Episode 13 - Birthday Party, Croatian Style

We were invited to a birthday party Saturday night. Kreso (pronounced Cresho), one of the company co-founders, turned 50 and celebrated the event Croatian style - big! There were about 125 guests at the community center to celebrate with him. The theme was Hooters, his favorite place to go when he attends the OTC Show in Houston each May. The cake was on four trays and spelled out "Hooters." The two o's were giant cake boobs. The event was fully catered, including a lamb that was slaughtered that afternoon and roasted. It tasted okay, I guess, but I kept thinking about the lambs I'd seen gamboling about a local pasture and wondering if it was one of them.

On the long cafeteria style tables, the centerpiece on each was a collection of drinks, including soft drinks, juices, several beers, a pitcher of wine from a local vineyard and other drinks. I would just like to state for the record that I have now tried slivovitz (plum brandy), the ostensible national drink of Serbia and Croatia, and schnapps made from honey. I am not a fan of either. I do like Austrian, German and Czech beer, however, and the local wine is really great.

During the evening there was a series of contests for Kreso, including basketball free throws, soccer goal kicks, trivia contest, sing-alongs, a product assembly test, all listed by number on a screen - all in Croatian, of course, so we didn't understand some of it.

It was a crazy evening but a fun one. We left around one a.m. and learned later that the last guests finally left well after dawn. These people know how to party! It certainly makes our birthday parties seem tame.

Kreso's first outfit.


Ljuba and another girl dressed up as
Hooters' girls. They were quite a hit.


Part of the crowd. Note the smoky haze.
How ironic that we don't smoke anymore.


Part of the contest. Kreso is wearing make-up,
Afro wig (hairstyle of his youth), Hooters
shirt and high heels. He is certainly a good
sport and could still kick soccer goals in the
high heels!


Some of the kids watching the contest.


The employees signed the birthday card.


Kreso in his last outfit, dancing with his
wife, Tania. The shirt reads, "It took 50
years to look this good."