After
WWII, Croatia became one of the federal republics in Yugoslavia.
It proclaimed its independence in 1990 and became its own nation.
But part of the Serbian population rebelled so from 1991-1997 there
was a terrible homeland war with Serbia. Much of the nation was
bombed and some fields still have mine fields.
Croatia is best known for its beautiful coastline along the Adriatic.
However, we were inland and visited the town of Osijek. We walked
through a fortress built in the early 1700's and visited the beautiful
church of the Holy Cross built in 1732. It
is also known as the Church of St. Anthony, the patron saint of
things lost.
Then
we stopped by an elementary school where the children put on a performance
of songs, skits and dancing. Though Croat is the official language,
children learn English starting in the 1st grade, along with Hungarian
and Serbian.
Lunch
was in a private home in a nearby small village. The whole village
was destroyed during the war with Serbia and families were forced
to relocate to other towns and countries. Ten years later, after
the war, the government rebuilt the houses but only the bare bone
structure and smaller according to the number of family members.
We had a chance to talk to our hostess who had lived under communism
under Tito, then through the war with Serbia and now in her restored
village. Given all she has experienced, she said life under Tito
was the best!
After
dinner onboard the ship, a Croatian string band entertained us with
their music.
To view more photos from Croatia, go to the Croatia
Photo Gallery.
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