Gossamer trails: Zagreb

"I cannot endure to waste anything as precious
as autumn sunshine by staying in the house.
So I spend almost all the daylight hours
in the open air.
- Nathaniel Hawthorne

(photo by Barbara Bertovic)

The long, hot summer is now long gone, and the autumn, 'the artist's muse', has entered the city through the main gate. I figured it would be about time to share with you a walk through my beloved home town, Zagreb. The laziness that has once again overpowered many of us could be associated with the wonderful gossamer days that serve as a one-way ticket to delightful afternoon strolls through the medieval streets and parks that have enriched both my childhood memories and my present life. You will not encounter photos of the small threads spun by baby spiders, that carry them through the air to their new lives... but perhaps you will breathe in that famous autumn spirit that Zagreb is well known for, both to its citizens and long-time visitors... a flimsiness barely visible... just like gossamer.

one of many medieval stairs and
secret pathways of the Old town
(Kapucinske stube)

(an old photo by a famous photographer
Marija Braut, ''Kapucinske stube'')

Zagreb Upper town still has gas lamps
which have to be lit before the dark

(Berlin is the European city with the most gas lamps — cca 40,000.
London, Dublin, Kraków, Warszaw, Zagreb and a handful of other
cities have retained them or retrofitted their streets as well)

"On such a day each road is planned
To lead to some enchanted land;
Each turning meets expectancy.
The signs I read on every hand.
I know by autumn's wizardry
On such a day the world can be
Only a great glad dream for me--
Only a great glad dream for me!"
- Eleanor Myers Jewett, An Autumn Day

the famous Lotrscak Tower


Zagreb has an interesting way in which it marks the noon hour. Other cities may mark the hours including noon with chimes, tolling bells or melodies, but Zagreb is rather unique in announcing the noon hour with an ear-shattering burst from an artillery cannon placed on top of the very Lotrscak Tower. ( Noonday 'Chime' Video)






the most prominent feature of the
Old town: Cathedral's twin neo-gothic
spires built in 1899

another medieval path

Town's legend: this guy has been doing his
gymnastics all over the Upper town for decades

The town center is surrounded by a"green horseshoe"
of wonderful parks, creating an "intriguing blend"
of busy squares and leafier areas.


from the tourist's point of view

a story of Zagreb