Page 160 - Dark Shades of Istria
P. 160
Istrian Memories in the Dark Tourism Context: The Qualitative Analysis
Figure 8.2 Defenders Parade through the Streets of Pula
At 11.05, the opening ceremony of the exhibition called ‘Krvatska’ (Ta-
ble 8.2) began in the main hallway of the ground floor of the House of
the Croatian Defenders; posters with some war scenes from 1990s and
examples of damaged cultural heritage were presented. The head of the
exhibition and former defender explained that the exhibition had trav-
elled to different countries and embassies in order to present the conse-
quences of the aggression in Croatia in the 1990s. In this way the new
independent state wanted to show the catastrophic consequences of the
war for Croatian cultural heritage. He also said that the exhibition had
already visited Pula in 1993. The President of the Istrian County was the
only politician who gave a brief speech. He highlighted Croatia and its
rich heritage, the importance of peace and preservation of the memory
of the defenders. He officially opened the exhibition. The police chaplain
– the one who offered the morning Holy Mass and blessed the flowers, the
monument and the flags in the park – blessed the exhibition. The cere-
mony, which attracted no more than 20 people, was very brief and was
completed within 15 minutes. After the end of the ceremony, the partici-
pants – mostly middle-aged – did not stay in the hallway much longer.
Speakers at all public events did not mention past totalitarian regimes,
anti-fascism, the Istrian convivenza, regionalism and the present political
situation in the region or in the state, death- or suffering-related tourism
or pilgrimage. However, regionalism was indirectly presented through
160
Figure 8.2 Defenders Parade through the Streets of Pula
At 11.05, the opening ceremony of the exhibition called ‘Krvatska’ (Ta-
ble 8.2) began in the main hallway of the ground floor of the House of
the Croatian Defenders; posters with some war scenes from 1990s and
examples of damaged cultural heritage were presented. The head of the
exhibition and former defender explained that the exhibition had trav-
elled to different countries and embassies in order to present the conse-
quences of the aggression in Croatia in the 1990s. In this way the new
independent state wanted to show the catastrophic consequences of the
war for Croatian cultural heritage. He also said that the exhibition had
already visited Pula in 1993. The President of the Istrian County was the
only politician who gave a brief speech. He highlighted Croatia and its
rich heritage, the importance of peace and preservation of the memory
of the defenders. He officially opened the exhibition. The police chaplain
– the one who offered the morning Holy Mass and blessed the flowers, the
monument and the flags in the park – blessed the exhibition. The cere-
mony, which attracted no more than 20 people, was very brief and was
completed within 15 minutes. After the end of the ceremony, the partici-
pants – mostly middle-aged – did not stay in the hallway much longer.
Speakers at all public events did not mention past totalitarian regimes,
anti-fascism, the Istrian convivenza, regionalism and the present political
situation in the region or in the state, death- or suffering-related tourism
or pilgrimage. However, regionalism was indirectly presented through
160
