A middle class, Midwestern family in search of meaning uproot themselves and move to their ancestral village in Croatia. "We can look at this in two ways," Jim wrote, always the pragmatist. "We can panic and scrap the whole idea. Or we can take this as a sign. They're saying the economy is going to get worse before it gets better. Maybe this is the kick in the pants we needed to do something completely different. There will always be an excuse not to go..." And that, friends, is how a typically sane middle-aged mother decided to drag her family back to a forlorn mountain village in the backwoods of Croatia. So begins author Jennifer Wilson's journey in Running Away to Home. Jen, her architect husband, Jim, and their two children had been living the typical soccer- and ballet-practice life in the most Middle American of places: Des Moines, Iowa. They overindulged themselves and their kids, and as a family they were losing one another in the rush of work, school, and activities. One day, Jen and her husband looked at each other–both holding their Starbucks coffee as they headed out to their SUV in the mall parking lot, while the kids complained about the inferiority of the toys they just got–and asked themselves: "Is this the American dream? Because if it is, it sort of sucks." Jim and Jen had always dreamed of taking a family sabbatical in another country, so when they lost half their savings in the stock-market crash, it seemed like just a crazy enough time to do it. High on wanderlust, they left the troubled landscape of contemporary America for the Croatian mountain village of Mrkopalj, the land of Jennifer's ancestors. It was a village that seemed hermetically sealed for the last one hundred years, with a population of eight hundred (mostly drunken) residents and a herd of sheep milling around the post office. For several months they lived like locals, from milking the neighbor's cows to eating roasted pig on a spit to desperately seeking the village recipe for bootleg liquor. As the Wilson-Hoff family struggled to stay sane (and warm), what they found was much deeper and bigger than themselves.

This fourth edition is fully revised and updated, with increased coverage of hiking, cycling, literature and film, plus new restaurant and hotel openings.

Stroll along Dubrovnik's ancient walls, hike the idyllic Julian Alps, and set sail on the glimmering Adriatic: with Rick Steves, Croatia and Slovenia are yours to explore! Inside Rick Steves Croatia & Slovenia you'll find: Comprehensive coverage for spending a week or more in Croatia and Slovenia, with side trips to Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina Rick's strategic advice on how to get the most out of your time and money, with rankings of his must-see favorites Top sights and hidden gems, from Roman ruins in the heart of bustling Split to stunning waterfalls and mountains in Slovenia How to connect with culture: Taste wines at a vineyard in Hvar, tour museums and Baroque churches in Zagreb, and sample fresh seafood at an open-air market in Dubrovnik Beat the crowds, skip the lines, and avoid tourist traps with Rick's candid, humorous insight The best places to eat, sleep, and relax with a glass of local wine Self-guided walking tours of lively towns and interesting museums Detailed maps for exploring on the go Useful resources including a packing list, Slovenian and Croatian phrases, a historical overview, and recommended reading Over 800 bible-thin pages include everything worth seeing without weighing you down Complete, up-to-date information on Zagreb, Plitvice Lakes National Park, Istria, Split, Hvar, Korcula, Dubrovnik, the Bay of Kotor, Mostar, Sarajevo, Ljubljana, Lake Bled, the Julian Alps, Logarska Dolina and the Northern Valleys, Ptuj, Maribor, the Karst, Piran, and more Make the most of every day and every dollar with Rick Steves Croatia & Slovenia.

Lonely Planet’s Croatia is your passport to the most relevant, up-to-date advice on what to see and skip, and what hidden discoveries await you. Walk the city walls in Dubrovnik, discover marvellous Mljet, and hit the beach in Bol; all with your trusted travel companion. Get to the heart of Croatia and begin your journey now! Inside Lonely Planet’s Croatia Travel Guide: Up-to-date information - all businesses were rechecked before publication to ensure they are still open after 2020’s COVID-19 outbreak NEW top experiences feature - a visually inspiring collection of Croatia’s best experiences and where to have them What's NEW feature taps into cultural trends and helps you find fresh ideas and cool new areas Planning tools for family travellers - where to go, how to save money, plus fun stuff just for kids Colour maps and images throughout Highlights and itineraries help you tailor your trip to your personal needs and interests Insider tips to save time and money and get around like a local, avoiding crowds and trouble spots Essential info at your fingertips - hours of operation, websites, transit tips, prices Honest reviews for all budgets - eating, sleeping, sightseeing, going out, shopping, hidden gems that most guidebooks miss Cultural insights give you a richer, more rewarding travel experience - history, people, music, landscapes, wildlife, cuisine, politics Over 40 maps Covers Zagreb, Inland Croatia, Istria, Kvarner, Northern Dalmatia, Split, Central Dalmatia, Dubrovnik, Southern Dalmatia The Perfect Choice: Lonely Planet’s Croatia, our most comprehensive guide to Croatia, is perfect for both exploring top sights and taking roads less travelled. Looking for just the highlights? Check out Pocket Dubrovnik & the Dalmatian Coast, a handy-sized guide focused on the can't-miss sights for a quick trip. About Lonely Planet: Lonely Planet is a leading travel media company, providing both inspiring and trustworthy information for every kind of traveller since 1973. Over the past four decades, we've printed over 145 million guidebooks and phrasebooks for 120 languages, and grown a dedicated, passionate global community of travellers. You'll also find our content online, and in mobile apps, videos, 14 languages, armchair and lifestyle books, ebooks, and more, enabling you to explore every day. 'Lonely Planet guides are, quite simply, like no other.' – New York Times 'Lonely Planet. It's on everyone's bookshelves; it's in every traveller's hands. It's on mobile phones. It's on the Internet. It's everywhere, and it's telling entire generations of people how to travel the world.' – Fairfax Media (Australia)

During World War II, Croatia became a fascist state under the control of the Ustasha Movement - allied with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. Here, Goran Miljan examines and analyzes for the first time the ideology, practices, and international connections of the Ustasha Youth organization. The Ustasha Youth was an all-embracing fascist youth organization, established in July 1941 by the `Independent State of Croatia' with the goal of reeducating young people in the model of an ideal `new' Croat. This youth organization attempted to set in motion an all-embracing, totalitarian national revolution which in reality consisted of specific interconnected, mutually dependent practices: prosecution, oppression, mass murder, and the Holocaust - all of which were officially legalized within a month of the regime's accession to power. To this end education, sport, manual work and camping took place in specially established Ustasha Youth Schools. In order to justify their radical policies of youth reeducation, the Ustasha Youth, besides emphasizing national character and the importance of cultural and national purity, also engaged in transnational activities and exchanges, especially with the Hlinkova mladez [Hlinka Youth] of the Slovak Republic. Both youth organizations were closely modelled after the youth organizations in Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. This is a little studied part of the history of World War II and of Fascism, and will be essential reading for scholars of Central Europe and the Holocaust.

Utting recent events in broad historical perspective, this volume looks at the situation in Croatia, discusses the political and economic developments that have taken place since 1991 and 1998 and explores the daily life and major cities of its people.

Stroll Dubrovnik's ancient walls, hike the idyllic Julian Alps, and set sail on the glimmering Adriatic: with Rick Steves on your side, Croatia and Slovenia can be yours! Inside Rick Steves Croatia & Slovenia you'll find: Comprehensive coverage for spending a week or more in Croatia and Slovenia, with side trips to Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina Rick's strategic advice on how to get the most out of your time and money, with rankings of his must-see favorites Top sights and hidden gems, from Roman ruins in the heart of bustling Split to stunning waterfalls and mountains in Slovenia How to connect with culture: Taste wines at a vineyard in Hvar, tour museums and Baroque churches in Zagreb, and sample seafood fresh from the Adriatic at an open-air market in Dubrovnik Beat the crowds, skip the lines, and avoid tourist traps with Rick's candid, humorous insight The best places to eat, sleep, and relax with a glass of local wine Self-guided walking tours of lively towns and fascinating museums Detailed maps for exploring on the go Useful resources including a packing list, Slovenian and Croatian phrase books, a historical overview, and recommended reading Over 800 bible-thin pages include everything worth seeing without weighing you down Complete, up-to-date information on Zagreb, Plitvice Lakes National Park, Istria, Split, Hvar, Korcula, Dubrovnik, the Bay of Kotor, Mostar, Sarajevo, Ljubljana, Lake Bled, the Julian Alps, Logarska Dolina and the Northern Valleys, Ptuj, Maribor, the Karst, Piran, and more Make the most of every day and every dollar with Rick Steves Croatia & Slovenia.

New from Bradt is Croatia: Dalmatian Coast, a travel guidebook that focuses exclusively and in detail on this popular part of Croatia. Co-authored by travel writer Piers Letcher, who wrote six editions of Bradt’s guide Croatia, and longstanding Dalmatian resident Jane Foster, Croatia: Dalmatian Coast offers intimate local insights into where best to stay and eat, and what to see and do in this gorgeous southeast European enclave. With rugged limestone mountains, crystalline turquoise waters and pine-scented islands, Dalmatia has for centuries delighted explorers – and this is where most of today’s visitors to Croatia still head. With its balmy Mediterranean climate, this is a land of silvery-green olive groves, hillside vineyards, pebble coves, waterside villages, stone cottages, wooden fishing boats and pink-flowering oleander. Meanwhile, the Dalmatian mainland is home to the well-preserved port cities of Split, Zadar and Dubrovnik (with its UNESCO-listed, pedestrians-only old town), where sturdy fortifications protect exquisite Romanesque and Baroque churches, and bustling fish markets display mounds of wide-eyed sea bream and glistening octopus. With this Bradt guide sharing a local’s first-hand experience, you'll be sure to eat well: think fresh fish, local seasonal fruit and vegetables, and home-produced olive oil, whether consumed in excellent, family-run agrotourism eateries or newly Michelin-starred restaurants. You’ll drink great wines too, informed by the author’s knowledge of Dalmatian wines and wine-tasting. For many visitors, Dalmatia’s greatest allure involves exploring its dramatic landscapes and unspoilt nature. Castaway-style islands such as Hvar, with its rustic-chic seafood eateries and candle-lit cocktail bars, are much loved by yachters who sail around the uninhabited islets of Kornati National Park. Then there's windsurfing off Bol on Brac, scuba diving off Vis, and sea-kayaking or paddling around the Korcula archipelago too. On the mainland, rugged mountains and gaping gorges offer yet more challenges for adventure-sports enthusiasts – try hiking the soaring limestone heights of Mt Biokovo, free-climbing in Paklenica National Park or rafting down the Cetina Gorge, in the hinterland behind Omiš. Little wonder that land- and water-based adventure sports are treated to a full chapter in Bradt’s Croatia: Dalmatian Coast – the perfect companion to your visit.

Pickup an old stamp album and flick through it. You'll find a host of exotic and unfamiliar names: Cyrenaica, Fernando Poo, Fiume, North Ingria, Obock, Stellaland, Tuva, – distant lands, vanished territories, lost countries. Do they still exist? If not, where were they? What happened to them? From My Old Stamp Album goes in search of the truth about these and many other amazing places. Stuart Laycock and Chris West unearth stories of many kinds. Some take you to long-disappeared empires; others throw light on the modern era's most pressing wars. You are invited to enjoy them all, in a collection of historical narratives as broad and enticing as that old stamp album that you've just discovered in the attic.