Claudia Schiffer

Date of birth: 1970-08-25
Birthplace: Rheinberg, Germany
Height: 5' 11"
Nationality: German
Profession: actress, model

Claudia Schiffer (born August 25, 1970) is a German supermodel and actress, who reached the height of her popularity during the 1990s.
Claudia Schiffer was born in Rheinberg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and began modelling in 1987, after being spotted in a nightclub in Düsseldorf. Just weeks later she appeared in ELLE and within a short time she began modelling for Chanel. In the early 1990s she starred in Guess? jeans adverts in North America. She has appeared in a number of films and has also appeared in the music video of Westlife's cover of Billy Joel's "Uptown Girl," as the iconic uptown girl. In 1993, she appeared in the children's movie, Richie Rich.
Schiffer was engaged to the magician David Copperfield for about 6 years until 1999 when she met Tim Jefferies. The magazine, Paris Match, claimed their engagement was possibly contractual, but this assertion was later found to be dubious by a French Court.
On 25 May, 2002, she married film producer Matthew Vaughn, son of George Albert Harley Drummond (also known as George de Vere Drummond). Schiffer and Vaughn have two children together; son Caspar Matthew, born 30 January, 2003 and daughter Clementine, born 11 November, 2004. They all now live in London.

Trivia

• Claudia holds the record for the supermodel with the most magazine covers. She has graced over 900

Croatia Online - Left Hand Drive Cars

Regular readers may remember our last posting on sourcing left hand drive cars in the uk. It's clearly a great boon to have one if you are spending a lot of time in foreign countries that drive on the right. However there are a few drawbacks:

1. You have to drive to England once a year for an MOT if you want to keep up your English insurance and that means keeping the tax disc current as well. You can get 3rd party insurance relatively easily in Croatia but some companies will plead ignorance. Also, with the new residency rules (see below), Croatian insurance is only issued for 6 months rather than a year as before, and of course it's not valid in the UK though you can get a green card for eg Montenegro. However, surprisingly, it's issued on the car at a fixed rate so they don't seem to mind who drives the car or what their history is.

2. As we discovered a couple of months ago, the wing mirrors are the "wrong way round" which means to get a new one they have to be imported and that takes time and money.

3. Most fundamentally and the real subject of todays posting, beware the problem of the aim of the headlights' beam when you go for that all important MOT - more details below.

There's no controversy over the fact that the aim of headlights for a car that's driven on the right is not satisfactory when driving on the left and vice versa. If not "fixed" it can be very distracting for oncoming cars and not very helpful to the driver. Most of us will remember painstakingly putting pvc tape over the headlights when we first went to France and a now more sophisticated version of that is normal practice the world over. However, understandably, the UK MOT requires that the beam is right for the UK. Fortunately, common sense as well as safety prevails at VOSA, responsible for administration of the MOT system, who say that a masking kit is acceptable, if the aim given is correct, though ideally a more permanent solution is preferable.

A major garage who, for the moment, we will not name pending a formal response to our request for clarification, does not accept the official guidance! They insisted that the only way our car would pass was to have new headlamp lenses at a cost of around £4oo let alone the cost of reversing the operation to go back to Croatia. They were directed towards section 1.6 of the inspection guidance manual, they were informed of a detailed phone call the writer had with VOSA MOT standards helpline (the ultimate authority) but still they refused to budge. More frustrating still they dealt the killer blow 15 minutes before we were due to pick the car up, as agreed with them, 45 minutes after the "ready time". The car was therefore withdrawn from this garage the following day, after several attempts to discuss the issue pragmatically, and placed with another one who knew of the problem and the more appropriate solution. Looking at the 'net, it's clear this is not an isolated problem. So.....

a) be armed with section 1.6 of the manual before you book your MOT

b) ask the question before you are "cornered" by a recalcitrant (at best!) garage and an expired MOT, preferably before you book the test

c) preferably get your masking kit before you get to England - it's easier to source and you'll be prepared for night driving

You'll find more information on MOT administration, etc on http://www.vosa.gov.uk/ and follow this link for section 1.6 of the MOT inspection manual guidelines - http://www.motuk.co.uk/manual_160.htm

Today's picture is unfortunately not of the "offending vehicle" but one being prepared for a wedding during the Šibenik regatta on St Nicholas' Day. For more photos of that go to our sister site http://www.croatiacruisingcompanion.blogspot.com/

Small stature, Big style- New York Look Book

Tiqon “T.J.” Lediard Jr., First-Grader

“I’d like to wear purple-and-silver gym clothes all day.”

(Photo: Spencer Heyfron)

By Emma Rosenblum

Hi, T.J. Thanks for talking to me on the phone. How are you?
Good.

That was a nice uniform you had on today. Do you like wearing it?
No, I like gym clothes. I like purple and silver. I’d like to wear purple-and-silver gym clothes all day.

What games do you play in gym class?
You mean gym sports? I like playing volleyball. I’m good. And I’m a good snowboarder already. I can snowboard all the way down when I’m older.

How much older?
When I’m 13. But I’m not 13, I’m still 6! I’m going to get older soon, I think.

What other sports do you like?
We played relay race, and I won. I’m fast; I can catch them. I’m the fastest in my class. I’m super-fast. I’m super-super-super-fast.

Do you like watching TV?
I don’t like the Cartoon Network. I like to watch Noggin. You can see shows like Blue’s Clues or Franklin—everything!

Why don’t you like the Cartoon Network?
Umm … Bye!
[Dial tone]

Croatia Online - Zagreb Airport Handy Hotel

It may look pretty functional on the outside but Hotel Stella is a good option for those wanting to stay somewhere close to the airport, or near to Zagreb's exhibition centre, without wanting to brave city centre traffic and prices. On the main road to the airport, there's not too much else around but a walk through the back streets reveals a couple of nice cafes and an old wooden church. The helpful staff will send out for a pizza or something similar as the hotel facilities do not run to a fully fledged restaurant and the nearest restaurant is a long walk away. There is a bar however, and a smoking area near reception to help Croatian guests get over the shock of non smoking rooms.

Wireless internet is available although the complexity of the pricing structure is a little offputting at first, as is how to use it. You have to go onto the hotel website ignoring all sorts of security notices, but it works and it's better to go for more time than you need rather than paying high rates for the odd hour.

The rooms are modern and very well equipped - driving from the south the signs show four stars; from the north three. The rooms are definitely 4 star but the lack of peripheral facilities tends towards the three. There's ample free car parking for guests and, when we were there, the hotel manager was kind enough to let us leave the car behind for a few days rather than parking at the airport at 70 kunas a day (taxi 100 kunas/10 minutes). Even better there was none of the normal disgruntlement on the return taxi journey that you would get from a London cabby on a short run from Heathrow.

It's not cheap at 540 kn for single use of a double room, and 790kn for a double, breakfast included, but, compared with city prices for the same degree of comfort, it's a snip. The first impression is a rather efficient and cold set up but we had the chance to spend a few days there and the ice soon melted!

Hotel Website - www.hotel-stella.hr.

Croatia Online - Zadar's Newest Hotel

Zadar has been waiting a long time for a city centre hotel and Hotel Bastion appears to be worth the wait. Open in June 2008, the Slovenian architect, Jani Vosel has interpreted the brief of blending the best of old and new with impeccable flair. The four star, boutique hotel has 23 rooms, 4 apartments and a luxury apartment as well as a state of the art video conferencing room, restaurant, bar, small cardio vascular gym, and wellness area. The original stone is featured throughout, particularly in the wellness area, where the end of the stone floor marks the boundary of the 13th century fortress on which the hotel is built. Inside and outside you’ll also find some of the original stone catapault balls used to defend the fortress. The 60 cover restaurant, has a menu based around the freshest of fish – not surprising as the owner, has a fish shop in the market. The menu will change every three months, in tune with the seasons, and the chef is a prodigé of one of the best healthy food restaurants in Croatia – Kukuriku in Rijeka.

We're told that the Garden and Arsenal, both innovative venues in their own right, make excellent neighbours and any potential noise problems are mitigated by their skilful sound design and Bastion's double glazing. Bastion also has a ready answer to any parking concerns with 20 dedicated parking spaces just by the hotel. Seems like they have thought about everything.

Thanks to Hotel Bastion for today's photo.

Croatia Online - British Ambassador In Split

The new British Ambassador to Croatia, David Blunt, held a reception in Split yesterday, supported by many of his team. Distinguished guests included Župan Mr Ante Sanader and Mayor Mr Ivan Kuret. In a speech made almost entirely in Croatian, the Ambassador stated his intent "to deepen and broaden" the relationship with Split and the surrounding region, and that the UK sees itself "as one of Croatia's closest friends and a key partner" ... "amongst the strongest supporters of Croatia's EU and Nato membership." Apparently the British Government invests at least €26 million annually in the relationship and is working on a number of key issues with Croatia such as supporting improved public administration and court management, and building capacity and effectiveness on border controls. That's not to mention the significant investment in Croatia by a number of UK companies.

The Ambassador said that he and his team were also working hard with the media to help them report more knowledgeably, especially on EU issues, but also to increase awareness of "just how extensive is this programme of UK engagement with and in Croatia".

There was also something for the British community in the area who were reassured that effective consular services were a personal high priority for the Ambassador and that all feedback was welcome.

Today's photo is courtesy of the FCO website. For further background on the new Ambassador, link to http://ukincroatia.fco.gov.uk/en/our-offices-in-croatia/our-ambassador/

Croatia Online - Krka and Skradin

In our previous posting we referred to the joys of exploring Croatia off season. Krka National Park is one of the places that can get overloaded in July and August, but if that's the only time you can visit, it's still worth it. However if you can get there away from the crowds then the experience is so much better.

Skradin is the focal point of the park, the testimony to which is the new National Park centre which opened last June and is equipped with all the latest technology - touch screen computers, lcd displays and a vast array of information, all neatly tucked away in a modern and functional building just out of sight from the lovely old town itself.

All credit to Skradin for keeping its main facilities open all year round - its one very charming hotel, at least three of its most notable restaurants, the tourist office and the National Park Centre, more details later. Skradin also has a very popular ACI marina (ACI = the state owned marina network). Apart from being a delightful town, a mooring in fresh river water is much easier on the hull than the Adriatic's salt water. For more details, see our sister site Croatia Cruising Companion - Skradin

From Skradin we decided to visit Roški Slap, a good twenty minute drive away along a country road, through the narrow streets of Rupe, past a few steep drops, and, on this occasion, past a few bemused workmen who were improving the road and thought that the route was closed. The waterfalls at Roški Slap are less dramatic than those that the boat from Skradin will take you to, and have less interlinking walkways (just one wood bridge in fact) but are none the less impressive in perhaps a more unspoilt way. At this time of year it just seems to be a wildlife playground, particularly for mallards.

Croatia clearly takes its natural heritage very seriously indeed and it's extremely refreshing to see money invested wisely in increasing the facilities and information available to allow enjoyment of Krka and its surrounds without spoiling them.

Todays photo is of the mallards enjoying themselves at Roški Slap after a busy tourist season.

Information
Krka National Park tel 022 771 688, fax 022 771 689
Tourist centre opening hours: 1.11 - 28.2: 9am-4pm; 1.3-31.10 8am-7/8pm (8pm when the clocks change!)

Hotel Skradinski Buk tel 022 771 771, fax 022 771 770

Skradin Restaurants:
There are many good restaurants in Skradin and we've mentioned just two below - one we know and the other one we like the look of.

Zlatne Skoljke, in the centre, has a strong reputation, was good when we ate there a year or so ago and we continue to get positive feedback - prices just a little above Dalmatian average.

Konoba Cantinetta, is on the "outskirts" of the town but such is Skradin's compactness that it will take less than 5 minutes to walk there from the centre. It's terrace, open fire and exterior look very inviting even when it's closed on a cold day!

The other good news is that a new hotel opened last year in the National Park and that's open all year round too. Hotel Vrata Krke is about a 10 minute drive from Skradin and is purpose built and self contained, so there's no longer any excuse not to visit the Šibenik area out of season - all the delights of nature at its best and one of Croatia's best unspoilt cities to explore.

Croatia Online Celebrates 50,000 Hits

At the last count, before we started this posting, we were just 35 hits away from a total of 50,000 in the nearly three years that we have been blogging. Croatia Online's first posting was 21st January 2006 which, in some ways, seems like a lifetime away but in others seems like only yesterday.

In January 2006 we had no broadband in our part of Croatia so blogging was also quite a slow process. There have been a lot of other changes too. Croatia's first motorway makes travelling along the coast so much easier, the variety of produce and products in the shops continues to increase significantly so there's little to miss from England in that respect (mostly marmite, tea, bacon and Branston Pickle!), and the quality and choice of Croatia's tourism offer has also increased apace.

On the downside, the new rules and regulations are making life difficult for foreigners, the bureacracy is still a little frustrating, and it still seems to take a while to discover the true inner warmth, kindness and generosity of the locals. New Year's Resolution number 1 is to get fluent in the language - being able to discuss the weather helps but it's not enough!

Whatever the changes, and despite its renaissance as a tourist destination, Croatia remains one of the most beautiful and fascinating countries in Europe, if not the wider world, and we feel very privileged to continue to have the chance to write about it. It's a particular pleasure to be able to explore it off season and discover some of the more hidden secrets, away from the crowds. Two days ago we revisited Krka National Park - Skradin and Roški Slap - with hardly a soul in sight. It was a crisp and mostly sunny autumn day, the falls were at their best and the wildlife was minding its own business, and probably as grateful as those in the tourism industry that the busy summer season was over. There's a full report on that to come but in the meantime, in honour of the occasion, we'd like to take the opportunity to revisit some of Croatia Online's highlights.

1. Publication of the Croatia Cruising Companion

We get very little sympathy when we try to explain what hard work it was to sail around Dalmatia in order to write a book on it. Suffice to say that this book was a major part of our lives for over three years and it was more of a relief than a joy when it went off to the printers. Croatia continues to change so quickly that it required a few months in itself to make sure that the earlier chapters we'd written were as up to date as the last few. Relief was also the main emotion on publication day and the launch at the Earls Court Boatshow - our publishers had done us proud on the quality and finish of the end product and most people that saw it seemed to like it. Slowly that relief has turned into a certain amount of joy at its continuing success and the luck we had in being asked to write it in the first place!

2. Readers' Feedback

One of the pleasures of blogging for fun is the feedback you get from readers when you have touched a certain nerve or provided something genuinely useful. Luckily for us, we have also made some good friends via Croatia Online. Our most commented on posting continues to be one of the more recent, on the new rules and regulations for foreigners in Croatia. Part of that posting's "success" is to do with the air of uncertainty regarding the situation and the apparent lack of hard information in the public domain. Since it was one of Croatia Online's initial aims to try and assist newcomers to Croatia to try and find practical information and hard facts, it's gratifying to see that there has been some success in this respect. When we first started Croatia Online we couldn't find anything similar on the net and experienced vertical learning curves in most areas of life; nearly three years later there are a number of bloggers on Croatia, and many more information sites in the English language, though relatively few "independents" like Croatia Online, that are not driven by, or attached to a business (with occasional apologies for plugs on our book!)

Other popular postings, inspiring multiple comments, are our cost of living reports and updates (for obvious reasons), periodic where to go summaries (and some of the comments here have inspired us to look at destinations not already covered), a detailed report on hotels in Split (though there is a more recent update), a 2007 report on the Croatian business environment (including detailed comments from Joel Anand, Co-Founder of the Adriatic Institute for Public Policy and International Leaders Summit on Economic Growth) and, on a lighter note there's always plenty of interest in reports on pets in Croatia, nautical tourism and shopping.

4. Destinations

The detailed research required to write our Cruising Companion has allowed us to inform readers on many of the more undiscovered island and mainland coast destinations, as well as the more popular ones. Occasionally, we have ventured away from the coast (not geographically easy in most parts of Croatia!) and one of our favourite holiday breaks was our Christmas in Lupoglav, inland Istria. We've also been the only guests in the only hotel open in Vis for Christmas.

Favourite destinations on the mainland coast and islands include Vis, Tribunj, Primosten, Sibenik, Krapanj Island, Krka, Trogir
Zadar and Brac. Revisiting these postings its clear that there are many more destinations to review in the next few weeks. Inland highlights are Varazdin, Livno and Kupres, in nearby Bosnia and Hercegovina, and of course the capital, Zagreb

5. Events and Entertainment

We've had the chance to visit some very out of the way places and see some great local skills and talent in the course of our travels. There are too many to do justice to in a short space but the following will give you a taste and flavour of Croatia's diversity in this respect:

Falconry Centre, near Šibenik

Klapa Singing

Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race In Split

Cricket and Irish Dancing (yes, really)

Mandolin Concert

Wine Tasting

Olive Oil Making

Boat Shows

Soparnik or "Spinach Pancake" Festival

6. Friends

We referred to the friends we had made along the way earlier in this posting and don't want to invade their privacy by mentioning their names "in public" but they know who they are!

Some of them also run businesses and we'd like to mention a few sites below, in no particular order, that have been either a source of inspiration, information, or that just do very interesting things in Croatia and/or do what they do well. Please note that Croatia Online has no commercial aim and is a not for profit blog. Sites that we refer to, in our opinion, just happen to deserve a mention on merit:

The Croatian Language School – learning the language and the cuisine
Marina Facility Solutions – Croatian marina experts
Etnoland – helping others to discover Croatian tradition and culture
Sokolarski (Falconry) Centre - dedicated to the protection, conservation and preservation of Birds of Prey in Croatia
Secret Dalmatia – unique and tailor made tours of Croatia to discover its hidden virtues
Sailing School Croatia – a wide variety of sailing courses including RYA qualifications

7. Professional Highlights

Apart from the Croatia Cruising Companion, we feel privileged to be working, for the fourth year running, on Time Out's publications for Croatia - their guide book and annual magazine, A Visitors' Guide to Croatia, and a number of projects for Boat International including, most enjoyably, authoring their Superyacht Owners Guide: The Best Of Croatia which allowed us a refreshing degree of editorial freedom to put together over 100 pages of what is best about Croatia if money is no object (and in many cases the best things in Croatian life are free!).

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This is a long posting and has just a hint of self congratulation about it for which we apologise. Last time we celebrated our successes, was over a year and 30,000 hits ago so hopefully readers will allow us just a little self indulgence. More importantly it's a stark reminder of just how much more there is to say to keep Croatia Online fresh, informative and up to date, so any thoughts of resting on our laurels have quickly disappeared!

Today's photo is of the Split peninsula taken from Podstrana. In a tradition established in our last celebratory posting, we wanted to use a Croatian professional photographer's photo but thought better of it. However it's an opportune moment to mention Ivo Pervan, one of Croatia's best known and most successful photographers, but a true gentleman and professional. In one of life's many twists of fate, it turns out that our book front cover is one of his photos, originally sourced from the Croatian tourist board. We discovered this just before we asked him to help us out on two other projects and can't recommend him highly enough!

Croatia Online - Weddings

What better way to celebrate all that's good about Croatia than at a wedding. Just an added bonus that the bride's mum happen's to have a perfect sea view house, lovely friends and family, and very good connections within the catering industry!

Congratulations to Petra and Marijo and we wish them the very best of health, wealth and happiness. Thanks to all concerned for allowing us to share their day with them.

Croatia Online - Croatia In Top Ten Emerging Food Destinations

Expedia, Australia, have ranked Croatia number six in its top ten of emerging food destinations.

Australians are dedicated travellers and it seems Croatia is on many of their lists as one of the new places to visit next year. Those that know Croatia well will be familiar with the varied range of cuisine - plain grilled fresh fish and meat in Dalmatia, the Italian influence in Istria reflected in the pastas and sauces, and the Hungarian influence in inland Croatia. Wherever you go, the chefs seem to be getting more adventurous and dishes are normally based on the best of home grown or freshly fished produce.

A few organisations have now added culinary tours or courses to their offer. Try Easy Croatian who combine cookery courses with learning the language in Lošinj, or one of Secret Dalmatia's gastronomy tours.

For the full Top Ten report, link to http://traveloscopy.com/CMS/index2.php?option=com_content&do_pdf=1&id=1425

Croatia Online - Residency & Business Permits Update

Regular readers may recall an earlier posting about the effect Croatia's new laws on "aliens" have been having on foreigners that chose to retire to Croatia and those trying to do business here.

There are so many good things to write about Croatia that we don't want to dwell unduly on this, but the situation has cast a gloomy and sometimes thunderous cloud over many a Croatia loving expat's head. The online magazine Croatia Business Report (CBR) has taken up the cause with a detailed article on the matter, and some insightful interviews with some of the authorities. It's possible that change may be in the air and CBR examines the effects, the possible changes, and also talks to those that are campaigning to bring about some improvements.

For the full report, go to http://www.croatiabusinessreport.com/

For our earlier posting on the subject, link to Croatia Online - Stunning Sunsets & False Dawns

Today's photograph is an attempt to illustrate our posting in abstract form. It shows a Jadrolinija passenger ferry leaving Split harbour whilst a fleet of small dinghies, aptly named Optimists, sail in, all watched by a much larger ship that does not seem quite sure which way to go.

Croatia Online - Ideal Christmas Present For Croatia Lovers!

Apologies for hijacking Croatia Online, a normally highly objective and independent site, with some shameless self promotion in mind!

Our Croatia Cruising Companion, featuring the Dalmatian Coast and Islands, is now one year old though you will find regular updates, news and invaluable input from readers, on our sister blog - http://www.croatiacruisingcompanion.blogspot.com/

It continues to feature regularly in Amazon's top ten for books on Croatia, both in the UK and USA, and seems to be a snip at the prices currently offered by Amazon.

Whilst it's primarily aimed at sailors, land lubbers will find a whole host of information on the more remote island destinations, and mainland villages, that isn't available elsewhere - it might even persuade you to take to the water which is one of the best ways to explore the real Dalmatia.Whatever your preferences, enjoy the real Dalmatia before everyone discovers it!

We took over three years to research and write it, and things are changing so fast in Croatia that we spent another few months revisiting locations that we covered at the beginning to ensure they were up to date. Plenty of blood sweat and tears along the way but we've come to be quite proud of the end result and have been very gratified by the positive feedback we have received as well as being spurred on to newer heights for the second edition, by the updates and constructive criticism that is an essential part of a "living work" such as Dalmatia's coastline and islands.

Croatia Online - Croatia Airlines Drops Direct Flights To London

We discovered this week that Croatia Airlines have dropped direct flights between London and Split for the winter. Croatia Airlines have been flying direct, once or twice a week in the winter, since we came here 6 years ago. With British Airways dropping flights to Split this year that means trips via Zagreb are unavoidable in winter.

Apparently the change was carried out by stealth - no warning - and a lot of hotels, and other organisations directly affected, are campaigning vigorously for a reinstatement!

Croatia Online - Falconry Centre, Dubrava

So many stories to tell and not enough time to tell them! Croatia Online's small editorial team is suffering from a surfeit of news and a serious time deficit. Whilst we will be catching up on the last month's news in due course, we couldn't leave last night's story untold for long.

We've reported on the the work of the falconry ("sokolarski") centre in Dubrava, near Šibenik, in a previous posting - see http://croatiaonline.blogspot.com/2008/07/croatia-online-falconry-centre.html. However last night's story is more an illustration of how a small and inspired conservation organisation, in a tiny village, in a small country, can make world news.

Some months ago an injured eagle owl was brought to the centre with its wings badly damaged. Under carefully measured anaesthetic, the team matched the 30 damaged feathers with those in its feather bank and, in a process known as imping, linked these new feathers to the shafts of the damaged feathers, with pins and rods. After a rest and a full inspection the owl was released swiftly back into the wild at the precise spot where it was found (recorded on GPS), and before another bird took over its territory. Just as remarkably, the whole process, including the flight back to the wild, was filmed by Hrvoje Gunjace, a journalist for Croatian television. He documented the imping and the release, and it was picked up by CNN World Report who broadcast it around the world, shining the spotlight on both the unique work of the Sokolarski Centre, and a very happy ending for the owl in question.

We saw the CNN film clip at a presentation in the new and very modern Šibenik Library, yesterday evening, and understand that the original Croatian reporter is to receive an award for his work. That award is very well deserved, as is the increased exposure that the documentary has given to the very enterprising and noble work carried out at the centre.

Emilio Mendjušić, the centre's founder and continuing inspiration (pictured left) doesn't stand still for very long and is now in the process of extending the veterinary facilities to include a veterinary centre catering for all animals. This will help contribute funds to the centre and help the two resident vets (Emil pictured right) earn a living whilst they continue to provide honorary services to the centre and the injured wild birds of prey that are brought there. Victoria Norman (pictured centre) is a doyenne of falconry and came from England two years ago to volunteer for the centre. All three were intensly involved in all stages of the rescue and "repair" of the owl which is just one of the many aspects of their work at the centre.

Even happier news for the celebrity owl is that after two years, his "imped" feathers will moult and be replaced by brand new ones without the pins and rods!

PS - If you want to see the video, we've just found it on YouTube - follow this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=529m2CA6POw. Victoria Norman was most excited about the fact that the whole operation was done under carefully measured anaesthetic - the first time in her experience that it's not been done on a bird that's awake. Although there's no pain involved it is very stressful for the bird and especially one that needs 30 new feathers.

The Man Skirt Returns

Marc Jacobs reps the Man Skirt in Paris
from Styleclicker

See the original post here

Net-a-porter does New York

Some lovely stylish ladies from Net-a-Porter, came to town for the shows and the New York fashion crowd took notice:






Holli Rogers and Natalie Massenet from Net-a-Porter
photographed by Scott Schuman for The Sartorialist

Croatia Online - Varaždin In Pictures

In our previous posting on Varaždin we drew comparisons with Portmeirion in Wales, the location, many years ago, of the popular cult series The Prisoner. Judge for yourself!

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And whilst we're discovering inland Croatia, check out our sister site, Croatia Cruising Companion, set up to give regular updates and news to accompany our cruising guide of the same name. We are again very grateful to Ian Shaw for his latest detailed account of his ongoing exploration, by yacht, of the Dalmatian Coast and Islands, this time focusing on Hvar, Korčula and Mljet.

Croatia Online - Varaždin

In the course of researching our Croatia Cruising Companion, covering the Dalmatian Coast and Islands, we've come across some extremely photogenic villages and towns. Inland Varaždin has to rank high amongst Croatia's best, alongside the likes of Sučurac and Vrboska on Hvar island, Sali on Dugi Otok, and Primošten, Trogir and Šibenik on the Dalmatian mainland.

Varaždin, particularly its 14th century castle pictured in the background, has a slight feel of Portmeirion in Wales, made famous by The Prisoner TV series, though Portmeirion is based on the Italian city of Portofino and Varaždin is distinctly Habsburg. Whilst the castle and its manicured gardens is arguably the centrepiece, this city, once Croatia's capital, is bursting with architectural delights packed into a compact car free centre. In contrast with Dalmatia however, though there are bars a plenty, restaurants are not so abundant and most are in side streets leaving the prime locations for boutiques and other shops.

On the hotel front, there are two good new ones this year - Varaždin, by the train station, and Istra in the centre. Just as well as the accomodation is full to capacity when big events are on like last weeks Baroque musical evenings. Good budget alternatives are Pansion Maltar, near the Turist hotel, and the rooms above the BBC bar, on the west of town, though these can get pretty full as well so try and book ahead.

For restaurants, The Zlatna Gusta is Varaždin's most feted. Next door is the Park which offers cheap menus popular with the town's students, as does the Raj. We ate a good value Pizza in lovely surroundings in Pizzeria Domenico and hunted high and low for somewhere different the following night that wasn't crammed with queuing students, or temporarily closed or seemingly inhospitable. Those more used to Dalmatian restaurants need to adjust to inland Croatian restaurants which are, on the whole, distinctly more formal, sometimes less populated, and much harder to suss out from the outside.

Varaždin is the perfect place for a weekend break with a great mix of culture, art, shops and history - and just the right size to wander around and get to know intimately in a few days. Only a 2 hour bus ride or 2.5 hour train journey from Zagreb as well!

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"Prisoner" lovers will be interested to know that, as we researched Portmeirion more closely to see if our initial gut comparison was justified, we discovered that a remake of the series for 2009 was being considered. Link to http://tvseriesfinale.com/articles/the-prisoner-mckellen-and-caviezel-signed-for-2009-mini-series/ for more information on that or to http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/northwest/sites/inpictures/pages/portmeirion.shtml?1 for pictures of Portmeirion to compare, for yourself, with those of Varaždin - tourist board link http://www.turizam-vzz.hr/en/posjetite/varazdin/

Croatia Online - Slavonia Part 4 - Kopački rit

No trip to Osijek (see earlier posting) is complete without a trip to Kopački rit. It's a vast area of wetland, covering 177 square kilometres and harbouring a huge diversity of flora and fauna. Part of the area is a specially reserve, observed but not interfered with by man - nature is left entirely to its own devices here; the rest of the Nature Park is open to commercial activities such as hunting, shooting and fishing, and Tito had a grand hunting lodge in Tikveš where he used to entertain statesmen and celebrities alike.

Kopački rit is in the centre of the Danube floodplain and bounded by the Danube and the Drava, a major tributary of the Danube. Carp, catfish and other species of fish come from these two rivers to spawn, and the whole area once hosted a thriving fishing industry. When the area became protected in 1967, and fishing was banned, the locals turned to growing vegetables in the fertile soil. The northern part doesn't flood, but, in spring after the ice thaws in the mountains, the waters in the southern area can reach up to 9 metres high and there are therefore different specific characteristics, and flora and fauna, for each part.

The picture shows our small group climbing aboard the visitors' ferry for a guided tour of the protected area though the waters were unusually low for autumn so we couldn't go very far. However we were able to see cormorants in abundance, grey herons cleaning up what the greedy cormorants couldn't keep down, kingfishers, white willows, mistletoe, and crab and water rat holes. On another day, and/or in another season, we might have seen red deer, the rare white tailed eagle, muskrats, otters, frogs, storks or white egrets.

In fact we may have been somewhat distracted by our fellow visitors - a Spaniard and New Zealander, both vets specialising in red deer genetics. That, together with the input of our extremely able and informed guide Renata, led to a fascinating tale of events turning full circle - one of the most successful red deer herds in New Zealand, founded by the Englishman Graham Carr, owes a lot to the blood lines of Tito's deers. A number of these deer were exported to New Zealand before Croatia's Homeland war. Then, during the war, Tito's herd was all but wiped out by the Serbians who occupied the area feasting on venison. However our New Zealand vet friend, Mike, returned to Croatia after the war with embryos from the original herd to replenish stocks. As a further twist, the reason for Mike and Antonio's visit this week was to improve the genetics of a local herd that are part of a hunting "farm" - effectively the hunting organisation's owners want the superior genes (in one respect at least) of the current New Zealand herd so that their visiting recreational hunters can get better antlers for their trophys.

If red deer genetics and breeding is your thing, read more on http://www.peelforestdeergenetics.com/

For more information on Kopački rit, go to http://www.kopacki-rit.com/

And our most important tip - if you can't bear mosquitoes, avoid the summer months. Depending on the water levels, they're not always a problem but when they are, they really are. Spring and autumn are the best times to visit in any event.

Croatia Online - Slavonia Part 3 - Bizovac

Today's photo was particularly hard to select. We could have chosen to picture a quiet village with a post office and a couple of cafes, or the behemoth of a building that is Hotel Termia, or a spanking new, almost as enormous, hospital near to the hotel, or a very tatty looking hotel bedroom with basic and battered wooden furniture, or the steam from the healing hot waters blowing up from fields. Instead, the photo shows the best of Hotel Termia - its vast swimming area, or part of it at least. Not shown is the large "standard pool" for those that just want to get some exercise swimming lengths. The area pictured is for more of a relaxing experience - a number of different sized jacuzzis dotted around, for want of a better phrase, a "designer pool". Outside there's much more, including a water slide that empties its contents into the indoor pool.

Hotel Termia has its good and its bad side but the bad is not to be underestimated and hits you as soon as you walk into your room. That said, it only claims two stars and the bathroom was ok, even if the state of the rest of the room was not. It was probably clean but hard to tell! The outside is imposing but promises more than delivered by the rooms. Inside it's a maze of corridors, doors and stairs, and a huge reception area containing a shop and bar. There's a classic and clinical mass catering restaurant - you know, from the style, it's going to be stewed white coffee from an urn for breakfast - but the "National Restaurant" has more than a little to commend it including some imaginative dishes and a good attempt to provide a cosy atmosphere.

We're told by "the management" that the hotel will be privatised this year so for those high rollers who've escaped the Wall Street Blues, and relish a challenge, don't say you weren't warned!

And if you haven't guessed yet, Bizovac is the source of underground thermal waters, rich in minerals and used in a wide range of health treatments; state owned Hotel Termia has, to date, cornered the market, but not for much longer it seems.

The Look from Paris: The Future is Now

From altamiranyc

From styleclicker

Stil in Berlin hunting for great street fashion

StilinBerlin on DW Clipmania from Mary Scherpe on Vimeo.

Croatia Online - Slavonia Part 2 - Đakavo

Đakavo is currently Slavonia's Cathedral town and about to become an archbishopric. That allows Osijek to become a bishopric, and ensures its church (see below) finally gets the Cathedral status it is due and has unofficially claimed for many years.

Đakavo's statuesque red brick cathedral has an equally impressive Bishop's Palace next door. The other perk of the bishop's job is an extremely well stocked wine cellar replenished from wine produced from the Bishop's vineyard and available for sale. However the stars of today's photo are the Lipizzaner horses featured hanging onto our editor's every word. Đakavo is the home of Croatia's national stud for these magnicent animals and, just a short drive away from the stud, accomodating the stallions, is a huge field of mares and foals.

There's much more to Đakavo than this - a good modern hotel of the same name as well as a pretty and unusual parish church which has retained many of its mosque features in honour of its long tradition and origins as a muslim place of worship for the Turks. However there's so much to report on, in a short space of time, that we'll have to move on to other aspects of a region that's full of surprises. We hope to return to some of the detail (hotels, restaurants, etc) at a later date.

Croatia Online - Slavonia Part 1 - Osijek

Osijek, close to the Hungarian border and the Danube, in fertile Slavonia, was once Croatia's largest city. Now it takes fourth place after Zagreb, Split and Rijeka.

The architectural style is hard to pin down in a nutshell and the Church of St Peter and Paul, pictured and known as The Cathedral, offers images of Birmingham (red brick) and Paris (the flying buttresses of Notre Dame) at the same time. Our local expert tells us that Osijek's buttresses are for aesthetic purposes only whereas those in Paris are structural, angled to support the arches against which they are placed.

Just a short walk away from this, the centre of the upper town, the area around the fortress of Tvrdja has a strong Baroque influence, and in between are some grand Secessionist Mansions in various states of repair.

So far, we've just scratched the surface but like what we've found: an eclectic mixture of old style hotels, perhaps a little daunting from the outside but well equipped inside with friendly staff and quiet but efficient service; spacious squares surrounded by buildings, many with plenty of space behind them for parking or gardens, modern cosmopolitan restaurants and traditional local ones, boutique hotels and equally comfortable larger or modern ones; a very different menu from Mediterranean Croatia, often featuring game (venison and wild boar) and influenced by neighbouring Hungary; lush green plains without a mountain in sight; and the cafes along the Drava, a wide River fed, in Spring, by the melting snow from the mountains to the west.

Whilst the Croatian Tourist Board's slogan "The Mediterranean that once was", is now an effective and strong brand, it is misleading in the extreme for about 50% of the nation's territory, does little justice to the diversity of Croatia, and an injustice to Slavonia which is continental, rather than Mediterranean. Whether or not coastal Croatia still has that undiscovered, undeveloped feel is a subject for a different posting but, from what we've seen so far, Slavonia is completely unspoilt, deserves more attention, and could be the next destination for discerning travellers seeking to discover continental Europe as it once was.

Cycling, birdwatching, hunting. horse riding and wine roads are just some of the activities that Slavonia lends itself to and it's also rich in history, culture and tradition. On the downside, so far, it's not so easy to get to from the UK but that could change soon as the small airport seeks new links. By road, the motorway from Zagreb has another fifty or so kilometres to go before it reaches Osijek, but it's a lovely drive.

Coming next...Lipizzaners and the Kopački rit Nature Park.

Wild & Wonderful in London

Pleather, helmets, harem pants and sculptural headresses? Must be fashion week in London. After many left the shows in New York disappointed with more of the same, frowns were turned upside down by the weird, wacky, but all together wonderful that London's fashion elite had to offer, but despite the abundance of the avant-garde, for every plastic dress, there was a beautiful gem, like the lovely Giles Deacon dress below.

Here's a quick wild ride through the good, the bad and the ugly that went down the runways in London:


Giles Deacon




PPQ






Rokskanda Ilincic




Todd Lynn



All photos from nymag.com

Croatia Online - Cycling Holidays

Fit readers may be interested to read about a cycling tour of Croatia reported on in the Telegraph. As the report suggests, cycling in Croatia is very different from somewhere flat like Essex or Holland - be prepared for some steep climbs. If you are a cycling enthusiast, a tour is probably the best way of getting your fix. The Croatian roads are generally not built or travelled with cyclists in mind and we've yet to see a marked cycle path!

Watch out for some new pages on inland Croatia in the next week or so as we meander slowly back to Dalmatia, from England, via Osijek and other hidden gems.

New York: Fashion is Dead

Photo: Kurt Wilberding for Wall Street Journal

Those were the words being uttered, both on the streets and in the tents, following what many are saying was a particularly lackluster New York Fashion Week.
"The shows didn't really live up to my expectations," according to Julie Gilhart, senior vice president and fashion director of Barneys New York quoted in Women's Wear Daily. Many fashion-forward retailers expressed their disappointment with the very commercial collections, which did not offer much variety.
"There were some great ones, but for the most part, I think it was hard for designers to put their finger on exactly what we need and what inspires us during this period of change." Jim Wetzerl and Lance Lawson, owners of two Jake boutiques on Chicago were also quoted in Women's Wear Daily as saying, "We did feel collections looked a bit the same across the board and felt some designs seemed more phoned-in than inspired."

Amid a sea of soft pastel dresses, there were a few bright spots to be found:

Alexander Wang (video)

Although still relatively new on the New York fashion scene, Alexander Wang managed to incorporate a pastel pallette into his collection without losing the edge of his signature downtown look.


Photos from nymag.com


Michael Kors (video)

The king of classic chic offered up a collection full of rich colors and fabrics. Kors played with traditional 50's silhouettes, creating sleek modern looks that stood out amongst many of the other veteran collections.



Photos from nymag.com


Yigal Azrouel (video)

Yigal Azrouel continues to evolve and his Spring 2009 collection was a display of both his maturity and innovation as a designer. Yigal's woman is a strong, confident risk-taker and this collection was full of options to outfit a stylish woman for any occasion.


Photos from nymag.com


Of course the uncertainty of both the financial and political futures of the US are being cited as reasons for the reservedness exhibited by designers, but buyers continue to clamor for unique pieces to keep shoppers interested. Hopefully, in six months when a new president has taken office, that security will yield a better showing in the tents for Fall 2009, or is it as Hiroto Sugawara says: are people in New York afraid of experimenting with fashion?


See also: Fashion Weak: Is This the Most Boring Fashion Week Since 9/11? (Gawker)
New York Fashion Week: Playing It Safe (The Business of Fashion)

Croatia Online - News

We last reported on news available in English back in February 2006 - direct link Croatia Online - Keeping Up With The News. Much of that report still holds true though as far as English newspapers are concerned, in some city centre establishments you can find them printed on the day.

What has changed substantially is the amount of news available on the web, and thanks to our roving reporters, Diane and Roger, for alerting us to the Croatian Times, a great website for news, in English, about Croatia. Readers with property problems arising from the new residency rules introduced this year, and other factors, may be interested to read the section about the British TV producers looking for stories about holiday homes on the site.

Javno, a Croatian newspaper, also has English pages covering world and local news and the link will take you direct to these (or look for the small English button at the top on the home page). Similarly HRT the government owned television company.

Croatia Online will continue to highlight major news and events and don't forget to look at our sister site, Croatia Cruising Companion, for details of our cruising guide covering the Dalmatian Coast and Islands, and the latest nautical news.

New York Magazine: Lookbook

Croatia Online - Supetar,....USA?

Today's picture shows Supetar on Brač Island. It's a nice enough town, the biggest ferry port on the island, and attracts its fair share of tourists as well as transit visitors. Readers may however be surprised to know that a US company has chose to use Supetar as the model for a new mixed use development in Texas, in the United States!

Adriatica is the concept of Jeffory Blackard, the Chairman of Blackard Group Inc, who became interested in Croatia after investing in a hotel and other commercial properties in Supetar. He's trying to stay as true to the original as he can, including building a replica of the bell tower and a traditional Dubrovnik galleon. The early stages also have a familiar ring - we read that building started "after more than five years of planning and a contentious year-long zoning battle". Read more about the project on www.adriaticamckinney.com.

If you want to know more about Supetar, it's covered on pages 155-156 of our Croatia Cruising Companion. It's not one of the most sheltered harbours for passing yachtsmen but a good base for a few days.

Going tribal: bold colors, graphic prints

Courtesy of Styleclicker


Courtesy of Hel Looks

Courtesy of Hel Looks