If you celebrate Easter, then you most likely start your day by preparing a big holiday meal, tearing into a chocolate bunny, watching your children search your home for hidden colored eggs, or putting on your Sunday best — including the obligatory bonnet — for the Easter Mass. The most important day in the Christian calendar brings with it the most powerful image as well: Jesus on a cross. Although it’s His resurrection that Christians celebrate today, it’s this Good Friday image that solidifies what His life and teachings were all about. Since that pivotal day at Golgotha, the Crucifixion has been represented countless times in countless cultures in countless media — paintings, sculptures, stained-glass windows, and more. Read about the world’s top five crucifixes >
Tag Archives: Croatia
Five Doors to Admire Before You Open Them
We pass through doors countless times every day — in our home, our workplace, the subway, elevators, barns, garages. Most are fairly unremarkable, utilitarian means of egress. But every now and then, a masterfully crafted door stands out in the crowd, arresting our attention, hinting at something remarkable behind it and enticing us to go inside and discover the treasures or surprises awaiting us on the other side. These are my top five doors in the world. Read more >
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Split’s Marjan Hill: Perfect View, No Tourists
For a fantastic view of the second-largest city in Croatia, I headed to the top of the ancient St. Domnius Cathedral. From the observation level, I was enchanted by everything around and below me, but I was also attracted to the big green hill off to the right, a tremendous contrast to the built environment next to it. This was Marjan Hill, and the view of Split from the top of it proved to be even better than the one I was enjoying at that moment. Read more >
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Unexpected Masterpieces in the Croatian Museum of Naïve Art
I didn’t know any of their names, and I had never seen their works before. But the artists exhibited in the Croatian Museum of Naïve Art in Zagreb completely captivated me, particularly because just about all of them had never received any formal training or schooling. Despite that, these naïve artists, akin to folk or so-called primitive artists, have created a unique style with their use of striking colors and a common disregard for distance perspective. This museum is easy to miss, and its collection is fairly small, but it’s also one of the most surprisingly delightful and impressive in the capital of Croatia. Read more >
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Five Beaches to Make You Forget Winter
You’re tired of the snow and ice. And the single-digit temperatures. And the scarves, hats, gloves, and thermal underwear. And the terms “wind chill,” “subarctic,” and “polar vortex.” It’s time to start warming yourself up with thoughts of sun and sand. Growing up in New York, I wasn’t an avid fan of the local beaches — the water was gray, the sand was speckled with litter, and spending a day with thousands of other people around me seemed to mock the notion of relaxation. But my outlook changed during my first trip to the Caribbean, when impossible colors and joyous serenity completely obliterated my notions of what a day at the shore meant. These are my five favorite beaches in the world. Read more >
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Fine Dining in the Capital of Croatia
I’ve never been a fan of hotel restaurants. Often overpriced and a deterrent from going out and exploring local eateries, they’re never my first choice. Nor my second. They may prefer an international menu rather than a good selection of the regional cuisine, and I’d prefer to dine among locals rather than other travelers. From the second I stepped into Radicchio, the restaurant in the Hotel Arcotel Allegra in Zagreb, Croatia, however, I changed my mind. This is, by far, a superior restaurant I would have regretted missing. Read more >
Stephen Travels 