00:00At first glance, these scenes might be mistaken for the golden sunsets of a distant Adriatic beach.
00:07However, the reality is quite different.
00:09We're actually just outside the centre of Croatia's capital Zagreb at Lake Jaron,
00:14which is frequently described as Zagreb's Sea.
00:17Built to protect Zagreb from flooding, the lake was formed in the 1960s
00:21during the construction of an embankment along the Sava River.
00:25It spans 70 hectares and features around 2.5 kilometers of pebbled beaches.
00:31Carolina has been spending her summers here for years.
00:34She says she has no intention of battling the crowds, noise and soaring prices of the Adriatic
00:40during her annual leave when the city is finally quiet and half empty.
00:55Once filled with swimmers, the lake has lost its popularity over the past decade,
01:06mainly due to water quality problems and the lack of maintenance.
01:10Today, however, water testing results are excellent and the infrastructure has been renovated.
01:16Despite this, the negative reputation persists, along with the label of a poor man's sea.
01:21In the collective mindset of many Croatians, summer vacation is still synonymous
01:41with a trip to the seaside, at least for a week.
01:45It's a tradition rooted in the former Yugoslavia
01:47when state-run resorts made holidays accessible for all.
01:51But times have changed and so have the prices.
01:54My one friend mentioned that for two weeks of summer vacation,
02:00I think it was 6,000 euros in the past year.
02:03I really think it's a lot of money for some regular prices.
02:08Those are very high prices.
02:10It's for foreigners, but not for ours.
02:13As Carolina heads off for what she calls free lake rehabilitation
02:16for her recently operated knee,
02:19we meet a young family from the island of Korčula on the opposite side of the lake.
02:24Due to work and other obligations,
02:26they are spending the summer here,
02:28awaiting their vacation and the trip to visit family on the coast.
02:31Satisfaction in any case, yes.
02:33Substitution for the summer vacation on the coast,
02:36regardless of the family and friends,
02:37I would say that it's not.
02:38The summer vacation is not a lot of experience,
02:41but it's not a lot of locations where you can find it.
02:43And also shopping.
02:44Yes, we have high standards.
02:46Regardless of that we are accustomed to the coast,
02:48the sea is too heavy.
02:49Yes, the sea is a little heavy.
02:52Carolina, however, sees no issue.
02:55For her, avoiding one crowd only to end up in another
02:59doesn't feel like a real vacation.
03:01I feel like a part of nature here.
03:04I feel like I'm walking around the surroundings.
03:06The sea, water, the land, the trees, the trees, the trees, the trees, the trees, the trees, the trees, the trees.
03:14It's beautiful.
03:16Lake Yaron might not have the scent of the sea or the lure of the coastline,
03:21but it offers something many crave today, peace and tranquility.
03:26A holiday isn't defined by a location, it's defined by a feeling.
03:30And for some, that feeling already exists here, in the shade of Zagreb's lake.
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