When in Zadar...
Thinking about the things we wanted to suggest to you to do and visit while staying in Zadar
and its surroundings, we thought of many things. So here are some suggestions that shouldn’t
be missed if you want to get to know the life of this city and enter in its Mediterranean
features. Some of these things are inevitable daily routine for the citizens of this city, and we
will show you what it looks like. You can combine them depending on your mood and time,
and we are sure that your stay in Zadar will not leave you indifferent, that the city will remain
in good memory and that you will come back.
Ride with barka
To drink early morning coffee while the city is awakening, while it smells on the fresh
morning, when the fresh food is brought to the market from the hinterland, when the fish
arrives at the counters of the fish market directly from trawlers and while the city feels the
smell of the fresh bread is truly invaluable. However, if you are not staying on the peninsula
for the full experience you should take the ride with the small boat (barka) that connects the
Coast of Prince Trpimir (Obala kneza Trpimira), or better to say its pier with the lighthouse,
with the Liburnian Coast (Liburnska obala) at the peninsula. It may seem that there is nothing
special to it, but the ride in this small boat rowed by barkajoli is a way of connecting to the
distant past of the city. Namely, this tradition goes back to the 14 th century and is deeply
rooted in the lives of citizens of Zadar and its visitors, as this is simply something you have to
do when you are in Zadar. The hardworking hands of the barkajoli row each day during all
four seasons, keeping the tradition passed from father to son defying contemporary trends.
Otherwise, the ride in barka will reduce the walk to the city for 15 minutes, since the ride
over this 71 meters wide pass will take only a minute and a half.
Think about the secrets kept by the Zadar Sphinx...
After the morning coffee, it is time for another boat ride that will take you back to the Coast
of Prince Trpimir, from where you can walk by the sea in direction of Borik and in a short
time reach the district Brodarica, where in its cove Maestral you can find a sphinx located in
the park of villa Attilia, the oldest villa in this part of the city. It was built in 1901 by a
distinguished Zadar restorer, academic painter and art historian Giovanni Smirich. After the
death of his beloved wife Attilia in 1918, in the park surrounding the villa he built the replica
of the Egyptian sphinx in her memory. The sphinx is made of concrete, but it is distinguished
by the relief of the eagle on its chest, while instead of the paws there were fingers holding the
sword. During the years the sphinx was devastated, but with the care of young people of
Zadar it was cleaned along with the environment and is an ideal place to pause and relax in
the deep shade of tall trees. Many stories are linked to the sphinx like the one of the hidden
treasure buried beneath it, but despite attempts, fortunately, it was not completely destroyed.
