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Croatia

Front entrance to the church is very plain. What a nice surprise when you enter to see the ornateness.

Osijek has a fantastic market downtown.

Osijek has a great daytime market. I was told it was too far, 8 blocks to go and come back. that has never stopped me. Off I ran.

It was worth the visit.

Fantastic fresh flowers

It covers a huge area.

Tvrđa is the Old Town of the city of Osijek in Croatia. It is the best-preserved and largest ensemble of Baroque buildings in Croatia and consists of a Hapsburg star fort built on the right bank of the River Drava.

The inside courtyard of the Franciscan Church - The Church of the Raising of the Holy Cross. Jesus on the cross is a unique metal sculpture. The cross is made of artillery artifacts and worth the visit.

Also of interest in the courtyard of the Church is the memorial to the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust.

Inner courtyard of the church where the cross of metal and the statues of the remembance of the holicost victims. .

This is also known as the church of three naves or Trobrodna Bazilika. The richly decorated altar inside, the painted ceilings, the carved and gilded pulpit all a wonderful surprise.

Inside the Church of the Raising of the Holy Cross. The basic exterior gives way to an ornate interior which is well worth a visit. There is also a large painting of St. Francis on one wall and the Virgin Mary on the opposite wall.

The Church of St Peter and St Paul, the co-cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Đakovo-Osijek. The multi-tiered 270 foot spire is one of the city's landmarks.

Franciscan in Croatian

Tvrđa became a center of administrative, educational, cultural, and scholarly life in Osijek and the entire region.

.The fort hosts the Museum of Slavonia, the largest general-type museum in Croatia, located in Tvrđa since 1946.

The former town museum and archives building today houses the State Directorate for Monument Protection, a department of the Croatian Ministry of Culture.

The fort interior is now a center of Osijek's nightlife. There are numerous bars and restaurants in Tvrđa.[

More ruins from the war

This afternoon we were fortunate to be invited for lunch in a home outside of Osijek. What a delightful time. Our hostess prepared a traditional Croatian meal. Her father prepared an incredile local alcoholic drink which we all really appreciated.

Our hostess was originally from what is now the Bosnian part of old Yugoslavia. They fled to Germany during the war for 5 years and returned to find their home had been occupied by invading troops . Their Muslim friends now in traditional Muslim clothing of Hijibs with covered faces for the ladies and not western clothing. They left and came to the area called Croatia where her father in law had lived. Today it is home.

We were so fortunate to eat outside in the patio area. Today she also rents out rooms for visitors in the area for several days at a time.

Sign advertising rooms for rent for visitors vacationing in the area. for her home.

Patio area we ate.

All too soon we had to say goodbye and thank you for a wonderful informative and delicious afternoon in her home.

Our ship had been moved to the town of Batina where we met the ship to cruise onto Hungary. When we returned to the ship we found several locals selling local handmade items to take home with us.

Our ship ready to sail to our last port of Budapest, Hungary.

A coffee house we stopped at briefly with an English name.

Docking in Vukovar.

Scars from the conflict in the distance in the tall building remain today..

New life and investments are also coming to the city.

The city is situated at the banks of the Vuka and Danube Rivers. It is slowly returning to former glory and again looks forward to a brighter future in spite of numerous obstacles. We boarded buses for a tour of Vukovar and headed to Osijek.

Small early morning markets dot the countryside.

Looks like a brother to the famous Manneken Pis fountain in Brussels, Belgium..

Vukovar was the site of the worst artillery shelling of the Croatian Serbian War. Throughout the town scars still remain from the terrible conflicts.

Young boys playing football, soccer, in the early morning.

Ruins from the war are in the countryside too. Homes abandoned or families killed. or fled never to return. .

Rapeseed also know as oil seed rape, we saw it growing in the Romanian Countryside. It is grown for the production of animal feed, edible vegetable oils and is used as diesel fuel.

New apartment buildings are being built.

Football stadium

Having left Serbia the night before we wake up on the Danube River in Vukovar, Croatia .

We arrive in Osijek, the administrative and economic center of eastern Coatia. It is situated about 15 miles from the mouth of the Danube.

New centers have been built in recent years.

Flags of the region we are visiting.

Our local guide Teodora in Osijek gave us great informaton of life during the Croatian - Serbian war and great informaton about the city of Osijek..

Osijek was heavily damaged during the Croatian =Serbian war that raged from 1991 to 1995.

The area the city occupies today was populated even in prehistoric times. The Romans erected the first urban settlement. But the geographical location made it prey to assault throughout the centuries. It was destroyed by the Huns, rebuilt in the Middle ages, destroyed by the Turks and rebuilt again in the 18th century.

Osijek boasts an eclectic architectural heritage.

The Church of St Peter and St Paul, the co-cathedral stands tall in the city.

Numerous new business are opening in the city.

The church was built in 1898.

Tram traffic is the only traffic in the square and surrounding streets. All traffic has been removed from thecentral area.

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