So, what's it like there?

With today's entry, I'll try to give you a glimpse of our life in Croatia. Today it is a balmy 93 degrees. It is a little on the humid side, but not unbearably so, as it might be in my home state of Missouri.

Zagreb is a city of about 750,000 people. It is more congested with traffic than even just a few years ago, due to more and more people owning cars now. Zagreb is made up of many small neighborhoods with winding side streets and always parked cars along the sidewalks. I'm not sure if its illegal to park on sidewalks, since so many people do it, but there rarely is any other place to park. It is uncommon to see big cars, like pickup trucks, Suburbans, or mini-vans. Most people who have a car drive very small economical cars, either because that's what they can afford, and/or because of the excellent gas mileage. This is a mighty big consideration since it costs us about $5 per gallon! We commonly see Peugot, BMW, Ford, (though not the styles we are familiar with in U.S.), Audi, etc.

There are many wonderful places to sit and have a cup of coffee. Almost any street you drive on, you will find a sign which says Caffe Bar with chairs and tables outside. It is a relaxing way to spend an hour, chatting with a friend over a hot, frothy cappacino. These places do not serve food, only drinks. If we want food, we have to look for a restaurant. Restaurants are much harder to find. They are hidden away behind signs that we cannot read, making me feel like I'm in the middle of a Where's Waldo book. Back in the U.S., restaurants stick out like sore thumbs everywhere you go, with tall, bright neon signs. Chain restaurants are everywhere, even in small town USA. The only chain restaurant here is McDonald's, which is fine every once in awhile when we get a hankering for some greasy fries or an apple pie.

Speaking of McDonald's, you might enjoy this little commentary under the "Fast Food" section of our local tour guide booklet, which is called "Zagreb In Your Pocket":

The tram was crowded and a generous scent of unfiltered human body odour pervaded every crevice. Just then some jerk with a golden-arched to-go bag entered the car. The smell of pure fry immediately overwhelmed the stench and quickly had everyone in the car salivating to the floorboards. That, dear friends, is the freakish and almost terrifying power of the McDonald's french fry.

Breakfast for most Croatians is a simple pastry and a coffee. Fantastic fresh baked bread is one of the pleasures of living here. It is impossible to find sliced bread. Instead, you pick up a fresh baked loaf from your local grocery, bring it home and slice it yourself. Just like in the good ole days. Croatian cuisine is often a mix of continental and coastal delicacies, with Italian, Hungarian and Turkish influence. You could choose from a long list of meats, like spiced meat patties, wild goose, wild duck, pheasant, beef, lamb, deer, sausages, wild boar or rabbit, along with a simple vegetable accompaniment. Believe it or not, we have been able to appease our love for Mexican food by eating at Mex Cantina, a beautifully decorated Mexican restaurant! Though the basket of chips was enough for just one person, the meals were tasty and delicious. There are also Chinese, French, Indian, Italian, Vegetarian, and Seafood restaurants to try out.

The currency in Croatia is called "kuna." The exchange rate has been about
5.6kn = $1. The tax rate is 22% and affects all goods and services except for bread, milk and books, and various charitable enterprises. It is very hard for the Croatian people to find jobs. We spoke with a lady who tried to get a job as a receptionist at a hotel in Zagreb. She was hired on a temporary basis for 15 days. She was told that she would be hired on 3 conditions: 1. she could not get pregnant, 2. she could not get sick, 3. if any money were to come up missing, it would be blamed on her. She did not take the job, and she was not paid for the 15 days she worked there!

Last weekend, we drove to Aviano Air Force Base in northern Italy. It was a 4 hour drive without a baby, and 5 1/2 hours with a baby! We drove through Croatia, Slovenia, and into Italy. We handed over $25 or more to traffic toll booths, but enjoyed smooth highways where we traveled at speeds between 70-80 mph, and often being passed by others who must have been traveling 90. I never knew Slovenia was such a beautiful place. It was a rolling countryside with farmlands, meadows, rivers, and small villages. There were many signs for pizzerias the closer we got to Italy. On our way back home, we stopped at a large travel plaza/gas station so I could take over driving. I was hoping to get a cup of coffee to go, but no such luck. The sign outside the building said there was coffee inside, but it was a cappacino bar, where you could stand and drink your coffee in a porcelein cup! I was disappointed that I couldn't drink my coffee while I drove, because for me, that is one of the pleasures of driving long distances!

There are many places we hope to visit during our stay here.... Art galleries, castles, cathedrals, landmarks, sculpture museums, national parks, Dalmatia Coast, Pula (where the 6th largest remaining Roman amphitheatre is located.)

All in all, not a bad place to be. Now that the boxes are unpacked and my house feels like "HOME, sweet HOME", I'm ready to get out and see Croatia... and beyond.