NATURAL BEAUTIES OF THE REPUBLIC OF CROATIA, SLAVONIA

A golden history of grain fields and oak forests Slavonia, along with Baranja and the Croatian part of Srijem, comprises eastern Croatia, a large, traditionally agricultural and culturally rich region. While facing many challenges in the new millennium, Slavonia has retained the title of the Croatian granary and the region where nature has been incredibly generous to people. The golden grain fields have often attracted people from the less arable, poorer regions to Slavonia, but also those with a strong entrepreneur spirit, in contrast to the sometimes easygoing and carefree natives of Slavonia. Even the storied forests of Slavonian oak, although they were mercilessly exploited by foreigners, are still there, and Slavonian oak is one of the noblest trees known to the world. Always with Croatia in their hearts, on the frontlines against fierce enemies up until recent times, Slavonians work their fields even today, but they also excel in state-of-the-art technology, with many startups launched by their inspired innovators. Slavonia will offer its fields, forests, rivers and lakes to any tourist or visitor, but also its hills, almost a thousand meters tall, in the region's western part. With cultural events such as Zlatne žice Slavonije ("Golden Strings of Slavonia"), Vinkovačke jeseni ("Vinkovci Autumn Festival"), Đakovački vezovi ("Đakovo Folklore Festival") and many others, Slavonians boast a rich cultural heritage and colorful customs. On the border between Slavonia and Baranja lies the Kopački rit Nature Park, and in western Slavonia the Papuk Nature Park. The former, in a corner between the Danube and the Drava rivers, is full of lakes, canals, ponds, forests, meadows and wetlands, and is one of the best-preserved floodplains in Europe. The most valuable part, however, is the zoological reserve with deer, a multitude of waterfowl and white-tailed eagle, a symbol of the Park. The wooded and hilly Papuk mountain, on the other hand, has a huge geological, biological and cultural diversity. There is also the Papuk Geopark, the first Croatian geopark, whose sites, such as Rupnica or the Geoinfo Center in Voćin, tell the a 600-million-year-old story of the planet Earth. Hrvoje Dečak, mag. nov.