Jutarnji List reports that on Saturday night, after more than a year, wedding guests hugged, danced, kissed, and enjoyed fine food and drinks with the hope that in one week, they will all test negative and thus prove that such celebrations can take place without any problems.
The president of the Independent Association of Caterers, Žaklina Troskot, opened the “wedding ceremony” on Saturday night at the Riverside Golf Club in Zagreb. It is an experimental gathering organized by the association in cooperation with the Croatian Institute of Public Health and the National Civil Protection Headquarters.
Emica Elvedji / PIXSELL
About 130 participants gathered for the ceremony. Ladies wore formal gowns, men donned suits, and the band “Prava Stvar” dusted off famous hits. As the organizers said, everything was done to simulate a real wedding ceremony as we were used to in the time before the coronavirus pandemic. There were no masks, no social distancing, or any measures, but the rules for entering the most anticipated “wedding” of the year were rigorous. Only those who have been vaccinated with both doses, have recovered from the coronavirus, or have a recent negative test for coronavirus could enter the wedding hall. Journalists also had to take the test to maintain maximum safety.
Emica Elvedji / PIXSELL
The wedding menu was also festive. Guests were served Dalmatian prosciutto as an appetizer, accompanied by a selection of homemade cheeses and salamis, smoked tuna salad, spring rolls, and sushi. This was followed by gorgonzola with marinated peaches, pears, nuts, baby octopus salad with vegetables, Istrian olives and cheese, a selection of salads, rump steak, and homemade baked štruklji. Among the main dishes were pork rolls stuffed with bacon, forest fruit sauce with homemade gnocchi, chicken medallions in panko crumbs with risotto, and roasted veal “ala peka” with potatoes and vegetables all finished with desserts.
Emica Elvedji / PIXSELL
Among the guests was a prominent Zagreb doctor Dr. sc. Damir Eljuga, who has recovered from the coronavirus. He expressed hope that this is just one “pilot event” that gives us all hope that we will return to normal life. Of course, he said, provided we all get vaccinated to “beat this unfortunate disease.”
A member of the band “Prava Stvar” also addressed the press, saying that he was delighted that the band could perform at a wedding like this after a long time.
“Prava Stvar has not performed since September 2020, but if we take into account that the corona has been going on for more than a year, we are talking about fifty canceled weddings and other events. This resulted in a large financial loss and a drop in revenue of about 80%, which is not reflected only in the band’s six members, so we are talking about twenty people who were greatly affected by the coronavirus and inability to play. I must mention that some of us are only engaged in this business and have no other income, so they had to start doing other jobs to survive. When I talk about these fifty lost opportunities/gigs, I also mean abroad, such as Austria, Germany. In Slovenia, too, we were supposed to be engaged in several wedding ceremonies. To add that this band has been performing for twenty years, it’s our anniversary soon. We all love it very much, we love music, it fulfills us, and that is our way of life. We really miss gigs, and we can’t wait for everything to return to normal so that we can start living, working, and functioning as we used to. I am very proud that our band Prava Stvar was chosen for this pilot project and that we have the opportunity to participate in it, it means a lot to us, and I hope that we will return to the old way soon,” he said.
The organizers hope the project will be successful. This will be evidenced by negative tests after a week, given that all participants in both events, as they agreed, will be tested for the coronavirus. If everyone is negative, they hope that this kind of study will open the door to a return to wedding halls, banquets, and the way of life we are all used to.
The president of the Troskot Association said she was extremely pleased with the project.
“After a very successful first pilot project held on Thursday, which more than 80 people attended, tonight was the second pilot project to show that wedding ceremonies are safe. Three groups of guests are present: those who have recovered, have been vaccinated, and have been tested. Tonight, this is a simulation of a real wedding only without the bride and groom, but with a rich dinner and the performance of a live band,” she said in conclusion.
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