Croatia - Eastern Europe - page 197

Color Me Beautiful—and Bizarre
It may be a case of “If you can't beat 'em, celebrate 'em,” but Zagreb has cre-
ated a venue for graffiti artists who routinely cover the city's buildings with
their artwork and commentary. In deference to them, a long wall along Bran-
imirova Ulica has been designated as a public canvas and it is covered with col-
orful images of everything from portraits to profanity.

Fun Fact

Bishop Josip Strossmayer began collecting art when he became bishop of D akovo.
He secured funds to build the beige 19th-century building at Trg Nikole S ubi 5 a Zrin-
skog 11 ( & 01/489-51-17 ), where the Strossmayer Gallery of Old Masters
opened in 1884 to house his vast collection of mostly religious art. Today it is also
home to the fabled Ba s ka Tablet, which is the oldest known example of Glagolitic
script in existence and perhaps Croatia's most important artifact. The tablet is dis-
played under glass in the ground-floor lobby without any conspicuous sign or fanfare.
Entry to the gallery is on the third floor, though no signs direct you there.
The Ethnographic Museum at Ma z urani 5 ev Trg 14 ( & 01/482-62-20 ),
south of Trg Mar s ala Tita, is loaded with a dizzying array of traditional aprons and
tunics from all parts of Croatia, as well as collections of agricultural artifacts such as
olive- and grape-growing implements and winemaking items. Most of the museum's
collections were acquired in the 19th and 20th centuries and cover the full spectrum of
how people worked and lived in Old Croatia. Don't miss the gingerbread collection.
Croatian-born Ante Topi 5 Mimara was a lifelong collector who bequeathed his
treasures to his country. While there has been some controversy about the provenance
of some of the works, the Mimara Museum 's vast portfolio is impressive. The
museum at Rooseveltov Trg 5 ( & 01/482-81-00 ) opened in 1987, but displays are
surprisingly unsophisticated and the lighting design does not show the works to
advantage. Captions are in Croatian only.
FARTHER AFIELD
Ski, hike, or bike on Mount Medvednica (Bear Mountain) 20 minutes north of the
Zagreb's center, where cafes, ski rental shops, warming huts, caves, and a medieval
fortress of Medvedgrad await. If you drive, the turns up to the top are rather
steep, but you don't have to worry about oncoming traffic because the road up is one-
way, as is the road down. Take the cable car ( & 01/458-03-94 ) to the top for 11kn
($2/£1) or back down for 17kn ($3/£1.55). Open daily 8am to 8pm.
Note: Be sure you pay attention when driving or biking back to Zagreb: There is a
road that goes to the back side of the mountain and ends up in the Zagorje region.
Many of Croatia's heroes and common folk are buried in fascinating Mirogoj
Cemetery , but this is no Arlington or Shady Lawn. Mirogoj is a mix of archi-
tecture that includes soaring domes; a neo-Renaissance arcade; and trees, flowers, and
gravestones adorned with Christian crosses, Jewish six-pointed stars, socialist five-
pointed stars, and slender five-sided Muslim headstones because people of all faiths
and nationalities are interred here without segregation. To get to Mirogoj, take the no.
106 bus from Kaptol opposite the cathedral for or the no. 14 tram from Trg Jela c i 5 a
toward Mihaljevac. Exit at the fourth stop. Open daily 8am to 8pm.