Location: Croatia lies in the Southeastern Europe on the Adriatic coast
Surface area: 56.538 km2
Length of the coast: 1778 km
Islands: 1185
Population: 4,8 million
The capital: Zagreb, about 1 million of inhabitants
Official language: Croatian
Currency: Kuna (KN)
Croatia is a parliamentary democracy, which for its culture and history belongs to the central European circle. It is divided into 10 regions. On the northwest of the country, the climate is continental, at the coast the climate is Mediterranean and in the highland the climate is alpine.
Among a large number of economic branches (metal processing, wood, leather, paper, food, chemical, pharmaceutical industries etc.) the most important are tourism and shipbuilding industry. Croatia has good interior road, air and railway traffic connections as well as good connectivity with other countries. Croatia is not only rich in cultural heritage, but it is also a land of natural phenomenon of breathtaking beauty: the Plitvice lakes, the Brijuni archipel, the Velebit mountain, the biggest peninsula of the Adriatic Sea – Istria, just to mention some… Croatia has 8 National Parks and 10 Nature Parks, and ecologically it is considered a country with the purest environment in the Mediterranean.
Shortly, it is a land of rich culture, which knew how to connect its tradition with a modern way of life and which attracts visitors in many different ways. Croatia is a true paradise for tourists, sailing enthusiasts, fishermen and nature explorers, but also for the gourmands, who will be delighted by its rich gastronomic offer.
Culture and history: from the 9th to the 12th century Croatia was under the rule of Croatian dukes and kings (the first Croatian king Tomislav was crowned in 925). From this period date first early Croatian churches and written documents mentioning Croatians. From the 12th century until 1990. Croatia had many different rulers, among which there was the Habsburg Monarchy, which left deep traces in culture and every-day living in the continental part of the country: its capital, Zagreb, is called «little Vienna», and really, Zagreb has many things in common with Vienna, from the architectural point of view.
The surroundings of Zagreb abound in medieval fortresses and burgs, among which the most famous are Trakoscan and Veliki Tabor. On the coast, Romans, Venetians and Frenchmen left their traces; the towns on the coast abound in monuments dating back to Roman times (the amphitheater in Pula, the Diocletian Palace in Split…) and in monuments from the Renaissance (Dubrovnik, Sibenik, Trogir…). Even under foreign rule, Croatia had as a special territorial unit its own administration and has kept its culture and spirit throughout many centuries.
Croatia has also given many famous artists and scientists during the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and in modern times. Long cultural tradition can be seen in a large number of cultural monuments and works of Croatian architects, sculpturers, painters, writers and world-famous scientists, such as Nikola Tesla, Ruđer Boskovic, Juraj Dalmatinac, Ivan Mestrovic, Julije Klovic, Marin Drzic and many others. As for the cultural heritage, the most important monuments have a status of UNESCO heritage; the town of Dubrovnik, the Sibenik cathedral, the old town in Trogir, the St. Euphrasius Basilica in Porec, the Diocletian Palace in Split and the Plitvice lakes.
