The Lady That Marked Our City
A bit of the history
We will start by briefly stepping into the past - Dubravka's path was made in the second half of the 19th century and was originally called Sophie's path, after the wife of Josip Jelacic, who often praised the beauty of the promenade. Later, in the mid 20th century, the path got its current name after the character in the well-known Ivan Gundulić novel „Dubravka“ whose name was derived from the old Croatian word for forest.
From the hectic city centre to the forest oasis
To get to the Dubravka's path, it's best to start at arguably one of the most famous streets and city lifeline - Ilica Street, then pass through Dežmanov passage, a hip little alley full of trendy bars and shops and then you will find yourself in the part called Tuškanac – the beginning of Dubravka's path. This part nicely supplements the urban feeling of Dežmanov passage with its restaurant, a night club, art cinema and unique open air stage that was renovated a few years ago and now it is the best place in town to watch movies on the big screen in the summer, surrounded by forest that acts as natural air conditioning.
Image credit: Journal.hr
First edition of Reflektor Art & Music Festival
In addition, this part of Tuškanac is used for open air festivals such as Reflektor Art and Music Festival whose premier edition will be held on June 3rd and 4th. The ''music'' part of the festival consists of the well-known international performers Ana Calvi and Blood Red Shoes and local artists Lovely Quinces and Jonathan. The art segment of Reflektor will be enriched with lots of content such as exhibitions, workshops, performances, literary readings, and after parties in the clubs.
Image credit: Kulturauzagrebu.hr
City's lungs
Moving forward into the woods of Tuškanac, urban facilities become fewer and fewer and it's time to indulge and enjoy the nature and silence. When you get deeper into the woods, it's easy to forget that you are located only half an hour of walking distance from Zagreb's main square. Thick, mainly oak, wild cherry, linden and beech forest earns the epithet of city's lungs which is used in many descriptions. So this is the place to just breath in and relax as well as to do sports activities like running or riding a bike.
Sledging and picnic after the walk
After about half an hour long walk through the forest, Dubravka's path ends with a spacious meadow called Cmrok. When there is snow in the winter, Cmrok is used as a sledging place and in spring and summer months as one of the most popular picnic places.
Image credit: Lana Susa
Landscaping and revitalization
Recently, various efforts have been made to maintain the sense of wildness of Dubravka's path and the whole Tuškanac area by caring for existing trees and planting new ones as well as revitalizing it with some additional content such as benches, educational panels and lighting so it can be safely used even at night.
Header image credit: Andela Ivcevic
Author: Andela Ivcevic