Amsterdam Sail 2025

A wonderful thing is happening in Amsterdam now and its called "Amsterdam Sail" - it is a maritime event organised every 5 years and it brings historic ships and all sorts of sailing boats from all over the world into Amsterdam's harbour. It started in 1975 as celebration of 700th anniversary of the city and it continued every 5 years, except in 2020 due to Covid pandemic - this means that the last time this event happened was ten years ago, hence the excitement and enthusiasm of people watching it now. A wonderful thing is happening in Amsterdam now and its called "Amsterdam Sail" - it is a maritime event organised every 5 years and it brings historic ships and all sorts of sailing boats from all over the world into Amsterdam's harbour. It started in 1975 as celebration of 700th anniversary of the city and it continued every 5 years, except in 2020 due to Covid pandemic - this means that the last time this event happened was ten years ago, hence the excitement and enthusiasm of people watching it now.  

For me, it was the very first time to witness it. Can't think even have I ever heard of this before - my head was probably in complete other things earlier - however, this time I did not want to miss it and was very excited to see it. So we took a walk to the city centre but avoided the extremely crowded area behind Central Station and went instead to the area just before it - Westerdok, with its quiet houses and the neighbourhood that somehow feels completely forgotten by time, unknown to tourists, peaceful and serene - from here we watched the ships of all sizes arriving in Amsterdam and I must admit the excitement was palpable. You could see people everywhere on the windows and balconies, sitting around me on a beach chairs with their picnics, the whole families with dogs, it was quite a sight. What a beautiful day.

Gabi Novak 1936 - 2025

Seriously, it seems as I am only writing about passing of my idols here. Than again, it is my blog and I feel as I should note something that is also a part of life, namely that my favourites are slowly fading away and this is my own personal way of saying goodbye. The latest of goodbyes is Croatian singer Gabi Novak who was always amongst my favourites and her death really saddened me. Not because she was too young - she lived to almost 90 - but because she was heartbroken about passing of her only child, Jazz pianist Matija Dedić who died two months earlier - with them, the whole legendary Croatian music family is now gone. Her husband, a famous songwriter and composer Arsen Dedić passed away ten years ago, now the son and wife joined him. 

Novak was always part of my life - back in the days of my childhood she was one of the most popular singers in the country and she often performed together with her husband, they were inseparable and it was quietly understood that she knowingly put her own music career in the background to take care of her family. Longer before Arsen became known, she was already a big star of the popular music festivals - hence she kept her own name after the marriage - but the nicest story is how she was discovered: Novak was working on a cartoon movies where colleagues noted her singing and asked her to give voices to cartoon characters - just like Cinderella, Novak was heard by big Jazz orchestra leader who invited her to sing with his band and overnight she became a sensation, around 1959. Her music beginnings were jazzy (her idol was Doris Day) but with time she eventually embraced what was known as "schlager" (pop ballads and hits) and was known for her impeccable style, class and sense of fashion - she kept very high standards in everything she did, resulting in zillion awards and respect in the business that admired her integrity.

At her passing, it became clear how much audience loved her, specially female audience - Novak was easy to love, perhaps easier than others, since she kept decidedly low profile and always held herself as a classy lady: something appreciated in a still conservative country where female audiences loved to see a public figure devoted to her family and being so unashamedly motherly (and scandal free). Back in my youth, when I worked as a journalist, I met her several times and she was always a wonderful, supportive and warm person. Her music was always more like Croatian version of chanson and I even witnessed a beautiful open air concert where she performed with her pianist son under the shadow of a medieval castle, truly unforgettable evening. 

Rest in peace, dear Gabi and the whole family.