The Pearl of the Adriatic: Croatia

"Don't trust anyone in Croatia and know that we do not rush through our cappuccino and coffee like Americans," the bellboy at the Hotel Palace in Croatia told me about 10 minutes after I had arrived and asked what the most imperative thing to know about Croatia was. Exhausted and cranky, after a few connecting flights and the rocky flight on Croatia Airlines over the Alps which really forced my motion sickness to come into play, I had finally arrived.

All of the pictures I had seen online previous to the press trip did no justice to the actuality of how beautiful Croatia really was. I stood for about 5 minutes outside my hotel just watching people walk by. Noticing the hairstyles, clothes, dispositions and demeanor that was Zagreb. Middle School children walked down the streets smoking cigarettes as carelessly as American's drink water bottles. 

We started off in Zagreb, the capital and the busiest up and coming city in Croatia. I could hear the hustle and bustle all around me. Everyone seemed to be walking at a steady, but slow pace...I remember asking our tour guide, "Doesn't anyone have to rush off to work?" She laughed. "People in Croatia are enjoying their lives. Meeting with friends, having a cigarette and an espresso, we are not running running all the time like Americans." I quickly learned that this was how Croatia was. Everyone was enjoying the moments, and savoring each sip, and damn did I like that way of thinking. I was jealous to see Croatian's sipping cappuccino's at the various outdoor cafes and leisurely having conversations with friends and lovers without any notion of time, or rushing. I thought to myself....I like the sound of this, I think I'll stay for a while.