Besides being the capital of Croatia, Zagreb is a town with a rich history. Although not one of the biggest capitals of Europe, Zagreb has seen its name in a lot of history books and its history has produced a lot of interesting stories as well as myths and legends. All this doesn't come as much of a surprise if we know that the first written entries of Zagreb date back to 1904 when the Zagreb diocese was formed on these grounds. This also indicates that there was already a form of settlement on Zagreb's soil. 

Photo Credit: Tibor Trupec

Zagreb Time Machine

Zagreb Time Machine is an event taking place in Zagreb upper town, and it started on 21st of April and it lasts until the 29th of September. The main goal of the event is to introduce the tourists and even citizens of Zagreb with its history. The events mainly take place on Saturdays and Sundays in the morning hours. The performers are dressed in old uniforms and this year, I went to couple locations to see what they prepared.

Photo Credit: Tibor Trupec

Manda and the viceroy

The legend of Zagreb's name is something that's being learned from the early school days in Croatia, especially in Zagreb. It's a legend about a meeting between a Croatian viceroy and a maiden called Manda. The viceroy ordered Manda to scoop him some water from the well and that verb became a source for the name of Zagreb because to scoop means "zagrabiti" in the Croatian language. Later, the well got the name Manduševac after the maiden and the town got the name Zagreb after the verb. That event took place on today's Zagreb main square and that square got the name after the viceroy, Ban Jelačić Square. The recreation of this event happens every Saturday from 10 a.m. till 1 p.m. until the end of the whole event in September. Beware of the notice that all of the events are prone to cancelation in case of bad weather. 

Photo Credit: Tibor Trupec

Promenade concerts 

Among some events that are going to start in later months, the promenade concerts are being held from the start of the whole event. Their locations are Maksimir and Zrinjevac. The concert in Zrinjevac will be held in the music pavilion and the concerts in Maksimir will be held by ensemble Strauss and ZET Wind orchestra that will have their first concert on 12th of May. 
Promenade concerts also offer some additional attractions in the form of costumed characters, instant photos, different sorts of workshops as well as play areas for children. In addition to all that, you can buy yourself a souvenir or a gift for someone on the antique market. 

Evening events

Zrinjevac will also offer some dance evenings which will be held from 8 p.m. until 11 p.m. if you are more of an evening type. Dance evenings will concentrate on the music from the 50's to 70's. 
Another evening but also a summer event that will be organized as a part of the Time machine will be "Tkalčijana" - the street of music and fun, and it will be held in Tkalčićeva Street, of course - one of the most familiar streets in Zagreb because of all of its coffee shops, bars, clubs, and restaurants. Tkalčijana will consist of all kinds of music street performers who will perform all kinds of old hits, chansons as well as ballads and some classical music. 

Photo Credit: Tibor Trupec

Changing of the Guard

If they can do it in London, so can we in Zagreb. Besides being one of the earliest events of the whole "Time Machine," Changing of the Guard is performed in honor of the Cravat Regiment. If you are obsessed with the old uniforms, and cavalry knights on horses as much as I am, you can definitely check out the schedule for Changing of the Guard online. The program is done by 13 to 20 infantrymen and by 4 to 21 cavalrymen.

Photo Credit: Tibor Trupec

Kumice from Dolac

Besides all of the listed events, I left some out on purpose because you can read all about them on the website of the tourist board, one I couldn't pass without mentioning was the form of "ode" to the "Kumice" from the Dolac market. The first thing you see while coming to Dolac is a statue that represents one of the "Kumice" - the women who are coming to the Dolac market to sell the goods they've produced in their gardens or their farms. These women are also given a form of acknowledgment through "Time Machine," and in my opinion, they are making it complete. When I went to take the photo of the statue and see the vendors dressed in national costumes, two Englishwomen approached me because I waited a good moment to take the photo and they asked me what does "Kumica" mean, so I explained them a bit about their struggles through history. It was in that moment that I realized, I've hit the very point of the whole "Zagreb Time Machine" event. 

Photo Credit: Tibor Trupec

Header Image Credit: Tibor Trupec

Author: Tibor Trupec