ZAGREB, the capital of Croatia, -situated on the slopes of Medvednica Mountain (Zagrebacka Gora) and along the banks of the Sava river; elevation 120 m; population 706,770. Th
…e favourable geographic position in the south-western part of the Pannonian Basin which extends to the Alpine, Dinaric, Adriatic and Pannonic regions, provides the best valuation of traffic connection between Central Europe and the Adriatic Sea. The city core comprises the mediaeval parts of the town called Gradec (Gric) and Kaptol. The construction of the railway embankment (1860) enabled the old suburbs, which did not represent an urban whole up to then, to merge gradually into Donji Grad, characterized by a regular block pattern. Between the two World Wars working-class quarters emerged between the railway and the Sava, and residential quarters on the hills of the southern slopes of Medvednica. The blocks between the railway and the Sava were built after the Second World War, and from the mid-1950s new residential areas south of the Sava river, the so-called Novi Zagreb (New Zagreb). The cargo railway hub and the international airport Pleso were built south of the Sava. The biggest industrial zone (Zitnjak) in the south-east represents an extension of the industrial zones on the western and eastern outskirts of the city, between the Sava and the Prigorje region. Urbanized lines of settlements connect Zagreb with the centres in its surroundings: Sesvete, Zapresic, Samobor, Dugo Selo and Velika Gorica. The traffic position, concentration of industry (metal-processing, electrical appliances, textiles, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, printing and leather industries, wood processing, paper etc.), scientific and research institutions and industrial tradition underlie its leading economic position. Zagreb seats central state administrative bodies (legislative, judiciary, executive, monetary, defence, health care, cultural, educational, traffic, etc.). There are three main traffic communications: the western, towards Ljubljana, i.e. West Europe; the eastern, towards South-eastern Europe and the Near East; the south-western, towards Rijeka, Croatia's biggest port. The railway running along the Sutla river and the Zagorje main road (Zagreb - Maribor - Vienna), as well as traffic connections with the Pannonian region and Hungary (the Zagorje railroad, the roads and railway to Varazdin and Koprivnica) are linked with the trunk routes. The railway connection with Bosnia and Herzegovina, along the Una valley to Split, is currently out of use due to thewar damage. Zagreb is a big Croatian tourist centre, not only in terms of transit from West and Central Europe to the Adriatic Sea but also as a tourist destination. The city with a tradition of almost one thousand years celebrated in 1994 its 900th birthday. Zagreb is not only rich in cultural and historical monuments, museums and galleries, it also has a variety of modern shops, and offers good quality of diversified restaurants as well as sports and recreation facilities. It is a big centre of congress tourism, economic and business events and trade fairs not only in Croatia but also in this part of Europe. Being an important junction point, it has road, air, railway and bus connections with European metropolises and all bigger cities and tourist resorts in Croatia. (MORE)