Broad horizons Back to nature

32 Nightlife
What to see
33
Yachting Bar G-5, Majstora Radovana 7, Borik, tel.
(+385-) 091 452 34 52. A super, modern bar by the Borik
marina, with a great selection of drinks and a terrace with live
music. Recommended for easy early evening drinking. Sail
into the cordiallly named Yachting Bar in case you are feeling
peckish. It offers croissants, hot and cold sandwiches, toasts
and all the other snacks one would desire for immediate
hunger satisfaction. QOpen 07:00 - 04:00. PNBW
Zodiak D-4, Šimuna Ljubavca 2. A tiny bar with a few
seats in an equally tiny street, and a not-so-tiny crowd that
gathers for the music that veers eclectically between grunge
and drum’n’bass. QOpen 08:00 - 01:00, Fri 08:00 - 02:00.
PNBX
Out of town
Aquarius Zrće beach, Novalja, Pag island, tel. (+385-
53) 66 20 38/(+385-) 091 199 78 99, info@aquarius.
hr, www.aquarius.hr/zrce. If you’re looking for a true beach
party in the Ibiza sense, head for the island of Pag. Just
outside the town of Novalja is a beach called Zrće, a haven
of white pebbles and crystal sea. Aquarius, probably the best
club in Zagreb, has a superb space here, with places to eat
and drink, home-made ice cream, an aerobics club (daytime),
and dancing by night. The club is superbly equipped - cool
off in the bar area in a paddling pool. Quality. QOpen 00:00
- 24:00. BKC
Barbarella’s Petrčane, Punta Radman, info@
thegardenzadar.com, www.watchthegardengrow.eu.
The Garden club people revive this legendary club space on
a pine covered peninsula 10km from Zadar. Super sundown
cocktails, and Saturday parties with future jazz scene names.
Open: Terrace 10:00 - 01:30; Coctail bar 12:00 - 01:30 and
Night club 24:00 - 06:00. Q PAB
Beach Bar Kalypso Zrće beach, Novalja, Pag island.
A beach bar with sports (volleyball, darts, badminton), games
and entertainment for young and old, fast food, cocktails and
internet access. The late bar is pumping ‘til who knows - and
who cares - when! Open ‘til late QOpen 08:00 - 06:00. B
Beach Bar Papaya Zrće beach, Novalja, Pag island,
tel. (+385-) 091 462 92 98, info@papaya.com.hr, www.
papaya.com.hr. Another popular outfit from Zagreb bring
you great summer entertainment on Pag. Bar and restaurant
areas are decked out in exotic style, there are swimming
pools, a water slide and a jaccuzzi. Balearic-style house music
and foam parties, and after 8 the parties see good resident
DJs and international guests playing varied music styles. Q
Open 10:00 - 20:00, 23:00 - 06:00. BC
Carpy More Kralja Tvrtka 10, Biograd, tel. (+385-
23) 38 61 19. In this beautifully renovated old building in
Biograd’s old town, a Dalmatian pub has opened, all stone
walls and rough-hewn wooden furniture. It’s an airy space with
comfortable seating and cosy antique details. Call to reserve
a table. QOpen 07:00 - 06:00. AGB
www.inyourpocket.com
SHM
Lavender Bed Bar Hotel Adriatic, Tina Ujevića 7,
Biograd, sales@ilirijabiograd.com, www.ilirijabiograd.
com. Set in a beautiful garden overlooking the sea at the
Hotel Adriatic. Bougainvillea blooms around you, and a relaxing
ambience is created by textile canopies and chillout music.
As the name suggests, you can sip your cocktail as you
lounge, godlike, on a comfortable cushioned bed. QOpen
08:00 - 01:00. AB
Lounge Bar Miramare Vrulja 10, Preko, tel. (+385-)
091 530 48 12, eventi@miramare-lounge.com, www.
miramare-lounge.com. You are at the bar, you order your
drink, and do a 180 degree turn as the sea breeze gently
blows. This cool, hip lounge bar is located on the Preko
waterfront on the island of Ugljan. Catch a 20 minute ferry
form Zadar which takes you to Preko, ferries leave every 30
minutes. Cocktails, jazz and soul music sessions are a hit and
the bar is perfectly set up for those outdoor summer nights.
QOpen 08:00 - 01:00. NBJE
Saturnus Zaton Holiday Resort, Nin, tel. (+385-23) 28
02 80, info@zaton.hr, www.zaton.hr. A huge and popular
nightclub (the biggest on the Croatian coast), close to the
apartment complex, with DJ parties and fashion shows
at weekends. QOpen Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun 23:00 - 04:00.
PLN
Vanga Stara Riva bb, Pag Town, Pag Island, tel. (+385-
23) 61 11 94, marija.valentic@zd.htnet.hr, www.ljubica.
hr. A disco club named after an old local ferry, it’s open nonstop
for fun, including karaoke and foam parties. QOpen
16:00 - 03:00. B
Pubs
Kantun C-4, Stomorica 5. Kantun (the Dalmatian for
“corner”) is situated on a crossroads (called Kantun) that is a
hub for the hep cats of Zadar. The only place with a simple pub
feel and a music policy that proudly announces itself: Raaawk!
QOpen 07:00 - 01:00. Closed Sun. PBX
Pop your cherry
One thing you must try in Zadar is a drink made out of local
Maraschino cherries – a particularly aromatic variety, a
little bitter, therefore not used for eating, but great when
sugared up to the max.
As we all know, it’s the quiet ones you have to watch, and,
like all the most potent brews, Maraschino liqueur (crystal
clear and syrupy) was first made by 16 th Century monks, who
called it “sun dew”. Apparently the fruits and young leaves
of the Maraschino cherry tree were so full of the goodness
of sunshine and the bountiful earth that the drinker would
be imbued with positive effects.
The city’s Maraska factory is the yellow building on the
mainland opposite the footbridge, and has been producing
alcoholic and non-alcoholic variations of the cherry, as well
as other drinks, for years. It’s something which the locals
are rightly proud of.
Alright, so having your city razed to the ground every few
hundred years might have its drawbacks - but look on the
bright side! The legacy of constant rebuilding has given
Zadar a uniquely rich architecture, and there can be few
places on Earth with such diverse influences crammed
into one small area.
Essential Zadar
City Forum (Forum) B-3. The Roman Forum - the
largest on this side of the Adriatic - was founded by the first
Emperor Augustus, as documented on two 3rd Century stone
inscriptions on the site. A raised area on the west side was
the site of a temple dedicated to Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. To
one side a “Pillar of Shame“ still stands, where naughty people
were chained and pilloried. (A second one was taken away
and now stands near the Three Wells Square). The Forum
also comprised a basilica and rooms for council chambers
and citizens’ assemblies. Underneath was a colonnade
where shops and workshops once stood. The site was
only discovered in the 1930s. Allied bombers inadvertently
assisted in the clearing process, and site was completely
cleared and restored between 1964 and ‘67. One of the most
beautiful things about these remains is the way that they are
still a part of the fabric of the city. No signs forbid you to touch
or sit on the stones. Take time one evening to sit and imagine
the bustle of the traders, the grandeur of the pagan temples
and the horrors of the blood sacrifices that took place on the
very altars you can see on this spot.
City Forum, Stjepan Felber
City Gates (Gradska vrata) D-2. The city walls have had
several entrances knocked through them at more confident
points in Zadar’s history. Some of them were walled up for
good, but four remain as the vital link between the town within
the walls and the sea outside them.
The Venetians built
the Land Gate - then
the main entrance into
the city - on the little
Foša harbour in 1543.
It’s considered one of
the finest monuments
of the Venetian rule in
Dalmatia, and has the
form of a triumphal
arch with a central
passage for wheeled
t r a ff i c , a n d t w o
smaller side arches
fo r p e d e s t r i a n s .
It’s decorated with
motifs such as St
Chrysogonus (Zadar’s
main patron saint) on his horse, and the Shield of St Mark (the
coat of arms of the Republic of Venice). Previously, the area
had been highly defensive, with a surrounding moat.
Between the ferryport and market is the Harbour Gate (also
known as St Chrysogonus’ Gate, because of its proximity to
the church of the same name), built in 1573 to celebrate the
victory of the Christian fleet over the Turks at Lepanto. Near
the bridge on the north side is the neo-Renaissance Bridge
Gate, knocked through by the Italians only 70 years ago,
and leading directly to Narodni trg and the Kalelarga. Further
west, by the old Arsenal, is the fourth and smallest gate,
named after St Rocco, connecting the Three Wells Square
with the harbour area.
City Lodge (Gradska loža) D-3, Narodni trg. Built by
the same architet as the City Sentinel, this building once
was the city’s courthouse, council chambers and library.
With its huge windows and high ceilings, it nowadays serves
as a stunning exhibition space, hosting events such as the
international photography triennial “Man and the Sea” and
the triennial of contemporary Croatian art “The Blue Salon”.
QOpen 09:00 - 22:00, Sun 09:00 - 13:00. Holidays Closed.
Admission 5 - 10kn.
City Sentinel (Gradska straža) C-3, Narodni trg.
Designed by a Venetian architect in the late Renaissance
style, with a large central clock tower and a surrounding stone
barrier and railing with holes for cannons (both later additions).
The building once housed the Ethnographic Section of the
National Museum, one of the most important collections in the
country, and worth seeing for the rich colours of local national
costumes, textiles (weaving and lace), jewellery, agricultural,
fishing and household objects. QOpen 09:00 - 22:00, Sun
09:00 - 13:00. Holidays Closed. Admission 5 -10kn.
Not to be missed
Saint Donatus Church (9th century AD)
City tours
Love gods take note. The most romantic way to visit
the Old Town for the first time is to catch the little red
rowing boat waiting, rain or shine, on a jetty by the
Tankerkomerc building on the mainland side of the
footbridge. There has been a man in a rowing boat
here for 800 years. He’s getting a bit past it now, but
these Dalmatians are a hardy lot.Seriously, this is a
famous local sight, called the “barkarjol”, and apart
from its charm, the 100 metre trip across the Jazine
bay saves you a twenty minute walk, and costs only
5kn.
Zadar In Your Pocket
zadar.inyourpocket.com
zadar.inyourpocket.com
Summer 2011