Mark Thomas - The editor and big chief of The Dubrovnik Times. Born in the UK he has been living and working in Dubrovnik since 1998, yes he is one of the rare “old hands.” A unique insight into both British and Croatian life and culture, Mark is often known as just “Englez” or Englishman. He is a traveller, a current affairs freak and a huge AFC Wimbledon fan.
Email: mark.thomas@dubrovnik-times.com
Dubrovnik will have eight weekly flights to Helsinki for 2018 after the Finland national airline announced an increase in flights for the next summer season. Finnair already operates flights to Dubrovnik and as a result in the rise in interest in Dubrovnik the airline has announced that they will operate eight flights a week in the summer of 2018. Dubrovnik isn’t the only destination to receive more flights, as Split will have five weekly flights and Pula twice weekly.
Speaking to the website EX-YU Aviation News, Finnair Manager, Satu Haataja, said, "Slovenia and Croatia are very popular leisure destinations from Finland. A lot of the travel is point to point but we do see an increase in transfer traffic as well, those destinations are becoming increasingly popular among our Asian customers, particularly from Japan".
Finnair is the largest airline in Finland and transports over 10 million passengers a year, and is also the fifth oldest airline in continuous operation.
Tickets for the Dubrovnik - Helsinki route are already available for sale on the Finnair website and a return tickets starts from around 220 Euros and the first flight of 2018 takes off on Saturday the 14th of April.
In 1999 the Croatian government passed a decision to proclaim the 18th of November is “The Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Vukovar in 1991” in order to honour in a dignified manner everyone who took part in the defence of Vukovar.
Various events were held in Dubrovnik to mark and remember this day and one of the most colourful was held last night on the main road into Dubrovnik. In front of the mural, which is dedicated to the “City of Heroes,” on the main road members of the Hadjuk Spilt supporters group, known as Torcida, lit candles and flares to commemorate the day.
Atlantic Grupa has launched the production of Argeta pate in the United States with high sales revenue expectation, announced the company a few days ago.
One of the leading food companies in the region, the Croatian multinational company Atlantic Grupa started the production of the delicate spread Argeta in the city of Harrisburg in Pennsylvania. In the first year of its operations, the company expects sales revenue of $3 million.
The Argeta pate will be produced in accordance with strict criteria and top class technology exclusively for the North American market in cooperation with the Brother & Sister company in Harrisburg.
During November and December, in cooperation with local distributers, Atlantic Grupa will launch an intensive distribution of Argeta to almost 2,000 sales outlets in the US and Canada followed by a powerful promotional campaign, first at sales outlets and in digital media.
‘’As one of the bearers of the internalization process in the whole of Atlantic Grupa, we have decided for a brave and ambitious but well-planned and realistic strategy of expansion outside Europe, where we have already confirmed our position’’, emphasized Enzo Smrekar, the director of the Strategic Business Area Delicate pate at Atlantic Grupa.
According to Smrekar, Argeta accounts for 37 percent of the Austrian market, almost 30 percent in Switzerland, whilst in Germany and Sweden the Croatian pate is progressing from stable 10 percent of the market.
‘’We are now opening the door of the American market with a great potential which we will surely know how to use’’, commented Enzo Smrekar.
Looking for a luxury yacht with a colourful history? At a starting price of only 80,000 Euros. One of the yachts of Tito’s former yachts “Jadranka” is up for sale, according to an announcement by the Government of Montenegro the yacht was proclaimed as “redundant for the needs of the state intuitions and bodies” and is therefore up for sale.
The starting price was decided by a court appointed valuator as 80,000 Euros, but it was added that if there were no offers the yacht would be sold for parts and scrap. Jadranka was built in 1977 in a Croatian shipyard and at the beginning of the Homeland War was withdrawn from its berth in Croatia to Montenegro.
There is a good chance that Jadranka will not meet the starting offer of 80,000 Euros as the vessel is in need of very complicated and expensive repairs and is far from seaworthy.
Just at the entrance to the Old City, at Pile bridge, tourist from South Korea made a spontaneous photo exhibition! He presented his photographs that were made on his journeys.
Everybody are welcome to take any photo that they like while passing by. If they wish they can also leave money contribution, but it's optional, since all photos are free.
-I'm not selling pictures, I'm sharing memories. Live today, not tomorrow – it's written above his photos.
There was a great interest around this spontaneous exhibition – amongst locals and tourists. Some were really excited to see the places that they visited captured by the camera of this special Korean photographer.
The Triathlon Club Dubrovnik and the Dubrovnik Sports Association announce marathon Dubrovnik 10K on Sunday, November 19th from 09:30 to 11 am.
It is a race held on the road and the route is Lapad bay – Post office Lapad – INA Orsan, Restaurant Orsan – Solitudo – Mandrac – Copacabana – President – Neptun – Hotel More – Kompas – Lapad bay. There will be two laps of five kilometers.
Therefore, citizens and their guests are asked for co-operation and to not use this route during Sunday's race for security reasons. Traffic will be regulated on the roads.
-We recommend to the citizens that find themselves at Lapad bay during the race to give the runners the advantage and to leave the middle of the promenade for the race - the Triatlon Club Dubrovnik and the Dubrovnik Sports Association announced.
The 10K race is also the final event of the popular Dubrovnik RUN league, which guarantees the arrival of a large number of runners from the Dubrovnik area as well as the wider region. It also offers the possibility for both beginners and experienced runners to test their shape and speed on one of the most attractive walking/running trails in Dubrovnik.
Despite the abundance of sun and ‘’tourist’’ roofs, Croatia is at the rear among European countries when it comes to the use of solar energy.
Croatia has 300 sunny days a year, rich natural resources and thousands of rooftops of hotel and tourist facilities; however, the country does not make the most of renewable energy resources in tourism, especially solar energy.
Greenpeace Croatia recently held a conference titled ‘’The Role of Tourism in Energy Transition’’ and gathered representatives of professional and civil society associations as well as energy producers, suppliers, state institutions and the tourism sector. However, no one responded from the ministries of tourism, economy, environmental protection and energy, whilst only a small number of tourist representatives participated at the conference.
On this occasion, Marija Tomac from Greenpeace emphasized that the energy transition is a global process, which is necessary in order to switch completely from the fossil fuels to clean or energy from renewable resources by 2050.
‘’Due to climate changes and the prevention of their negative effects, all of us have to be involved in this transition, not only states and governments, but also all economic sectors, where tourism, especially in Croatia, is extremely important because it accounts for 19 percent of GDP and is related to many other activities. Our advantage lies in a good location of hotels, campsites and other tourist facilities that are mostly spread along the Croatian coast which is bathed in sunshine’’, explained Tomac.
Tomac also added that the revenue from tourism rises every year thus it would be worthwhile to invest in the transition to renewable energy resources. Therefore, Greenpeace Croatia initiated a new campaign and published a brochure about the possibilities of wider application of renewable energy resources in the Croatian tourism sector as well as business models for project financing from EU funds.
However, despite all the warnings and possibilities as well as God given energy resources sun, wind etc. Croatia is at the bottom among European countries when it comes to the use of solar energy.
‘’Slovenia has five times more solar capacities than Croatia, whilst Greece has fifty times more. It would be very good for all our sectors to become aware of the fact that roofs of hotels, camps and other tourist facilities are ideal for solar collectors and photovoltaic cells as well as for LED lighting. A quick return of investment could be expected in the period from five to eight years’’, commented the director of Greenpeace Croatia Zoran Tomić.
Last year Croatian emigrants sent a record-breaking amount of money to their homeland - a whopping $2.19 billion.
Even though there is no complete official data on the number of Croatian citizens who left the country in the past few years in search of a better life in Western countries (the US, Canada, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Scandinavian countries), this data confirms that the new wave of Croatian emigrants haven't lost contact with members of their families in Croatia.
According to the official statistics, i.e. money sent through official channels, it is clear that money sent from abroad is the most important source of foreign capital for Croatia.
Part of Croatian citizens evidently survives thanks to the financial support of their family members who left Croatia or ensures a better quality of life with their own salaries earned in the country.
Therefore, Croatia has found its place among the countries in which the cash transfers of their own citizens from abroad are continuously increasing.