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The war is long over and Croatia has sprung back to action. The country welcomes the tourist with open arms and offers a long list of attractions from the sweeping Dalmatian Coast and medieval towns to cities that reek of culture and Croatia's long heritage.

Croatia lies at the confluence of the Mediterranean, the Alps and the Pannonian Plains- a land of forested mountains, blue seas, beautiful islands, rivers and thermal spas, castles and ski resorts. It’s long been a popular tourist destination, and along with the return of peace, so has returned the tourist.

It is believed that the currency of Croatia – the Croatian kuna has been named after a tiny rodent which when translated in English means Marten!

The neck tie was invented in Croatia – it is called cravat here and comes from the word ‘croat’.

Historically Speaking

Croatia had been, during the time of ancient Rome, one of the Roman Empire’s important provinces - the Roman Emperor Diocletian built a fortress in Split, which is the largest Roman fort in Eastern Europe. After the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, the area now known as Croatia was occupied by successive waves of immigrants, mainly Slavs who finally set up a united empire, between the tenth and twelfth centuries.

In the mid-thirteenth century the Tatars attacked Croatia and were followed three hundred years later, by the Turks. The Turkish invasion forced Croatia to seek protection from the powerful Austrian Empire, and much of the country came under the control of Austria while France and Italy annexed other parts.

In the aftermath of World War I, Croatia along with Serbia and Slavonia became a part of the country of Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia saw great suffering during the World War II as the Nazis killed both Serbs and Jews. After WWII, Yugoslavia became a communist nation under Marshal Tito; the communist regime was unable, in the approximately half a century it remained in power, to do much for the Croats.

Eventually, Croat Nationalist Movements gathered strength, and the country declared its independence in 1991. Four years of bloodshed followed, as Croatia struggled to evict Serb troops-and civilians- from some parts. Ceasefire was finally declared in 1995, under the aegis of the UN, and, although the scars still remain, the country has stabilised and normalcy is returning to the land.

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Habitat

Croatia lies on the northeastern coast shore of the Adriatic Sea, and resembles an arc, It has a long Adriatic coastline and the land between the rivers Drava and Sava forms the northern section. The capital, Zagreb, sits on the intersection of the northern and western parts. The central regions of the country are mainly upland, while Slavonia consists of the Pannonian plains.

The Adriatic coastline has as many as 1,185 islands, around 66 of which are inhabited The islands of Croatia, in fact, form the largest archipelago in the Mediterranean. The Adriatic coastline is the most prominent feature of Croatia. It runs the entire length of the western border, from the 430-km Istrian peninsula in the north to Dubrovnik in the south. The coast is highly indented with rocky cliffs and many small inlets.

The 1,500-metre high Dinaric Alps run the length of the country. The Styrian Alps run north to southeast descending to the Hungarian plain in the extreme east at Osijek; much of this land is lower lying than the rest of Croatia and includes areas of marshlands.

The Danube forms the eastern border with

Yugoslavia (Serbia) while the other two large rivers, the Sava and Drava, form the southern and northern borders with Bosnia-Herzegovian and Hungary respectively. Part of the country in the deep south, including the enchanting town of Dubrovnik- is separate from the rest of the country, being cut off by a part of Bosnia-Herzegovina. In recent years, Croatia’s environment has taken quite a battering - pollution is causing acid rain; there’s a lot of deforestation, and general mayhem because of political and civil unrest. Despite this, the country remains one of the most naturally unspoilt in this region.

One of the very few countries in Europe that still has a considerable portion of its natural environment intact, Croatia has around 7.5% of its total territory under some sort of national park system or the other. There are seven national parks (three in the mountains and four along the coasts). Of the 4300 plant species in Croatia, pine, black pine and beech are among the predominant forests, and there’s lots of wildlife too- deer, boar, marten, fox, chamois, lynx, wolf, grouse and plenty of bird life. Offshore, the waters of the Adriatic abound in marine life- there are about 400 species of fish and other marine creatures in these seas.

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