart "Search Engine" enables a simple search for models, and the "Comparator" enables their comparison. In addition to that, they have an enviable base of cars ready for quick delivery.

When asked why they decided to launch the Chiriboo Funderbeam campaign, Stojakovic replied that in general they have a good experience with the platform because they have already completed two rounds of crowdfunding on it with Make IT Easy.

For more, check out our business section.

April the 25th, 2023 - The Croatian ReversingLabs company has been going from strength to strength, and it has now entered into a strategic partnership with no less than PwC.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Josipa Ban writes, the Croatian ReversingLabs company, registered a software company which specialises in detecting and preventing attacks in the software supply chain, has now entered into a strategic partnership with PwC, a British consulting firm.

PwC's consulting services in combination with the Croatian ReversingLabs platform will provide organisations with much better protection against increasingly complex attacks on their software supply chains, according to ReversingLabs, a company that generates most of its revenue, 90 percent of it to be more precise, across the pond over on the American market.

“More than ever, vendors are dependent on software vendors, which creates a need for automation so that the risks arising from these relationships can be assessed quickly and at scale. The need is even greater when it is known that software suppliers rely on open source code, and that is increasingly being targeted by malicious actors," emphasised Mario Vuksan, the CEO of the Croatian ReversingLabs software company.

Penny Flint, a partner at UK PwC, added that this newly developed partnership will significantly help companies discover and understand the many risks that come from software. Benefits will also be found in the fact that customers of the combined service will be able to visualise the components in their software supply chain(s) and the risks they represent for their businesses.

They will be able to automate guarantees and will be given the proper tools and knowledge to protect their supply chains from start to finish. This will reduce the likelihood and effects of malware and tampering attacks throughout the entire software development and use cycle.

For more on Croatian products, companies and entrepreneurs, make sure to check out our dedicated business section.

April 24, 2023 - The grand opening of the renovated Small Roman Theater will be marked by a two-day music and stage program, which, apart from the inauguration of the future summer stage, is also intended as a gift to the Pula public on the occasion of the City Day celebration

The grand opening of the Small Roman Theater in Pula will take place on Pula City Day, May 5 this year. The opening ceremony will be accompanied by a sumptuous music and stage program directed by Krešimir Dolenčić and Aleksandar Švabić. The following day, May 6, the stage of the Small Roman Theater will host Perpetuum Jazzile, a Slovenian musical attraction and one of the most recognizable vocal groups in the world. This will officially celebrate the restoration of the original function of an extremely important ancient cultural monument in Pula, whose reconstruction was carried out by interdisciplinary teams of architects, designers, conservators, archaeologists, and art historians.

"The complex renovation project of the Small Roman Theater is behind us, and we are proud to soon present one of the most spectacular concert, theater, and performance spaces in this part of Europe. As a community, we have an obligation to protect the rich cultural heritage and at the same time think of ways to integrate this valuable cultural heritage into the modern fabric of the city so that it serves today's needs in culture, and the public gets the opportunity to enjoy a space of unique monumental value, atmosphere, and acoustic quality", said Darko Komšo, director of the Archaeological Museum of Istria.

In the first century of our era, the Small Roman Theater served the cultural needs of the then-population of Pula. The renovated version can accommodate around 1,250 people today and, just like in ancient times, it will be a medium for encounters of the audience and artists, various performers of performing arts, and its devotees. It is important to point out that after almost two decades of neglect, the Small Roman Theater was renovated using a contrasting method, using steel and white concrete, whereby exceptional care was taken to ensure that the foundations of the new construction did not touch or endanger the Roman remains of the building anywhere. 

The grandstands were completely built without nuts and bolts so as not to disturb the acoustics of the space, and the height and depth of the stairs correspond to the original proportions, whereby the ratio 1:2 was respected, according to the instructions from the "Ten Books on Architecture" by the famous Roman architect from 1 century BC, Vitruvius.

Part of the Small Roman Theater of Europe project is the monumental, 330 square meters large screen that was placed on the facade of the Archaeological Museum of Istria. The reconstruction project of the Small Roman Theater received an honorable award at the Piran Days of Architecture and was also nominated for the "Bernardo Bernardi" architectural award.

The renovation of the Small Roman Theater was financed by the European Fund for Regional Development and the funds of the Ministry of Culture and Media, as well as the own funds of the Archaeological Museum of Istria.

April 24, 2023 - All the ingredients are there for another fabulous season on Croatia's premier island, beginning with the opening of the largest hotel, Hotel Amfora.

I admit it, I fell in love with Hvar all over again this Easter.

Having lived there for 13 years full-time, Hvar will always be close to my heart, but it seemed the right decision to move back in 2016, and it was. But then when you return each time... 

Hvar in pre-season is among the best times to visit, and I thoroughly enjoyed the spectacular weather and the traditions of Easter. It really does have a unique atmosphere. And one of the best months of the year to be in Hvar Town is just around the corner - May. 

Back when I started writing about the island with the Total Hvar blog, May 10 was regarded as the unofficial start of the season in Hvar Town, for this is the Feast of St Prosper, the patron saint of the town, an occasion of processions, events and some fabulous food put on by the town's restaurants. It will be the start of a great week to be in the town, for five days later, May 15, is an important anniversary - 155 years since the birth of organised tourism in Europe with the founding of the Hvar Health Society back on May 15, 1868. The society catered to the needs of the convalescing Austro-Hungarian aristocracy on an island which had the nickname, the Austrian Madeira. The location of the first hotel is where luxury Palace Elisabeth Hotel stands today. 

If St Prosper used to unofficially hail the story of the tourism season back then, today there is a more practical indicator - the opening of Hotel Amfora, the largest hotel on the island and previously included in Conde Nast's top 30 resorts in Europe, and a great family getaway with its cascading pools and spectacular views. Part of the Suncani Hvar Hotels group, the opening of the hotel is closely related to bookings, and Hotel Amfora opened its doors this weekend for what promises to be a fantastic season.