Zagreb at night

Capital of Croatia, Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of Croatia. Zagreb is the cultural, scientific, economic and governmental center of the Republic of Croatia in the Prigorje region. The city's population in 2006 was 784,900(approx. 1.1 million in the metropolitan area). It is situated between the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain and both northern and southern bank of the Sava river at an elevation of approximately 122 m above sea level. Its favorable geographic position in the southwestern part of the Pannonian Basin, which extends to the Alpine, Dinaric, Adriatic and Pannonic regions, provides an excellent connection for traffic between Central Europe and the Adriatic Sea. The transport connections, concentration of industry, scientific and research institutions and industrial tradition underlie its leading economic position in Croatia. Zagreb is the seat of the central government, administrative bodies and almost all government ministries. Zagreb is an important tourist center, not only in terms of passengers travelling from Western and Central Europe to the Adriatic Sea, but also as a travel destination itself. Since the end of the war, it has attracted around half a million visitors annually, mainly from Austria, Germany and Italy. However, the city has even greater potential as many tourists that visit Croatia skip Zagreb in order to visit the beaches along the Croatian Adriatic coast and old historic Renaissance cities such as Dubrovnik, Split, and Zadar. The historical part of the city to the north of Ban Jelačić Square is composed of the Gornji Grad and Kaptol, a medieval urban complex of churches, palaces, museums, galleries and government buildings that are popular with tourists on sightseeing tours. The historic district can be reached on foot, starting from Jelačić Square, the center of Zagreb, or by a funicular on nearby Tomićeva Street.

Marjan

Marjan is a low lying mountain landform (hill) on the peninsula of the city of Split, capital of Croatia's Dalmatia region. It is covered in a dense Mediterranean pine forest and completely surrounded by the city and the sea, making it a unique sight. Originally used as a park by the citizens as early as the 3rd century AD, it is a favorite weekend excursion destination and a recreational center for the city. It is also the setting for numerous beaches and jogging trails as well as tennis courts and the city ZOO, all surrounded by the scenic forest. The tip of the peninsula houses the Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries (Institut za Oceanografiju i Ribarstvo, IZOR). Marjan is 189m tall and offers a breathtaking view on the city, the surrounding islands, and the nearby mountains of Mosor and Kozjak

Dubrovnik Croatia

Dubrovnik, Latin Ragusium, also Rhausium, Rhaugia) is a historic city on the Adriatic Sea coast in the extreme south of Croatia, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its population was 43,770 in 2001 down from 49,728 in 1991. In the 2001 census, 88.39% of its citizens declared themselves as Croats. Since 1979, the historic centre of Dubrovnik has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. The prosperity of the city of Dubrovnik has always been based on maritime trade. In the Middle Ages, as the Republic of Ragusa, it became the only eastern Adriatic city-state to rival Venice. Supported by its wealth and skilled diplomacy, the city achieved a remarkable level of development, particularly during the 15th and 16th centuries. Ragusa was one of the centres of the development of primarily the Croatian language and literature, home to many notable poets, playwrights, painters, mathematicians, physicists and other scholars. In Croatian and all other Slavic languages, the city is known as Dubrovnik; in Dalmatian Romanic, Italian, Latin and formerly in English as Ragusa (earlier Ragusium, Rhausium, Rhaugia; Greek: Ραυγια, Raiyia or Ραγουσα, Ragousa). However, today more and more Italian sources use name Dubrovnik instead of Ragusa. The Slavic toponym Dubrovnik comes from the name of a Slavic tribe, the Dubrons, which had gained a foothold around the oak forest (dubrava meaning "oak forest") in the hills north of the walled city of Ragusa by the end of the 11th century. Pressured by hostile tribes from the interior, the Dubrons asked the Republic to grant them refuge inside the walls and they obtained the right of asylum and the residence in a marginal quarter of the city. Among themselves, the refugees named the quarter after their native-born village: Dubrovnik. The current name was officially adopted in 1909, when the city was under Austro-Hungarian rule.

Dubrovnik Croatia

In Croatian and all other Slavic languages, the city is known as Dubrovnik; in Dalmatian Romanic, Italian, Latin and formerly in English as Ragusa (earlier Ragusium, Rhausium, Rhaugia; Greek: Ραυγια, Raiyia or Ραγουσα, Ragousa). However, today more and more Italian sources use name Dubrovnik instead of Ragusa. The Slavic toponym Dubrovnik comes from the name of a Slavic tribe, the Dubrons, which had gained a foothold around the oak forest (dubrava meaning "oak forest") in the hills north of the walled city of Ragusa by the end of the 11th century. Pressured by hostile tribes from the interior, the Dubrons asked the Republic to grant them refuge inside the walls and they obtained the right of asylum and the residence in a marginal quarter of the city. Among themselves, the refugees named the quarter after their native-born village: Dubrovnik. The current name was officially adopted in 1909, when the city was under Austro-Hungarian rule. The city was ruled by aristocracy that formed two city councils. As usual for the time, they maintained a strict system of social classes. The republic abolished the slave trade early in the 15th century and valued liberty highly. The city successfully balanced its sovereignty between the interests of Venice and the Ottoman Empire for centuries. The economic wealth of the Republic was partially the result of the land it developed, but especially of the seafaring trade it did. With the help of skilled diplomacy, Ragusa's merchants traveled lands freely, and on the sea the city had a huge fleet of merchant ships (argosy) that traveled all over the world. From these travels they founded some settlements, from India to America, and brought parts of their culture and vegetation home with them. One of the keys to success was not conquering, but trading and sailing under a white flag with the word freedom (Latin: Libertas) prominently featured on it. That flag was adopted when slave trading was abolished in 1418. Many Conversos (Marranos) — Jews from Spain and Portugal — were attracted to the city. In May, 1544, a ship landed there filled exclusively with Portuguese refugees, as Balthasar de Faria reported to King John. During this time there worked in the city one of the most famous cannon and bell founders of his time: Ivan Rabljanin (Magister Johannes Baptista Arbensis de la Tolle). The Republic gradually declined after a crisis of Mediterranean shipping — and especially a catastrophic earthquake in 1667 that killed over 5000 citizens, including the Rector, leveling most of the public buildings — ruined the well-being of the Republic. In 1699 the Republic sold two patches of its territory to the Ottomans in order to avoid terrestrial borderline, with advancing Venetian forces. In 1806 the city surrendered to French forces, as that was the only way to cut a month's long siege by the Russian-Montenegrin fleets (during which 3000 cannonballs fell on the city). At first Napoleon demanded only free passage for his troops, promising not to occupy the territory and stressing that the French were friends of the Ragusans. Later, however, French forces blockaded the harbours, forcing the government to give in and let French troops enter the city. On this day, all flags and coats of arms above the city walls were painted black as a sign of grief. In 1808, Marshal Marmont abolished the republic and integrated its territory into the Illyrian provinces.

croatia

officially the Republic of Croatia is a southern Central European country at the crossroads between the Pannonian Plain and the Mediterranean Sea. Its capital is Zagreb. Croatia borders with Slovenia and Hungary to the north, Serbia to the northeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the east, and Montenegro to the far southeast. Its southern and western flanks border the Adriatic Sea, and it also shares a sea border with Italy in the Gulf of Trieste. Croatia is a member of United Nations, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe and the Council of Europe. The country is also a candidate for membership of the European Union and received a NATO membership invitation on 3 April 2008. On October 17, 2007 Croatia became a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2008-2009 term.

zagreb

The modern name Zagreb likely comes from the common Slavic word "zagrabiti" (English: to scoop). There are several legends about the origins of the name of Zagreb. According to one, a lady was thirsty and she took water from Lake Manduševac (nowadays a fountain). While she was taking the water, other people shouted, "Zagrebi Mando, zagrebi!" which means, "Scoop it, Manda, scoop it!".Another legend says that a Croatian ban was moving with his army through a deserted region and the soldiers were struck by thirst. In his anger, the ban thrust his sabre into the ground, at which point water began to pour out, and he ordered the soldiers to scrape the soil (Croatian: zagrebati zemlju) in order to get to the water. The verb zagrebati in the sense of digging is also believed to have something to do with the name of the city as the city lay behind a water-filled hole (graba). This theory is supported by some scientists. There is also an interesting theory that Zagreb may mean a place behind a hill ("za bregom"), i.e. behind the Sava river's bank, and then the name just changed into Zagreb. This theory is supported by the fact that Sava had once flowed nearer to the center of the city. At today's Ban Jelačić square in the very center of Zagreb, pieces of what was once a wooden boat have been unearthed. Some scientists believe that the name Zagreb is not of Slavic origin, just as the name Croat (Croatian: Hrvat) is believed not to be of that origin. However, if the name does derive from a Slavic language, then possibly the most acceptable explanation is the city za grebom, i.e. "behind the tomb". The tomb could be the one in Marin Držić Avenue or one of many other still undiscovered tombs near Grič or Kaptol. The Austrian name for Zagreb was Agram. This name has fallen out of regular use in Austria since the fall of Austro-Hungarian empire. While Hungary still uses Zágráb, Germany and Switzerland stick to Zagreb.

Dubrovnik,old city in Croatia

Dubrovnik in Croatia

Croatia

Flag of Croatia

Croatia flag

Croatian coat of arms.. Hrvatski grb....

Croatia

Croatian coat of arms... Hrvatski grb...