On the first day of summer, 21st
June, the Festival of Sun and Light was traditionally held at the Church of the
Holy Cross. This year, the festival has celebrated its 10th
anniversary. It was 10 years ago, during the International Year of Astronomy,
that the first such festival was held and immediately gained success and
attracted visitors. The peculiarity of the Festival of Sun and Light is that it
is held at, as it is called, the smallest cathedral in the world. That
pre-Romanesque building of the cruciform layout with a dome, which has special
characteristics that allow the entrance of sunrays. The Church of the Holy
Cross was built to serve as a sundial and a calendar.
Following this wonderful festival, the
events in Nin continued with the Open-Door Day of the Nin Saltworks and with
the widely known Nin's šokolijada. Since 2003, Šokolijada has been held in Nin,
and everyone who has tasted šokol, that famous gastronomic delicacy, has been
delighted with its taste and aroma. Namely, šokol starts to be prepared at the
beginning of a year, and it reaches its peak precisely at Šokolijada, when the
best šokolars compete. Although this is a specialty of Nin, it is interesting
that also compete šokolars from the continental Croatia, who have perfected the
preparation of this delicacy. What is šokol? It is a dried meat product made
from pork, of a distinctive taste due to the addition of the Nin salt and
spices. However, it is also particularly affected by the drying on the Nin bora
which gives it a special smell and aroma. The pork neck is aged for a few days
in sea salt, then immersed into red wine to which various spices have been
added. After that, šokol is dried in the bora and smoke, but each šokolar also
has their own secret ingredient which gives each šokol its distinctiveness. Winning
the Nin šokolijada is a matter of prestige and all šokolars spend months trying
to make the best šokol they can.
After you have tasted šokol and washed it
with wine, it is time for yet another, completely different event. Namely, on 2nd
August, the Salt Festival is held at the Nin Saltworks. It is one of the rare
European salt pans where salt is produced in the traditional way with hand
harvesting and packing. During this unique Salt Festival, various competitions
are held, for example, the preparation of various types of dishes in which salt
is the main ingredient. It is all accompanied with an entertaining program. At
the Salt Festival, you can also discover that salt is not only a food
seasoning, but is it also used for cosmetic purposes, as it is used for the
preparation of skin care products.
The Pilgrimage to Zečevo and the Days of
the Patrons of Nin
For everything not to be only about gastronomy and
entertainment, but also the time to work on spiritual renewal during vacation, the
Church holiday of the Apparition of the Lady of Zečevo is celebrated on 5th
August, and on that occasion, a traditional pilgrimage is organized to the
nearby isle of Zečevo. The isle is special in many ways, and one of the special
features is that during the low tide, it becomes part of the mainland. The
reason for that can be found in a 16th century story. Namely, the
Turks, in retaliation for the defeat in Nin, set fire to the church and the
monastery at Zečevo, killed the monks who were there and took away the Statue
of Our Lady. According to the legend, the statue was thrown overboard, but our
Lady „swam“ to Nin by itself and in 1516 appeared to the Nin widow Jelena and
gave her a message for the people. That apparition was confirmed by the tears
of the statue of Our Lady. Since then, on 5th August every year, there is a
traditional pilgrimage for the worshippers, but also for all others who wish to
see the miraculous Statue of Our Lady. We
kindly invite you to visit the isle of Zečevo this year.
Having dived deeper into your own soul, stay in Nin a bit
longer, as on 10th August, the 5th romantic night takes
place in the most romantic European destination – European Best romantic
destination. Write down your most secret wishes on the Memories Wall, kiss your
loved one on the designated „kissing points“, dance at concerts taking place at
several places in town, or just sit on the „kissing bench“ and look up into the
starry sky. The romantic night will be further enriched by historical figures
from the Nin history who will walk the streets of Nin, and with each of them
you will have the opportunity to take a photo to keep the memory forever. Lastly,
enjoy the fireworks and make a wish to return to the capital of the Croats
again!
If you have enough time for a vacation or you have decided to
go on vacation in the second half of August, then make sure to stay in Nin on 25th
and 26th August, when the royal town commemorates the Days of the
Patrons of Nin, St. Marcela and St. Anselmo to whom the parish church was
dedicated. According to the folk tradition, St. Anselmo was one of 72 disciples
of Christ who came to Nin and its area to preach and spread Christianity. In
addition to him, Marcela from the Gospel of Luke was a housewife in the house
of Martha, Maria and Lazarus, and in the apostolic proclamation in Nin, she
assisted Bishop Anselmo and Deacon Ambrose. The relics of St. Anselmo, St.
Ambrose and St. Marcela are in the reliquaries in Nin, they have been worshipped
since the first centuries of Christianity, and today, they can be found in the
main Baroque altar in the Nin parish church. With the religious festivals, the Days of the
Patrons of Nin, there will be cheerful and fun atmosphere that is enjoyed by
both people of Nin and their guests.
After the end of the main tourist season, events in Nin
continue, and the weather in September is warm and nice enough to go for a swim
at the Queen's Beach, to do some bird watching or just go for a stroll in the town.
Enjoy romantic moments in Nin!
Foto: Marin Stulić
