So, I want to mention the children, or more particularly the attitude to children here. Apart from the fact that they are gorgeous looking and beautifully dressed, they are an important part of the community. They are greeted first in a group situation; they are up late in cafes and promenading with the best of them. And when I mentioned this to my friend in Hvar, I was greeted with a blank look. Hmmm, the look told me that she had absolutely no frame of reference for where I was coming from. Which is the ‘seen and not heard’ attitude that is prevalent in NZ society. I recall children having to sit quietly while the adults greeted each other, and being told not to interrupt. This must be a hangover from the Protestant background – what do you think?? (Conversely, we kick our children out of the nest as early as we can, where young adults don’t ever really leave the nest unless the move towns or countries).
What I am seeing here is the delight that adults take in engaging the children. I myself loved to have my children in bed by 6.30, 7.00 so that adults could have time (actually, so I could have time) – the children here rest with the adults in the late afternoon and then are very much part of the evening out in the cooler air. And after yesterday, with a high of 34, there is no question about which part of day you should be out in. Yesterday was the first day that I have switched my air-con on – I just didn’t know what to do with myself. Too hot to venture out, even the sea temperature is beyond cooling.
The evening promenade last night was a special treat. I had been told that there was a concert on in the town square, starting at 9.30. Now, there’s a point of difference in itself – which family concert in NZ would start at 9.30? Children would all be in bed, tvs would be on and the cup of tea would be poured….
Lado is the top cultural performance group in Croatia, and I couldn’t believe how lucky I was to be there. The costumes were exquisite – the dances included examples from the islands of Krk, Hvar, Brac and some from Zagreb and Dubrovnik. Each different in costume, music and movement. Some were waltz like, others Greek like, but all were magical. I haven’t seen any Croatian dancing before so had no preconceptions – some of the music I knew from a CD I have from Istria – discordant pipes, with the main dancer calling the dance steps. I was transfixed. I tried to take a few photos, but concentrating on that meant that I couldn’t concentrate on the dancing.
The one photo that I couldn’t get was of a little girl who was so excited, so enchanted, that she just couldn’t stand still. She was standing in the dark dancing by herself with the most incredible look on her face, all the while not taking her eyes from the stage – I guess I know what she wants to be when she grows up. The little girls on the edge of the stage kept inching closer and closer, to be moved back by a friendly policeman, to inch closer and closer. No-one cared. And there were no grizzling children, and no growling parents. Who would have thought.
And so from here – tomorrow I take a bus to Drvenik, then a bus to Bogomolije, a village on the island of Hvar. I won’t have my laptop with me – I will have my birthday while I am there, so please, a loud rendition of happy birthday on Saturday! I will be back in Makarska on Saturday afternoon with plenty of stories and photos – the place we are staying is in the wild-erness (which is slightly different from the wilderness, but is so cute that I can’t bring myself to correct it), has snakes but no power or shower. I hope there is plenty of shade, the forecast is for heat, heat and then more heat. Ciao!
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