Author: Sara Erdeljić, II. gimnazija Osijek
Okay, I’ll admit, I thought Emily was crazy when she said she wanted to spend the summer holidays in Osijek. We hardly coordinated our vacations, beacuse we work at different places, and then she said she wanted to go to Croatia. Don’t get me wrong. I love Croatia, it’s beautiful, I was just a little suprised beacuse Emily has always been outgoing and for adventure, like camping, hiking and doing dangerous things, but it seems Osijek is pretty calm. Maybe that’s it. Maybe this is just another new thing she wants to do. Well, let’s give it a chance.
We are staying at Hotel Osijek, and the view from our room is brutal! We can see everything, the river Drava, the riverbank, the Promenade, and Emily is most impressed by the running track and the forest nearby.
So, now we are eating ice-cream and walking down the Promenade.
“Tomorrow, we’ll visit Tvrđa and Vodena vrata”, she suggests, ”and there is a really cute park next to it, so we can buy lunch and eat it there.”
“Yeah, that sounds cool. In the evening, we can go to the cinema Urania to catch a movie. It’s close to our hotel.”
“Excellent, and on Wednesday we’ll visit museums and go to the city center. I’ve heard they have two beautiful squares, Trg slobode and Trg Ante Starčevića, I can’t really pronounce it.”
“Haha, yeah, their language is funny.” We seem to have both explored the city in advance, and now we want to impress each other with the amount of information that we remember.
“You know what we definitely shouldn’t miss? The local restaurant Kod Ruže, I’ve read it is the best in the town”. I guess I’ll be defeated in this competition. Looks like she really likes the city.
***
I spend the whole night exploring the streets of Osijek and places we have agreed to go, there is no way I am letting her win. That is probably why I woke up at ten a.m., and oversleped the breakfast. But, I am really worried when I realize that Emily is not there, not in the hotel at all. For a moment, I had an idea that this is some kind of a game I am supposed to play, so I start searching for her. We used to do that, she would leave me some clues where to find breakfast or a shirt, but it is no fun when you’re in an unfamiliar city, but you need to find a person.
I went to the Tvrđa promenade, and I also stopped by the park next, where we were supposed to have lunch. I absolutely love Tvrđa, it is stunning, it’s exactly my place to be. I wish I had a camera and Emily with me.
After several hours, I start worrying. Emily is nowhere to be found. She hasn’t returned any of my calls, and she hasn’t come back to the hotel either. The night is falling and I don’t know what to do. Emily is sometimes flaky, but she has never left without telling.
At 9 p.m. I decide to alarm the police. They ask for the information about her and send the patrol. This is definitely not what I imagined our vacation would look like.
I go to the hotel reception with the police officers to enquire about Emily, and I overhear some American guys and decide to approach them and ask them if they saw her. I know it sounds stupid that some random guys would know Emily, but I am desperate.
“Hi guys, I’ m sorry to interrupt, but I literally lost my girlfriend today, and I was wondering if you have seen her. She’s a short brunette, and she probably wears a Green Day t-shirt and black Vans sneakers.” They look a little bit surprised.
“Sorry, dude, we haven’t seen her. But you have to come to Pannonian, there are people from all over the world there, she might be there.”
“Pannonian? What is that?”. They laugh.
“Well, Pannonian Challenge, it’s a bmx and skate competition, it’s a major thing here in Osijek. The best bmx riders and skaters come here to compete, and the music and parties are wild, man. You can swim in the Drava at the Copacabana beach, and girls and beer are the best.”
I’m relieved, that’s precisely where Emily would be. She’ s into the skate and bmx scene. I thank them and run out of the hotel without even talking to the police officers. I run in the direction of crowd and music. I manage to enter Pannonian rink and start searching for Emily. Soon, I see it’s futile because there are thousands of people and there is no way I can find her.
Once again I’m desperate and decide to ask for the MC booth. I push my way to the stands and ask if I could make an announcement over the speakers. They let me. I take the mike. My palms are sweating.
“Emily, it’s Alex. Are you here? Please meet me at the DJ booth.” This is the craziest thing I have ever done. The MC starts yelling on the mike:
“Emily! Emily!” and the crowd starts applauding and yelling her name. I have to laugh even though she might not be here. Her name is heard all over Osijek.
After several minutes, I can see her running toward me. I can’t believe my eyes, it’s her, it really is.
We hug, and I don’t want to let her go. Ever. Again.
“I am so sorry, my battery has died and it has been so much fun here, that I have forgotten about time.”
I am so relieved that I decide to forgive her no matter what she says.
“You have to come with me, I have met some cool people from Osijek and we are going to the after-party.”
As they say, it’s all well that ends well, and it has ended really well for us in Osijek. The craziest vacation ever.
