I have left my homeland in 2018 and somehow did not visit back all this time - first, I was excited to be here in the Netherlands where I genuinely wanted to live for so long, than second I was visited by some of my closest friends anyway. This time, I was invited on a wedding and it was something I did not want to miss. Not only this is a case of strong, lifelong friendship but also of continuing other friendships that I cherish trough many years - many of them go back decades and decades. Even though I find traveling in itself exhausting and annoying, going somewhere once in a while is actually nice. I knew that I will love going there and than coming back.
Even before 2018 I was visiting only occasionally. By my own choice, I have lived a nomadic life and enjoyed seeing the world - my old friends were always there to cheer me up and to celebrate my comings & goings - this time I was relaxed & happy with my current life so even visit to Zagreb was pleasant. Instead coming just for a weekend, I made a decision to stay a week and this gave me chance to meet some of my old friends & acquaintances + I treated myself with a walk trough my old neighbourhood. Where I confirmed that nothing was like it was anymore, that time is behind us now and the city continued to grown and prosper with new, younger generations.
What striked me as very interesting was that the city center was actually very clean and neat. Everybody warned me about the effects of recent earthquakes, this and that, but I saw only nice things. It looked fairly classy and prosperous. My own Tkalčičeva street metamorphosed into main tourist attraction and was filled with charming terraces. Part of me recognised everything, the other part felt like a stranger. Compared to where I live now, this was actually clean and nice. Nothing like grey and gloomy place I remember from 1990s. It was good to see it again.
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