Nienke Trooster, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to the Republic of Croatia
Five Stars Zagreb Issue 33 — June 01, 2010.

When I arrived in Zagreb, the city was introduced to me as a place of human dimension and after 4 years living here, I can confirm this wholeheartedly. Zagreb is a very safe place and it is not only the size of the town and the dimension of its architecture that make it a human place, it is also very much its inhabitants.

People on the street, in shops and restaurants are friendly and speak in general a good level of English. When visiting Zagreb on a sunny day you really have the feeling you are participating in the social life of the city because you will find half of Zagreb on its terraces drinking coffee, ‘a national cult’.  I believe there is no place in the world with the same ‘terrace density’’.
In my view, being of this human size, Zagreb’s treasures are  best discovered on foot. The many stairways lead you to beautiful unforeseen places. Adding to the pleasant atmosphere is the fact that Zagreb is a very green city . Spring, with blossoms everywhere and autumn, when the trees colour, are fantastic seasons to stroll around the city.  While at work, I often envied my husband knowing that he frequented the markets of Zagreb, especially  Dolac and Britanski trg where you can find an abundance of fresh groceries and flowers.

In my spare time I visited the many museums that Zagreb has to offer. One of my favourites is the recently opened Museum of Contemporary Art. A vibrant place where you will not only find a fine collection displayed but also can enjoy different cultural activities; film, theatre, music. But there are many more interesting museums, for instance the Mestrovic house in the old town and Gliptoteka where I organized my first National Day in the garden. I will never forget the friendly way the staff treated us there.

Zagreb now even has a virtual museum which you can find on www.avantgarde.com. The nice thing about this museum is that you can visit it at any time, which unfortunately not all the museums can offer. That would be my tip to the Croatian Tourism Board: Lobby for all the museums to open also on Saturday and Sunday afternoons and insist on English translation at the exhibits. Tourists –among them a growing number of Dutch tourists- will appreciate that tremendously.

I found that cultural life is very much organized around festivals. There are many interesting ones: contemporary dance, (experimental) film, jazz, and theater.  It was a pleasure to support the participation of many Dutch artists and groups in these festivals.  A favourite one is the annual Queer festival that combines high artistic quality with the fight for non-discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. 
A lovely new venue to check out is the recently opened Dance centre right on the main street, Ilica.

The favourite places of my children are the playground at Bundek Park on the Sava River banks and the Zoo in Maksimir Park.  In winter when there is snow, they prefer Cmrok, a park area with a beautiful slope to sleigh down.  You will see hundreds of children enjoying the snow and the atmosphere is great and reminds me of the atmosphere at home in Holland when skating on natural ice.  Another winter pleasure is skiing on Sljeme. Again a ski track of human dimension.

When I have visitors I always take them to fortress of Medvedgrad in the hills where you have a beautiful panoramic view of the city. You can combine it with great hikes, climbing Sljeme: a popular way to relax during the weekends and pleasantly cool in the summer. 
I will be leaving Zagreb this summer with sweet memories and I will certainly be back with my husband and our kids as tourists, to visit friends and enjoy this city of human dimension that we had the privilege to call home for four years.