As I was handing in approximately the 99th document I needed in order to open a tourist agency, in our small but rather bureaucratic country, filled with the kind of enthusiasm you see in every optimist drunken with the idea of trying to create something special through his own business, a frightening idea crossed my mind - I will be missing only the best time of the year - summer in Šibenik!
Maybe I should've done what most of my clever colleagues from the Faculty of Philosophy had done, get a job at school, teaching kids a little about Weber and Marx, a little about passato prossimo and the prepositions, enjoying my three-months vacation on one of amazing islands of Šibenik Archipelago , activating granny-service and visiting all those festivals that make Šibenik more famous each year (OK, maybe the title ''Mecca of festivals'' is a bit too pretentious, but if you multiply the top lists of prestigious magazines on which some of those festivals are placed with years of tradition some of those festivals have, and divide it with the number of enthusiasts in Šibenik, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about). But no, I decided to spend the very best part of the year working like a horse, playing a doorkeeper, translator, psychologist, manager, cleaning lady...
My mother's comment, and she's the biggest rationalist I've ever met, was: ''Don't waste your time. Deciding to be your own boss in the time of recession is simply bad timing... ''
Because of my hobby, I had the chance to travel a lot and visit so many beautiful countries, and I was always surprised how some countries, with a lot of work and enthusiasm, simply know the right way to use and sell what they've got. Šibenik definitely has a lot to offer, and it seems that others have finally realized it.
The amazing beauty of the untouched islands in Šibenik
Archipelago, numerous festivals, including Terraneo, the International
Children's Festival, The Garden Tisno, Chansone, Regius, Off jazz&blues festival,.... There's also the
brand new city beach ''Banj'' from which you can enjoy one of the best views of
St James Cathedral, and let us not forget the amazing apartments which
definitely don't fit into the old fashioned idea - OK, I've got 4 walls, why
don't I furnish them with the old things from my place, and buy some new
furniture for myself.
You'll find so many gorgeous apartments, some of which
hide real historical legends, art work and details which will thrill you with
its inventiveness and love that was put into their decoration.
Art apartments
Penthouse Happy bird
To my great joy, my acquaintance Ana Bujas opened a
store which, in my opinion, should be obligatory in every tourist place. In
this charming little store called ''Galerijana'', placed inside an old stone
house at Gorica, you won't find any typical 'made-in-China' souvenirs that you
can see at the majority of souvenir stands in our tourist places. Unique pieces
of clothes straight from the hands of renown Croatian designer and sculptress
Ivana Popović, hand made leather handbags, ''Sapunoteka'' natural cosmetics,
sailors with inspiring messages by famous Croatian academic painter Ana Kolega,
and so much more!
Galerijana
Morana and her boyfriend Terii were simply enchanted
by the beauties of Šibenik. Terii, who comes from New Zealand and lives and
works in Florida, was so ecstatic about Šibenik, that in one moment (I'll skip
all of the adjectives he used, to make the story short), he declared that he
felt like walking through the Bible itself. I know, some will say I'm
exaggerating, but believe me, I'm just
quoting his own words.
Pelegrini
I found time to go and see a lovely puppet-show about
Pinocchio, the legendary wooden puppet, in interpretation of French Theatre ''Compagnie
Jean-Pierre Lescot'', at the Summer Stage of the International Children's
Festival, and see the face of my favorite three-year-old after watching his
very first fireworks at the opening of the 52nd International Festival,
describing it with these words: ''This is the most beautiful thing I've seen in
my whole life!''. By the way, when I was a kid, that same fireworks and all the
little joys about the Festival's opening, where something we used to wait for
the whole year, and wouldn't miss for the world!
At the time of the festival, the city becomes a
revelation of children's imagination and creativity, and this year was no
exception. The colorfulness and children's imprecision fit perfectly in the
Medieval face of the old part of Šibenik.
Every morning, after grabbing the best coffee in town on my way to
office, I had a chance to witness the incredible music workshop led by Bill
Connor, just steps away from my office window. Even now I can hum you the
melody which was making me smile for 10 days.
Maša :)
No matter how busy I thought I would be, I knew that Terraneo was something I had to visit this year as well, and thank God, I managed to spare two nights! Couple of years ago I went to Exit Festival in Novi Sad, and it was absolutely perfect, but Terraneo, regardless of how young a festival it still is, has nothing to be ashamed of in comparison to other, older festivals. Apart from all the big names that attract over 45000 people each year, the next thing to mention is definitely the relaxed Terraneo atmosphere. Where else could you wake up in the morning, go to the beach only a kilometer away and refresh yourself in clear blue sea, later go to one of the National Parks here, and finally enjoy, on festival grounds, a glass of exquisite vine, thanks to the wine bar ''Vino&Ino'', or chose between a fried Monkfish and a shark sandwich in local fast food ''Šešula''....yummy!
Just follow our example, cause nobody knows best
places to eat better than the locals do. Visit one of our finest restaurants,
such as Uzorita, with a 100-year-old tradition, and indulge your taste buds
with sheepshead bream carpaccio, black truffles and capers, followed with a
glass of some great vine from their rich vine offer.
I saved the best for last, my favorite place in the
world - the island
of Kaprije
Thanks to Mario and his tractor, we didn't have to
drag our luggage up the hill to our apartment. Yes, you heard it right - a
tractor! All of the islands in Šibenik Archipelago (with the exception of
Žirije) are car free and completely without traffic, which is another plus if you're
planning to spend your vacation with kids.
We had coffee and took of to Margita's place. Our nice
apartment owner welcomed us with 'rakija', which is still a kind of enigma for
us, since nobody's really sure what it is made of. Walnuts, honey, carob,
whatever it is, one thing is undeniable - Margy's rakija is incredible! She showed us our apartment which was simply
adorable, and only few minutes walking distance to the beach and the centre, and some 10 minutes to Plitka Polokva
Beach
We had our morning routine, coffee at one of the local
bars, a visit to Zrinka and Nino's
Liberty Beach Bar for the perfect Mojito, afterwards climbing the wild roads to
Mala Nozdra Bay for the incredible lunch and another glass of good vine (funny,
but from this perception, someone might think that we spent the summer getting
drunk :) ! What a life!!
Mario transfer
sailer Bepo :)
Little Margy's home
Beach bar Liberty
on our way to Nozdra
Oh, I almost forgot, I managed to catch the first
night of Regius Festival, too, and had a great time listening to Marčelo,
Superhiks and my favourite band - Let 3!
And there's still so much more I wanted to visit,
events like Murter Rock Fest, Salsa Fest, Vodice's hot night life, Skradin's
rich gastro offer, Garden Fest, Medieval Fare in Šibenik... But don't worry!
Remember those clever colleagues of mine I mentioned earlier, from the Faculty
of Philosophy? Well, they had three lazy summer months, and they'll share some
of their stories with you in some of our next blogs.
Šibenik has got nothing to offer?? That's the biggest
delusion I've ever heard! Maybe that's how it used to be, but those times are
behind us. We have finally opened our eyes, realized what we've got, and we're
going to get better every year!! :)
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