Fluent Fiction - Croatian: Chatting with Statues in Zagreb Square
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Story Transcript:

Hr: Jednog sunčanog jutarnjeg dana u srcu Zagreba, na glavnom trgu, stajao je Marko, promatrajući narod oko sebe.
En: On a sunny morning in the heart of Zagreb, on the main square, stood Marko, observing the people around him.

Hr: Marko je bio nov u gradu i sve mu je bilo neobično i zanimljivo.
En: Marko was new to the city, and everything seemed unusual and interesting to him.

Hr: Ana, Markova prijateljica s kojom se dogovorio naći na trgu, kasnila je zbog gužve u tramvaju.
En: Ana, Marko's friend whom he had arranged to meet in the square, was running late due to the crowded tram.

Hr: Dok je čekao, Marko je obilazio trg, gledajući zgrade i spomenike koji su krasili to povijesno mjesto.
En: While waiting, Marko walked around the square, looking at the buildings and monuments that adorned this historic place.

Hr: Primijetio je jedan posebno visok spomenik.
En: He noticed one particularly tall monument.

Hr: Bio je to kip velikog hrvatskog pjesnika, odjevenog u starinski kaput s knjigom u ruci.
En: It was a statue of a great Croatian poet, dressed in an old-fashioned coat and holding a book.

Hr: Iz nekog razloga, Marko je pomislio da je taj kip zapravo prava osoba koja stoji nepomično, zamišljena nad svojom knjigom.
En: For some reason, Marko thought that the statue was actually a real person standing motionless, lost in thought over his book.

Hr: Pristupio je spomeniku i počeo razgovor.
En: He approached the monument and started a conversation.

Hr: "Dobar dan!
En: "Good day!

Hr: Oprostite, možete li mi reći gdje je najbliža kavana?
En: Excuse me, can you tell me where the nearest café is?"

Hr: " upitao je Marko glasno.
En: Marko asked loudly.

Hr: Čekao je odgovor, ali kip je ostao, naravno, nepokretan.
En: He waited for a response, but of course, the statue remained motionless.

Hr: Ana je stigla u trenutku kad je Marko postavio drugo pitanje kipu.
En: Ana arrived just as Marko posed another question to the statue.

Hr: "Da, čini se da mi danas nije dan.
En: "Well, it seems today's not my day.

Hr: Možete li mi barem reći jeste li čuli za kavu s okusom lješnjaka ovdje u Zagrebu?
En: Can you at least tell me if you've heard of hazelnut-flavored coffee here in Zagreb?"

Hr: " govorio je Marko, svejedno očekujući odgovor.
En: Marko spoke, still expecting a response.

Hr: Ljudi koji su prolazili počeli su se smijati, a Ana je prasnula u glasan smijeh kada je shvatila što se događa.
En: Passersby started to laugh, and Ana burst into loud laughter when she realized what was happening.

Hr: Marko se zbunjeno okrenuo i ugledao Anu kako se drži za trbuh od smijeha.
En: Marko turned around in confusion and saw Ana holding her stomach from laughing.

Hr: "Marko, pričaš s kipom!
En: "Marko, you're talking to a statue!"

Hr: " uspjela je izgovoriti Ana između smijeha.
En: Ana managed to say amidst laughter.

Hr: Marko je na trenutak promatrao kip, a onda je konačno shvatio svoju zabludu.
En: For a moment, Marko stared at the statue, and then he finally realized his mistake.

Hr: Lice mu je pocrvenjelo od srama.
En: His face reddened with embarrassment.

Hr: "Ah, pa to je samo kip!
En: "Ah, it's just a statue!"

Hr: " rekao je, pokušavajući se opravdati.
En: he said, trying to justify himself.

Hr: "U mom gradu ništa nije ovako veličanstveno.
En: "In my city, nothing is this magnificent."

Hr: "Ana je pružila ruku svom zbunjenom prijatelju.
En: Ana reached out her hand to her bewildered friend.

Hr: "Nema veze, svi ponekad pogriješimo.
En: "It's okay, we all make mistakes sometimes.

Hr: Hajdemo sada popiti tu kavu, pravu, s ljudima od krvi i mesa", rekla je kroz smijeh.
En: Let's go now and have that coffee, with real, flesh-and-blood people," she said with a laugh.

Hr: Otišli su do najbliže kavane, gdje je Ana naručila kavu s okusom lješnjaka za Marka.
En: They went to the nearest café, where Ana ordered hazelnut-flavored coffee for Marko.

Hr: Dok su sjedili i uživali u sunčanom jutru, Marko se napokon nasmijao svojoj neobičnoj zabludi.
En: As they sat and enjoyed the sunny morning, Marko finally laughed at his peculiar blunder.

Hr: "Zamisli samo kako će ova priča zvučati kada je ispričam svojim prijateljima kod kuće", rekao je Marko, shvaćajući da su zabune dio svakog putovanja.
En: "Just imagine how this story will sound when I tell it to my friends back home," Marko said, realizing that misunderstandings are part of every journey.

Hr: I tako su Ana i Marko proveli dan istražujući Zagreb, a Markova zabuna s kipom postala je priča na koju su se smijali još mnogo puta.
En: And so, Ana and Marko spent the day exploring Zagreb, and Marko's mistake with the statue became a story they laughed about many more times.


Vocabulary Words:

• sunny: sunčan
• heart: srce
• square: trg
• stood: stajao
• observing: promatrajući
• unusual: neobično
• interesting: zanimljivo
• arranged: dogovorio
• running late: kasnila
• crowded: gužva
• tram: tramvaj
• waiting: čekao
• buildings: zgrade
• monuments: spomenici
• adorned: krasili
• historic: povijesno
• tall: visok
• statue: kip
• poet: pjesnik
• dressed: odjevenog
• old-fashioned: starinski
• coat: kaput
• holding: držeći
• book: knjigom
• response: odgovor
• realized: shvatio
• mistake: zabludu
• justified: opravdati
• laughter: smijeh
• exploring: istražujući