Karla Lončar (1984)

Even though you won’t find Zagreb on the European music connoisseurs’ and record buyers’ map as an important location for getting records of any kind, for the local vinyl enthusiasts, there is one street that’s particularly important: Tratinska.

If you walk from the Center of the city towards the Trešnjevka area, you’ll have to pass Tratinska. On the right side of this street you’ll find two different, but somehow complementary music shops: one is Spirit of Music and the other, about 50 meters after it, is the Free Bird Music Shop.

The first one (photos on the right) offers a relatively vast selection of new and old CDs and vinyl – mostly indie, 80′s, jazz and soul. Place is extremely tidy and well sorted, so you won’t have problems browsing through any specific genre of your interest.

Free Bird Music Shop (larger photo) is slightly different. Seemingly chaotic and much heavy on the vinyl side, it is offering almost indefinite number of second-hand records. You’ll find all sorts of stuff there – from classic funk and disco records, often obscure but sometimes quite rare house and techno to kitschy ex-Yugoslavia folk and schlager scene.

However, pay attention to records of the new-wave and romantic period of Yugoslavian eighties. Also, check some Yugoslavian or Macedonian jazz records, they sound great and are very collectible. Don’t hesitate to ask staff for some help – even though the place seems quite chaotic, they are pretty aware of the stuff they stock.

One of my favorite places in Zagreb is definitely Booksa. Booksa is a book club, but you don’t have to be a member to enjoy everything this place offers (only, if you come there more than once, it’s advisable to sign up for their membership card). The catchy name comes from a slang – in Croatian “buksa” means prison. So, if you are “prisoner” of your love for literature you will feel like home here.

The atmosphere is very “homely” indeed – ordering drinks is a sort of self-service thing and after you sit back and relax on one of the cozy sofas you can feel free to take a look at various newspapers and literature magazines, even in foreign languages. This tobacco-free place delights all your senses because, once you enter, you are immediately surrounded by pictures or photos from local artists, good music and, of course, books.

You can run into a live concert, book presentation, some literature festival or one of many literature workshops held for its members. However, Booksa isn’t a standard bar – they serve alcohol only when mentioned manifestations are being held. “Soft” drinks, like coffee or tea are always attainable.

Booksa also offers lots of brochures and information about Zagreb cultural happenings. In that way, this book club is a perfect starting point for exploring the city.

Zagreb has a few Japanese restaurants but I must admit that I haven’t visited them yet, due to their budget-non-friendly price lists. Because of that, I personally welcomed the idea of opening of this relatively small sushi take away bar where you can choose from different varieties of Japanese delicacies. Besides sushi, you can order sashimi, miso soup, spring rolls and such. Everything mentioned is made by Chefs right in front of you.

MANZOKU sushi bar is situated in the city’s Centre and it won’t take you long to grab a few bites in the middle of your tour de Zagreb. It is good to know that you have a 20 % discount on sushi if you buy them between 13.00 and 14.00 hours and 30 % discount on the same goods between 19.00 and 22.00 hours. Their tastiness and lightness definitely serve the phrase „the more the merrier” – at least when it comes to indulging yourself with some food during nice city walks. After all, „manzoku” supposedly means „pleasure” in Japanese.

I must admit that there aren’t many good pizza restaurants in Zagreb. Call me overly critical but I can’t remember more than a few places where I can eat a really tasty pizza with quality ingredients.

However, if you ask a random person which is the best pizzeria in Zagreb, he or she would probably tell you that that is Karijola. Karijola definitely stands out of the „ordinary” pizza places because it serves pizza (and only pizza!) with ingredients such as an excellent smoked ham, olive oil, rich mozzarella, garlic, cherry tomatoes, rucola, oyster mushrooms etc. Its base is really thin and crusty, baked in clay oven. It is the closest you can get to Italian style pizza in Croatia.

But, when it comes to quality ingredients, it usually means that you have to pay a higher price than usual. Prices range from 42.00 Kn for a „plain” Margarita to 60.00 Kn for specialty of the house – pizza Karijola (on photo). You can also choose between a few varieties of beer and home made red and white wine.

The service is good, the interior is suitable for a highly dynamic restaurant as this one and the terrace is open during warmer months.

One of the easiest ways to escape the streets of Zagreb’s centre is to take a bus or just walk to the place between Tuškanac, Upper town’s Jurjevska street and Gornje Prekrižje area, called Cmrok. This giant and slightly rangy meadow, which arises from the woods, is beloved by many citizens who wish to relax surrounded by green grass and pine trees.

Cmrok is reachable by bus No.105 from Kaptol or British square, but I would recommend you to take a nice walk from British square or Upper town. Depending on your choice, you will surely be able to enjoy Zagreb’s residential areas (especially Tuškanac) and/or romantic streets of Upper town before you get to your destination.

The meadow of Cmrok isn’t overcrowded – you can feel free to chill out without being interrupted. There are lots of dog owners who walk their pets, so eventually, you may be distracted by some curious dog. This doesn’t count during Winter time, when snow falls and a great deal of children and grown-ups literally invade Cmrok for the purpose of sleigh-ride.

What I love the most about it is a beautiful view over the Lower town and Mirogoj arcades spreading from the hilly side of the lawn, which makes you in a perfect position to enjoy Zagreb’s cultural heritage while sitting in greenery.