Category: Culture and History

The Art Nouveau Treasures of Subotica, Serbia

Situated in northern Serbia, the city of Subotica is like a treasure box overflowing with Art Nouveau gems. Most of the buildings were constructed in the early 20th Century, when Serbia and neighboring Hungary were part of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. Designers incorporated whimsical details, colorful flourishes, and folk art into Subotica’s City Hall, Synagogue, private homes,…
Savoring the Moments in Modena, Italy

“We do not remember days, we remember moments.” Cesare Pavese As we strolled the cobbled streets of Modena, Italy, surrounded by the graceful city’s earth-toned buildings, we couldn’t help but feel that we were back in a part of the world that doesn’t often see visitors. The portico-packed, elegant lanes were decidedly Italian in architectural character, but…
Strolling Through Šibenik, Croatia

Šibenik is a city that quietly invited us to stroll in a pleasantly aimless fashion. Located near Croatia’s stunning Dalmatian Coast and Krka National Park, we didn’t find an abundance of things to do in Šibenik, but that just added to its charm. Instead, we mingled with locals and a friendly feline and people-watched from the window of a cozy café while sipping coffee.…
Love in the Air: A Wedding in Modena, Italy

“Where there is love there is life.” Mahatma Gandhi Shortly before the centuries-old bell tower tolled five o’clock, a crowd of uninvited and surprise guests huddled together on Modena’s Piazza Grande to celebrate a marriage. A crisp-white Fiat dressed in balloons stood guard on the cobbled Italian town square, ready to whisk the new couple away. Step-by-step, in…
A Journey Through the Millennia: The Split Archaeological Museum in Croatia

As we perused the holdings at the Split Archaeological Museum along Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast, I found myself most drawn to the stone headstones bearing family portraits of citizens from the Roman Empire – some more than 2,000 years-old. Though the subjects’ faces were often weathered and lacking facial extremities, I enjoyed pondering how the family’s likenesses came to be…
Silver Legacies: The Making of Croatian Filigree Jewelry

Master filigree jeweler Viktor Čivljak has a gentle and humble manner despite regularly wielding blow torches and hammers in his making of Old World jewelry. It turns out that the 73-year-old Split, Croatia jeweler also has a penchant for survival, something that we would learn while spending a Saturday afternoon with him, watching step-by-step how to make a pair of intricate filigree silver earrings. Viktor…