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A Soul Map Of My City
1. The city of my ancestors - myths and legends about the city
2. The city of my great-grandparents and grandparents
3. The city of my parents
4. The city of today
5. Food for thought
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1. The city of my ancestors - myths and legends about the city
When you come to Glina the past will follow you on every step of your way. Every house, tree and rock here has its own story from the past. The center of the town still has the same position of streets as it was in 19th century, and most of the buildings look the same as they did at that time. Lots of buildings were over the time damaged. Now that cultural heritage of great historical value needs to be renewed and preserved for next generations.
Since our team didn't find any myths and legends about the city, we thought that maybe these old pictures and postcards we found on our quest for the soul of the city of our ancestors will give you a glance into fragments of past and the ways of life already forgotten.
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2. The city of my great-grandparents and grandparents
Oh, when I was young, everything was different
When I was younger, I thought my grandma was the most boring person in the world. I used to get annoyed when she told me stories about her youth or when she made me watch her sew. She kept telling me: "You have to know how to sew, it is going to be useful when you grow up."
Actually, grandma was afraid that old customs weregoing to be forgotten. Unfortunately, she was right. Today, we don`t care about tradition, old customs or our cultural heritage that makes us special and different.
I remember when I got angry with my mother and grandma because they made me wear old folk costume while I was receiving confirmation. All my friends thought about what they would wear, what kind of haircut they were going to get, what shoes they would buy... I had to wear some heavy, painted dress with thousands of useless parts and it tightend me so hard I thought I would faint. And all that because old people used to dress like that and because I wished to please my grandma.
At that time I didn`t undestand what fortune I was actually wearing. I felt sorry for people that never wore it. Once, people wore that kind of clothes every day and they didn`t complain. It was the part of their everyday lives, just as our clothes are to us today and nobody even thought about complaining. Girls used to sew costumes as soon as they learned how to hold a needle. And nowadays, only few grandmas do it, giving their best to keep us from forgetting it.
Folk costumes were different from place to place. There were clothes that people wore only on Sundays or on particular holiday and clothes that people wore every day. They had different details, patterns, colors, embroideries and materials. We could see lots of decorations on them: pearls, particoloured buttons, laces and lots of motives like grapes, leaves, different flowers or hearts. Therefore, the dress used to tell a lot about its owner: where he was from, whether he was rich or married and to a perceptive eye even more.
There were clothes made specially for kids, girls, older men and women. Men's costume consists of rubača (a white shirt), gaće (trousers/pants), prsluk ( a kind of waistcoat) and a hat. Women's costume is made of podrubačka (a kind of underskirt), rubača (a white skirt), zastor (an embroidered apron), švabica (a tight-sleeved white shirt) and pas (a belt/girdle). If the woman is married she wears poculjica (a kind of lace-trimmed hat) on her head and if she is not married her hair is plaited in two pigtails and there are big silk neckties tied at their end.
Now when I`m older i see it all differently. Folk costumes are very rarely worn nowadays. Young people consider them funny and nobody wants to talk about them because they think only countrymen and countrywomen wear them. Our granmothers won`t live so long to tell us about history. When they die there will be noone to tell us how it used to be. Our cultural heritage is kept alive only through folklore groups at their cultural and artistic events. However, they are rarely organized and people don`t care much about them. And all their efforts, all love and knowledge of our cultural heritage is slowly fading away to history. And when we get older we will remember what our grandparents used to tell us: "Oh, when I was young, everything was different. "
Ana
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3. The city of my parents
Childhood in Glina in the1970's
Helena interviewed her mother about her childhood and look what she found out.
H: What was the childhood like when you were a child?
M: I don't remember much from my earliest age. I remember that I grew up in a street where a lot of kids my age lived. It was really run. We played all the time- we cycled, rollerbladed, played cards, badminton, dodge-ball. There was also a cinema and it played different movies every other day. As we were kids, we didn't pay for the tickets- we went on the back entrance and snack in. We did it every evening. A few years later we found out that the cinema employee opened the doors on purpose so we could come in for free.
H: What did you do when you became a bit older, when you were teenagers?
M: Over summer holidays we went out every evening. We walked along Korzo ( the famous Glina's promenade), went to movies, had ice-creams at Kadrija's and drinks at Omer's. The disco was opened every Friday and Saturday. We had lots of fun there. I had many friends and we often had lot of different celebrations, like birthdays. We always celebrated New Year at someone's house. We listened to all kinds of music except folk. Now, whenever I hear those songs, I remember the greatest days of my youth.
H: How did girls dress, did they put on make up?
M: Girls wore skirts when they went out to town, and for school we wore labeled jeans bought in Italy. I wore turtlenecks and my father's shirts. They was very popular in the 1970's. We wore trainers and shoes when we went out. We weren't allowed to wear make up to school or have our nails polished. We put on make up only when we went out to town.
H: Could you describe your schooling?
M: I was the second generation of the newly-opened primary school called Nikola Demonja primary school. That's The primary school Glina today Everything was very beautiful, there was a fountain which we drank water from. We wore tunics to hide social differences between us. Girls wore long and boys short tunics. Every year we went on excursions, but only since the fifth grade. When we came to high school, there were six sections of first grades. Every section had thirty or more students. There were two shifts, and as I lived in the town, I had to attend the afternoon shift. In high school we didn't have to wear tunics. We always walked on the rode on our way to school, not on the pavement.
Our teachers mostly lived in Glina, and the ones that lived away traveled to Glina by bus. Once we also went to the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb.
H: If your childhood was an exam, what mark would you give it?
M: I would give it the top mark because it was beautiful: lots of playing, lots of friends, laughter and light-heartedness. My family were wonderful and they took care of me in the best possible way. I had a happy childhood, lots of good friends and it was never boring. Everyone who had a normal childhood believes that his/her childhood was the best and as I'm getting older I think of that time with more joy, especially when I meet my childhood friends.
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Interview
Željka decided to interview her geography teacher, Mrs. Bosiljka Šimic who was born and lived her whole life in Glina. Antonio held the camera, and Armin is responsible for translation and montage. Here you can see what they learned about schooldays of their teacher.
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4. The city of today
Glina - my town
Wherever I go, if I try to escape or just go on a vacation, Glina stays with me. It is enough to hear our Croatian Anthem and then I immediately think of Glina. I think about the town where I was born and where I still live.
Somebody might say: "There is no life in Glina!" but I don't agree with that. That's utter rubbish for me! If you want to live your life happily, you should come to Glina. Here you can enjoy peace and quiet, nice fresh air and you can also see a lot of nice things.
Let me take you for a walk through my town. We'll start at St. John's Bridge, it has its story. Millions of cars and thousands of people have passed by, but no mother has ever cried. Thank God for that! Then road leads us to the roundabout and our famous square from where we can visit elementary and high school, sit with Joško (the monument of Josip Runjanin), sing or dance in "Hrvatski dom" or just move forward to Josip Jelacic (monument).
 His job is to take care of the park. The future of Glina is in that park, our children play there and that is where our first loves happen. Don't think that Glina is a small town because the hearts of people are much bigger than those square kilometers. I just wanted to show you the most beautiful things here.
Most of the people are not happy with the life in Glina, but it's their fault. They just don't know how to enjoy everything Glina gives.
Iva
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What do young people think about living in Glina today? Here is what some of our students wrote about what they see as advantages and disadvantages of living in their town.
Living in Glina
I.
I live in a small town called Glina. Glina is a nice town but like every other town it has pros and cons.
One advantage is that it is a small town. I don't like big cities. I feel calm and relaxed in Glina. There is no rush like in a big cities and I like that. For instance, you have plenty of time to do shopping, you are not in a hurry. Another thing is that everybody knows each other. But that is not always a good thing. People are friendly and kind, you can always talk to them. Another advantage is that the air in Glina is less polluted and that is great. There are also no traffic jams. All things considered living in Glina is great.
One disadvantage is that people know each other very well and that can be scary because they know everything about you. They can use it against you. However, living in a small town like Glina can be very boring especially for young people. Nothing exciting ever happens. Exciting events are very rare. Streets and buildings in Glina are very old and ugly, but not all of them. They need to be renovated. A lot of people in Glina are unemployed, they are constantly looking for jobs but often unsuccessfully. That should be changed.
In conclusion, living in Glina is good although it could be better. I think that living in Glina is great and I will feel sorry if I move away.
Katarina
II.
Some people always complain about living in a small town but that doesn't always have to be a problem . In fact, there are some advantages but also disadvantages of living in a small town.
Living in Glina has its advantages. For instance, everything is close near to you, the post office, the bank, the centre, unlike in some big towns where you have to go by a car when you have to go to a centre. That's the reason why small towns are less polluted. The air in Glina is cleaner than the air in Sisak or Zagreb. Another point is that there is no rush, everything is very calm. Moreover, there is one thing that can be both a pro and a con and that is the fact that everybody knows each other. One more advantage is that there are no traffic jams so you get to your destination without any problems.
One disadvantage is that there aren't many options for social life, for example there is only one disco club, there aren't many cultural events or any groups where young people can spend their free time. The reality is that living in Glina can be very boring because of that. There aren't any concerts or musical events. Last of all, Glina doesn't have shopping centers so we have to go to some bigger city for shopping.
In conclusion, living in Glina is not that bad. And I think that, some things will get better in future.
Marija
III.
Glina is a very small town. However living in Glina can have its pros and cons. Sometimes it can be better, but it can also be worse than living in a big city.
One advantage is that everyone knows each other. We can say that we know every citizen of our town, so we can count on each other in many situations. Another point is that there is no rush like in big cities. Life is much more relaxed and there is always enough time to do everything. Everything is near and we don't have to travel by car or by bus to school, shop or out in nature. There is less pollution then somewhere else.
However, living in Glina also has its bad side. One disadvantage is that we don't have much privacy since everybody knows each other. We all want to have good relationship with everyone, but we have to be careful with secrets or family matters. Another point is that there are no big shops, no hospital, no chance to play the sport we want. For instance young people only have a few places to go out on Saturday night or any night. In fact, there aren't many options for any kind of social life.
In conclusion, it's a good thing to live in Glina. I spent almost my whole childhood here and it was great. I wouldn't change it for anything…
Helena
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What makes Glina my home?
Glina. When I hear the word I think of the soil, but Glina is more than just that. Glina means everything to me. It is my world and my life. Since first day of my life I have been grateful to Glina for keeping me alive. My first words and steps were here. I learned how to read, write and communicate at this place. People from bigger cities say that Glina is boring, but Glina that is always on my mind is not just another small town, it is my home. There is no place where I fell safer, more relaxed and free.
At first sight people and environment are the same as in other towns, but they are not. We are one big happy family. Everyone is your friend and everyone is ready to help you. You are free to be who you are and don't have to pretend to be someone else.
Elderly people look tired and sad but I know they aren't. Like in every other town in this area war has done the damage but the love for Glina is still alive and people have returned, and new people keep coming every day.
The future depends on us. We have to make our town beautiful for our kids. It is ok to go to college to big city, but it is important to come back to Glina and share your knowledge with others. I know it is possible to make Glina as important as other big towns. The town doesn't have to be big to make impression on other people. There is a lot that needs to be done but I believe that every moment of hard work always pays off.
My home, my ancestors' home and the home of my children is Glina - what I feel saying this cannot be described. Nobody can take my home away from me, my freedom and my thoughts… nobody can take Glina away from me. It is hard to become perfect, but Glina has some potential. It has us who love it and who are ready to give our lives for it. We can thank Glina by giving all our effort to make it shine, to show its fullness and joy, and to make everyone who see it for the first time the same as I see it - perfect.
Zdenka
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5. Food for thought
Croatian Anthem
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Official English translation |
Lijepa naša domovino,
Oj junačka zemljo mila,
Stare slave djedovino,
Da bi vazda sretna bila!
Mila, kano si nam slavna,
Mila si nam ti jedina.
Mila, kuda si nam ravna,
Mila, kuda si planina!
Teci Dravo, Savo teci,
Nit' ti Dunav silu gubi,
Sinje more svijetu reci,
Da svoj narod Hrvat ljubi.
Dok mu njive sunce grije,
Dok mu hrašće bura vije,
Dok mu mrtve grobak krije,
Dok mu živo srce bije!
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Our beautiful homeland,
O dear heroic land,
Our fathers' ancient glory,
May you be blessed forever.
Beloved, you are our sole glory,
Beloved, you are our only one,
Beloved, where you are plain,
Beloved, where you are mountainous.
Drava, Sava, flow on,
Nor you Danube, lose your power,
Deep blue sea, tell the world,
That a Croat loves his people.
Whilst the sun warms his fields,
Whilst stormy winds lash his oak trees,
Whilst his lost ones a grave covers,
Whilst his living heart beats.
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The original lyrics of the anthem were written by Antun Mihanović and first published under the title "Horvatska domovina" ("Croatian homeland") in 1835. The music was composed by Josip Runjanin in 1846. Officially it became national anthem in 1891.
In his youth, Josip Runjanin (1821-1878) served in the Imperial Army as a cadet in Glina, Military -Frontier. There, he was introduced to the Illyrian circles, where he met Antun Mihanović. While serving in Glina, he attained the rank of Captain, and became proficient in playing the piano, being taught by the military kapelnik of Glina.
That's how Glina became the city of Croatian national anthem.
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