U ovoj reportaži govorit ću o adventu u Zagrebu, kakva je atmosfera i što mi se sviđa na njemu. Od 2017. do 2019. Zagreb Advent osvajao je nagradu Najbolji božićni sajm u europi ali tek sam ovo otkrio kad prijateljica mi je rekla. Ona je iz Zagreba, pitala me dok smo se šetali do fakulteta, “Jesi li uzbuđen zbog adventa?”. Odgovorio sam da sam uzbuđen zbog Božića zato što sam mislio da to je što je mene pitala. Nasmijala se i pokazala mi slike adventa u Zagrebu na što sam joj odgovorio da moramo ići.
Advent u Zagrebu je predivan, nevjerovatan i čaroban. U centru ima kučice gdje možeš kupiti kuhano vino, toplu čokoladu ili fritule. Fritule su hrvatska delicija koje izgledaju kao krafne, ali se češće povezuju kao nešto slatko za jesti oko Božića. Išli smo na trg Bana Josipa Jelačića, atmosfera je bila prekrasna, svi su bili sretni, čuo sam hrvatsku glazbu dok sam pio kuhano vino. Na trgu je bio vrt s božićnim drvcima i posvuda su bili ukrasi.
Ja i prijatelji smo napravili đir oko božicnih sajmova u različitim trgovima. Na jednom trgu, bio je besplatni koncert gdje smo slušali hravtsku glazbu – moje omljeno pjesmo što smo slušali je bilo ‘Sretan Božić Svakome’. Bilo mi je odlično vidjeti hrvatsku božićnu kulturu.
Sljedeći dan odlučili smo ići na klizanje. Klizalište se nalazi blizu glavnog kolodvora pa lako nam je bilo ići tamo. Puno ljudi su bili tamo također pa nije bilo tako mirno ali uživali smo i pao sam samo jednom.
Na klizalištu!
On the ice rink
Nakon toga smo opet išli vidjeti bezplatni koncert ali ovaj put nastupio je zbor. Nisam baš znao pjesme koje su pjevali ali bilo mi je lijepo slušati nešto vjersko, podsjetilo me da je Hrvatska katolička zemlja i da Božić je njihovi katolički praznik.
Tijekom mojeg vremena ovdje u Zagrebu, učim ne samo jezik u nastavi ali kulturu i otkrio sam da advent je veliki dio hrvatske kulture posebno u Zagrebu. Nadam se da će opet osnoviti nagradu ove godine zbog svojeg adventa jer je, po mojem mišljenju, najbolji u svijetu.
In this report, I will talk about advent in Zagreb, how the atmosphere is and what I enjoy about it. From 2017 to 2010, Zagreb Advent won an award for the best Christmas market in Europe but I only discovered this recently when my friend told me. She is from Zagreb, while walking to university together, she asked me “Are you excited for advent?”. I replied that I was excited for Christmas because that is what I thought she was asking me, she laughed and showed me pictures of advent in Zagreb to which I replied that we have to go.
Advent in Zagreb is amazing, wonderful and magical. In the centre there are little stalls where you can buy mulled wine, hot chocolate or Fritule. Fritule is a Croatian delicacy that looks like doughnuts but are more commonly associated as something sweet to eat around Christmas time. We went to Ban Josip Jelačić square, the atmosphere was beautiful, everyone was happy, I could hear Croatian music while I drank my mulled wine. At the square there was a garden of Christmas trees and there were decorations everywhere. Me and my friends walked around the Christmas markets in different squares. At one square there was a free concert where we listened to Croatian music – my favourite song that we listened to was ‘Sretan Božić Svakome’ (Merry Christmas Everyone). It was amazing to see the Christmas culture of Croatia.
The next day we decided to go ice skating. The ice rink is close to the main train station so it was easy for us to get there. Lots of people were there too so it wasn’t that peaceful but I still enjoyed myself and only fell over once. After that we went again to see a free concert but this time it was a choir performing. I didn’t really know the songs they were singing but it was nice for me to listen to something religious, it reminded me that Croatia is a catholic country and that Christmas is their catholic holiday.
During my time here in Zagreb, I am learning not only the language in class but the culture and I have discovered that advent is a big part of Croatian culture, especially in Zagreb.I hope that they win an award again for their advent this year because it is, in my opinion, the best in the world.
All the best,
Gabriel