Vagon is a one-of-a-kind restaurant and exhibition space close to the recently revamped railroad in Zelenica. The Vagon’s mission is much more than just being a restaurant. After the reconstruction of the tunnel, the idea was to preserve the memory of the railway and remind of its important role in the Boka region. The planned cultural and social events aim to provide the people in Herceg Novi, and their guests with quality content in a unique environment.
The old railroad vehicle, owned by Josip Weber, a member of the Pancevo Railway Lovers’ Association, got a new meaning after nearly twenty years, thanks to the individuals from the NGO Synergy, led by Novljan architect Vuk Cvor. Situated behind the “Beach hotel” in Zelenica, “Vagon” is a part of the hiking trail, which is expected to be a bike road to the border with Croatia. In the nineteenth century, Austria-Hungary decided to build a railway in the area of southern Dalmatia and Herzegovina, as a part of an important strategy. The construction of the railway started back in 1895, and there were stories that Emperor Franz Joseph visited it to monitor the construction. He was very excited after he saw how enthusiastic were the local workers, and how they’ve managed to accomplish the construction goals by using just simple tools.
One anecdote explains how the construction team overcame an obstacle that occurred on some inaccessible routes when they’ve said: “An eye of stone – an eye of gold.”, and built those stocks.
We, at OSM, are proud to be a part of this amazing project.
