Vukovar, Osijek, Ilok Croatia (Hrvatska)

Wow, the things you don't know until you travel. I knew there had been a Balkans conflict but never understood some of the nuances (knowing we're only hearing the Croatian side today). Vukovar was where the conflict really began when the Serbs attacked Vukovar (on the border) after Croatia announced independence from Yugoslavia. They totally decimated the town and then set up concentration camps. The water tower stands in defiance - though hit with 600 shells - so they let it stand. They've done a marvelous job fixing the town back up, but only 20,000 vs the original 40,000 people are here now.

We visited Gradski Muzej Vukovar, Dvorak Eltz. Now a museum, with info on the war, and formerly the home of the Eltz family, who came over from Germany to help fight the Turks. We found out it's the same Eltz family from Burg Eltz, that we first visited in Germany. Small world.

Then off to Osijek for the best part, snacks in a Croatian family's home. They raised bees and were delightful! They escaped from Vukovar during the war and after a few years stint in a refugee camp, resettled.

Lunch and a Croatian Tamburica Band (the Tamburica apparently has Mesopotamian roots) while we moved down the river to Ilok. We walked around town and up to the 15th century church on the hill behind fortress walls.Read more