Pilgrimage to Nicola Tesla's birthplace. Smiljan, Croatia

[Twiddler]

As part of our celebration of our TSLA profits (and the fact that Croatia looked to be about the perfect destination for us), my wife and I decided to tour the country for two weeks. I leave Zagreb tomorrow, and have had a BLAST. Anyway, we wanted to visit Nikola Tesla's birthplace in Smiljan, but admittedly had not built it into our travel plans. On our way from Zadar to Plitvice Lakes National Park (unbelievably beautiful), the main thoroughfare was closed (A3), thus we created a 4-hour detour up the coast then across the mountains to the East. Whilst navigating the mountain passes, there it was - a sign for Smiljan, Tesla's birthplace, just a few km off of the main road. The town wasn't even on our tour maps for Croatia. We had read that there was a museum there, so we went, and what we found far exceeded our expectations. The museum is the typical no-photos-allowed, but I did manage to sneak a few. The house in which he was born and the church where his father was priest are well-preserved. The interior of the house has been converted to a museum. There are two other accessory buildings on the campus. One (called the "laboratory") contains a rather large Tesla coil, with demonstrations every hour. The other houses a gift shop, a few more displays, and a theater where a documentary (albeit a rather cheesy one) on his life plays after the coil demonstration. Enjoy!

 

[Chipper]

Thank you for providing us a look at what the vast majority will never have an opportunity to see!!! Greatly appreciated.

 

[SummerlinModelS]

Great to hear that the sidetrip is worthwhile. Croatia is one of our favorite vacation destinations but we haven't made it to Smiljan. Thanks for sharing.

 

[EdA]

Awesome post, thanks for sharing!

 

[Jaff]

Really cool to see this...thanks for posting it!