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Croatia facebooktwitterinstagramAbout us Total Croatia News a former contestant on the reality TV show Farma is raising an orphaned fox in his family home The pair are local celebrities in Vinogradci and also quite the hit on social media too It’s not unusual for Slavonian people to feel connected to the land and nature which surrounds them The rich soils of the Pannonian basin in east Croatia often provide an occupation for at least one family member these soils will put food on the family table The family of 22-year-old Jasmin Kunišinac Jasmin’s always felt connected to the land You could tell as much from Jasmin’s 2018 appearance on the Croatian reality TV show he was described as not lacking experience of life in a rural village hang out with friends and help abandoned animals He said his favourite animals were horses and foxes Jasmin’s fondness for foxes has been evident for the 250 or so residents of Vinogradci to see as he has taken on responsibilities for an orphaned fox Vinogradci is focussed around three small streets elongated and stretching back away from the street animals or additional buildings for food production The name of the settlement itself means ‘vineyards’ where Jasmin takes his fox Odi for walks © Grad Belišće It is exactly the sort of land where wild foxes like to roam Jasmin and his cousin found Odi by the side of the road at the beginning of the year The pair had been cycling to their grandmother’s when they came across the fox cub who They found the remains of Odi’s mom not far away The pair decided to take Odi home and fed the fox with milk from a bottle in much the same way you might a baby child Her’s is a household already quite full Jasmin has three sisters and a brother at home And that’s without even mentioning the other animals they have He plays with the Kunišinac’s Rottweiler and even their chickens seem to have got used to the sight of him Jasmin’s six-year-old sister particularly loves playing with Odi who is more lively as the daylight begins to fade – foxes are nocturnal animals Odi and Jasmin are not only celebrities thanks to their walks around the quiet streets of Vinogradci Thanks to folks’ familiarity with Jasmin on the reality show Odi has become quite the hit on social media In addition to Jasmin acquiring more followers on Facebook thanks to the fox’s arrival Odi has attracted some 18,000 views on TikTok and website in this browser for the next time I comment Paul Bradbury 2023 – Less than two hours east of Zagreb lies a fabulous healthy foodie destination arguably the greenest town in Croatia – the spa town of Daruvar was superb on so many levels Apart from some destinations in Istria that I will visit next month Daruvar was the last place on my list of places on mainland Croatia that I had not yet visited And you know what they say – save the best till last… My guide to Daruvar contributed massively to the experience as Karin Mimica and her Gastronaut crew have done many times over the last decade introducing me to the treasures of the lesser-known parts of Croatia and its fabulous cuisine But that is to take nothing away from the natural beauty of Daruvar – is there a town in the region with more trees in and around its centre BiH and Macedonia on a 2-day culinary and cultural voyage of discovery in partnership with the excellent Daruvar Toplice spa Daruvar-Papuk Tourist Board and participating gourmet partners from Daruvar in a very cool destination project called 6-i-elementi (6 elements) The 6-elements project is implemented by the Daruvar-Papuk Tourist Board in cooperation with Gastronaut All Daruvar caterers gathered and created their gastronomic interpretations of the topics: Dishes that strengthen immunity Each of the Daruvar caterers offers at least one dish that “drives away” viruses based on some of the ingredients that strengthen natural immunity – sage As a large number of athletes come to Daruvar for recovery and training Daruvar restaurants offer a special offer of dishes with a high protein content whose nutritional values are in accordance with the needs of the people who train 6 elements combine dishes with ingredients from the Daruvar area with specific craft beers or with Daruvar wines and natural lemonade and homemade yogurt Both topics – dishes that strengthen immunity and the pairing of food and beer appear for the first time in Croatia at the destination level but was it just a marketing trick or was there some real quality cuisine behind the hype After checking in to the Ljecilisni Spa Hotel and enjoying an excellent melon schnapps from the local Wise Grus distillery Not only is a spa hotel a very relaxing starting point but just the introduction was enough to more than whet the appetite Each participating restaurant set out the food in buffet style over the next two days and I would need a book to mention them all but the opening lunch at the hotel’s Taverna restaurant was a stunning opener washed down the Daruvar Badel Sauvignon was one heck of a first mouthful with most opting for a swim in the outdoor thermal pool – was it really late October A little info about Daruvarske Toplice from the official resort website: Daruvarske toplice – Special Hospital for Medical Rehabilitation People throughout this area have taken care of their health for two millennia Tourism has been developed owing to protected environment and optimal combination of natural healing factors and sophisticated treatments of rheumatic diseases medical rehabilitation and sports recreation the first springs of healing thermal water were arranged in 288 BC Daruvar has developed special type of health tourism just because of these natural benefits We are specialised in the treatment of rheumatic diseases It has also long tradition in the treatment of gynaecological diseases using natural healing factors – thermal water and mineral mud My first association with Daruvar was back in 2004 and it was related to the famous Daruvar brewery I was a real estate agent back then and had a buyer for an apartment on Hvar there was a lien on the property from the Daruvar property and it took 10 years to resolve the final purchase But now I was in the brewery for all the right reasons for an interesting overview of the brewery’s history I also solved something that had puzzled me for years I could never figure out why Croatia had a beer called Starocesko (Old Czech) but here I learned of a Czech community dating back to the 18th century Any you know what happens when you put Czechs and beer together It would have been all the more enjoyable if my Glas Slavonije colleague Slobodan Kadic hadn’t come up with the bright idea of lacing proceedings with ‘just another rakija’ every 10 minutes none more so than this steak and beetroot puree And I will just leave one of the desserts out there Croatian restaurant and hotel food can be quite repetitive and uninspiring at times Breakfast on Day 2 was followed by an interesting tour of the spa The resort has an excellent range of wellness and treatment services at very affordable prices One more reminder of the year-round potential of the Croatian medical tourism industry We were also given the opportunity later in the day to try out the rehabilitation services on offer and this ageing correspondent enjoyed some relief to a dodgy knee What a lovely combination of historic low-level architecture and trees First stop was the Daruvar Beekeeping Association souvenir shop with a truly exceptional range of innovative products one of the many lovely natural products that grow locally And if you are looking for a stylish way to ask someone to be your best man (kum in Croatian – thanks for asking and the perfect addition to my Bench Tourism concept This gorgeous ginkgo tree was voted European Tree of the Year in 2019 standing guard in front of the magnificent Jankovic Castle a smaller but equally elegant tree of a certain age its immediate magic was to be found below in its impressive cellars including a reacquaintance with that marvellous Sauvignon and the tasting included the Korlat Cabernet Sauvignon from Benkovac with grilled and drunk carp the main stars And what better way to relax than with a healthy cup of tea with hot thermal water straight from the source My knee a little recovered after my 30-minute electric therapy it was time for dinner at Terasa restaurant where there was more of a Czech emphasis to the menu But also some innovative things I had not come across before A late night swim in the thermal outdoor pool But Daruvar was not done with its surprises I slept so well that I completely missed breakfast there seems to be always a culinary option perhaps – which was voted as home to the best burek in Croatia And the cheesecake and homemade lemonade were not far behind a nice addition to the Daruvar dining scene and a fitting end to what was a rather astonishing 48 hours as did the cooperation between public and private sector and it is exciting to see them polishing it into one big diamond with a strong and diverse tourism offer Looking for a weekend break less than two hours from Zagreb