Vukovar Croatia

I know I'm behind on my posts. Between the really poor connections on the ship and how busy they kept us, I've got a bunch of catching up to do.

I have to say that the differences between the first part of our cruise (Amsterdam to Budapest) was entirely different from the last part (Budapest to Bucharest.) It was not just the look and feel of the cities we visited but also the information provided and it's relevance to today. The first leg focused on medieval and Renaissance times, visiting the old walled cities and learning about the conquests since Roman times. We viewed castles and beautiful half-timbered houses. There was a gentleness to the land.

Once we left Hungary, there was a dramatic change in the sites we saw and the narration. Vukovar was the first stop. We hot on our buses and were transported to Osijek, the fourth largest city in Croatia

Our guide was a lovely young lady who was Croation. As she was explains about life prior to their fight for independence from Yugoslavia she explained how life was, hard but happy, she talked about the mixed marriages (Serbs & Croatians), the economy (poor), etc. In June 1991, the Croatian parliament passed a Declaration of Independence from Yugoslavia. Six months of intensive fighting with the Serbian-dominated Yugoslavian army followed, claiming thousand of lives.

Back to our tour, as you can see broom the picture below there is a stark contrast between what we saw prior to Budapest and the conditions in Croatia. We went to this lovely small church in Osijek and had a short concert by two young local folks. The young man was on the violin and the young lady played the cello. What talent! In fact, after the concert we were told that the young man was just awarded a scholarship to the University of Bavaria music school. Following the concert we went through the church courtyard and then toured the town

 

The memorial shown below was in the church courtyard and was dedicated to all those that died in Croatia's fight for independence. Look at the second photo and you will see that this structure is made out of armaments. A rather poignant statement!

Following that, we went to visit a man named Ovin (I think that was his name - too many days and cities have passed since then). He had created a type of museum in most of his house, a museum dedicated to agrarian and fishing artifacts of the town. One of the most bizarre was the costume below. It seems that the men of this region still wear these costumes and masks on certain holidays. He also had a myriad of brandies to try along with local snacks. Fortunately most of his brandies were on the sweeter side and not like some that we had been trying earlier. They say that a good brandy will go down smoothly and then explode with fire when it hits your stomach. A bad brandy burns as soon as it hits your mouth. To me both are bad!

We returned to the ship for lunch and had some free time to walk around Vukovar. This town was 90% destroy in the fight for independence. I don't remember the date, but there is one night that is remembered every year. It seems that the Serbs had taken the hospital in Vikovar and round up all 260 patients and killed them all. As our guide was talking about the atrocities that they underwent under the hands of the Serbs more than 10 years ago, it was obvious that time has not healed the wounds - understandably! Today. Vukovar has rebuilt most of the city but there are still some buildings that have not been rebuilt since the owners have not returned and claimed them. In order to rebuilt Croatia and entice refugees to return, the government will provide all the necessary building material to restore. Unfortunately, they are providing blocks, masonry, roofing, lumber, etc. and labor but will not finish the inside or the outside. That needs to be done at the owners expense. The owner does not to repay the state for the materials and work providing they live in the house and not sell it for 10 years.

There is the story of the Vukovar water tower. There was a glad of Croatia flying on the top of the water tower. The Serbs bomb the tower until the flag was hit. A man living near the water tower climbed up during the night and replaced the flag, not once, not twice, not three times but four times before the hostilities ended. The water tower has been left and not repaired as a reminder of their fight for independence.

These pipes were next to this building which has still not been repaired and most likely will not be. Yes those are bullet holes!

 

This building also has not been repaired,because the owner has not returned to reclaim it and most likely will not.

Notice the red blocks in the building on the left? That's the building material that the government provides to restore.

 

This is the inside of a building.

You have got to admire the hope of these folks. Someone planted these flowers in this shot up building. It is amazing that they can find beauty in the midst of all this!

This is the water tower, still standing as a remembrance of their freedom!

 

Yes this section of the world can be depressing but it is a constant reminder to me of how very lucky we are and how fortunate that we have the life styles we do and the freedom we do.

We leave Croatia tonight and will be in Belgrade Serbia in the morning. More in the next posting.

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