Dreams & Disappointments – Nin: Hives of Human Activity (Traveling The Croatian Coastline #15)

The Old Town in Nin had something rather new that was impossible to miss. On the walk from the Church of St. Anselmus to the Church of the Holy Cross we came across a four meter high statue of Gregory of Nin. The town and the man reinforce each other’s fame. I would later see another statue of Gregory in Split, which is over twice the size of the one in Nin. The statue of in Split is by far the most famous portrayal of Gregory. It is a masterwork of Croatia’s most famous sculptor Ivan Mestrovic, as is the one in Nin, but Gregory’s fame rests upon the role he played in his hometown. He rose to fame in Nin and fell out of favor in Split. The rise and fall of Gregory is cloaked in obscurity, much like the early Middle Ages in which he lived.

Gregory of Nin - Anonymity As A Career Move

For such a famous figure, not much is known about Gregory. His fame rests on his opposition to the papacy’s continuing use of Latin at church services in Croatia during the early 10th century. The masses (who were Croatian) could not comprehend what was being said. They could only stare in silence, puzzled by the ritualistic pronouncements in Latin by the priests. This was a stylistic sleight of hand, where actions were supposed to speak louder than words. This suited the church hierarchy which was dominated by Latin speakers. Obscurantism and inaccessibility were methods of control. The powers that be were more than happy to hide behind a veil of mysticism. Gregory stood firm in his opposition and was supported by Croatia’s king at the time, Tomislav. The upshot was that Gregory’s principled stand for the use of Croatian was one of the most important historical steps in the acceptance and promotion of the Croatian language.

Unfortunately, Gregory was not successful in the realm of contemporary church politics. He lost out in his bid to become Bishop of Split. Henceforth, this position would lead all church affairs in Dalmatia. Gregory lost a power struggle. Gregory was given a less prominent position and vanished into obscurity. Nonetheless, his accomplishment gained him long lasting fame, especially with later Croatian nationalists who pushed for language rights. Gregory’s anonymity after he made history was the best thing that could happen to his legacy. Historians have no idea whether he met with success or failure later in life. The less that is known about Gregory the more his stand for the Croatian language is magnified. When a national hero’s biography has blank pages, the vacuum is usually filled with myth. Gregory stands today as a man of principle, one of the first true Croatian nationalists, though he probably did not think of himself that way at the time. One thing is certain, Gregory has attained a larger than life status, one that his statue in Nin makes clear to visitors.

A Monument in Miniature - Church of the Holy Cross in Nin

A Monument In Miniature - The World’s Smallest Cathedral

It was a mercifully short stroll in the brutal heat to the Church of the Holy Cross, which has been billed as the world’s smallest cathedral. Set out by itself in the middle of a grassy lot made the church a focal point, a sort of spiritual centerpiece of Nin. The location made it look more singular and austere than much larger cathedrals I have seen in Eastern Europe. It was right sized for Nin, with its small Old Town home to this tiny cathedral. In the space of less than ten minutes we were able to view the cathedral from every possible vantage point. What I found most impressive was that the church had not been altered since it was first constructed in the 9th century. The staying power of the church is incredible considering its size and the fact that most of Nin was destroyed by the Venetians to keep it from falling into the hands of the Ottoman Turks.

Within an hour we were at our final stop in Nin’s Old Town, the ruins of a Roman Temple, the largest in the Eastern Adriatic. The only problem was that the ruins were just that. They left a great deal to be desired. While their size was impressive, it took a leap of the imagination to conceive the temple back when it first constructed during the reign of Emperor Vespasian (69 – 79 AD). After a walk around the ruins which was made much more irritating by a Frenchman who felt the need to bellow forth information from a guidebook for his very young son to hear, the question of what to do next was upon us. We had four more hours before our return ticket Flixbus to Zadar was good to go. The sun was ferocious and the Old Town somnolescent. There was only one thing left to do, head to Queen’s Beach.

Sun, Sand & Salt – A Sea of Humanity

Nin is famous for three things, its early medieval history, natural salt pans which have been exploited for ages by various rulers, and sandy beaches, a rarity along the pebble strewn shoreline of Croatia. The latter is why most people travel to the area today. Our hostess in Zadar said her favorite place to take the waters was at Queen’s Beach, just outside the town limits of Nin. She made it sound like a day at this beach would be a relaxing sojourn that might soothe the nerves of weary travelers. Thus, we set off for the beach with the blazing heat beating down on our backs. The only problem was that hundreds of others had the same idea. Imagine pounding the pavement for several kilometers then having to walk amid choking dust past a scene that looked more like the eastern coast of the United States on the 4th of July than an idyllic spot on one of Croatia’s most famous stretches of shoreline. Queen’s Beach was overrun by day trippers. There was nary a spot on the strand. The only respite was beneath a large tree on a hillside which offered limited shade. My wife took several dips in the shallow lagoon as I attempted without much success to avoid being baked by the sun.

For centuries the entire area had been a malarial muck from which salt was mined. Modern tourism had transformed it into a hive of human activity. While watching the sea of humanity descend upon the water, it occurred to me just how desperate people must be to find a smooth and sandy expanse of seashore in Croatia to make Queen’s Beach a go to spot. The phrase hot, flat, and crowded came to mind. I sweated out the experience until we suffered the sun once again on our trek back to Nin. I spent a great deal of time on the walk back wondering how we could while away a couple more hours in Nin. The town was still disturbingly quiet. Along the streets outside the Old Town there were very few automobiles. I assumed everyone had gone to the beach.

Water trail - A path to Queens Beach

Dazed & Bemused - Salting The Wound

Back in Nin we made the decision to leave the town as soon as possible. The Flixbus schedule showed that we were back in time for an earlier bus, one that would never arrive. After an hour hopelessly watching buses other than our own navigate a roundabout, we vowed to take the next bus back to Zadar no matter who was driving it. Nin had been a disappointment. While the history was splendid, Nin did not detain us for long. I began to regret not going to one of the islands across from Zadar rather than Nin. As we boarded a local bus, I was elated to leave Nin behind, but I also knew I would never forget it. Unfortunately, memories of our daytrip to Nin would be for all the wrong reasons. This reminded me that travel is lot like dreams, be careful of both, because they can lead to disappointments.