Enough time has passed to allow my posting on my visit to Zagreb, Croatia in 2015. This and the next post are journal entries made when I visited in 2015. Croatia is a member of the European Union (EU) but its positions are not consistent across the board which reality, I believe, reflects the ambivalence of its people with regards to the EU’s obvious intentions to control the internal politics and policies of its member nations as well as to the “official” EU stances on issues ranging from forced injections to the war currently raging in eastern Europe.

This first post relates an incident which readers may find amusing as well as instructive.

My colleague’s friend’s mother for a long time had wanted to drive to Venice but her husband was reluctant because their car was old and he feared it would not make the round trip. But he did not prohibit her from going. So, on his next business trip, she went, having assured him that all would be well and expressing her confidence that the car would do just fine.

The trip, which is quite scenic, went very well indeed.

However, approaching Venice, a truck (meaning an SUV), swerved onto her lane and crashed head on with her. Providentially, the speeds were low and she was stunned, but not badly hurt.

Actually, she was more worried than she was stunned or hurt. She sat behind the wheel, worrying about what she was going to tell her husband. Clearly the old car was badly, badly damaged. It is their only car. They are not well off. And now, it turns out the car really did not make it to and from Venice after all, as her husband had said. Although, surely, he was not thinking about an accident!

As she sat there, behind the wheel, her mind going a mile a minute, the driver of the truck had gotten out and was walking to her. He came up to her window and began speaking to her, “Madam, please let’s not call the police. I promise that I will take care of this situation for you. Please trust me. As you probably know, the Italian police are horribly bureaucratic. If we go to the police with this, I will be tied up for weeks. And I cannot afford that, I cannot be tied up in police stations and Italian courts. Please allow me the opportunity to make this right,” etc.

While he spoke, his friend had gotten out of the passenger side and had come over and also began speaking to the surprised lady, “Madam, my friend is telling the truth. I vouch for him. And I promise that I too will help him make this right. We will fix your car and leave it as new, I promise you.” Etc.

She really had no choice but to believe these Americans.

So they drove her to her hotel and took her car (or had it towed away).

A day or two later her car was delivered to the hotel. Only it was not her old car; it was a brand new automobile. The Americans called her and explained that her old car was totaled (a typical American term) and could not be repaired. So they happily bought her a new one. They had to assure her that they were not joking.

So she wished the driver, George Clooney, and his passenger, Brad Pitt, a very happy visit and all the very best and a thousand thank you’s and she said good-bye and began her drive back to Croatia.

True story. But her husband still doesn’t believe it!

This happened to the mother of my colleague’s best friend. And they now do have a new car. The timing fits: The Clooney’s were married in Venice, Italy in September, 2014, which was when she drove there. No photos were taken and she was too shocked to think of asking for an autograph. And she is not known for having an imagination that would make up something like this. 

I believe my colleague; however, she may have confused Brad Pitt with Mat Damon. Even so, her story has the ring of truth.

George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin celebrate their wedding in Venice, Italy, September, 2014.