Left Australia and returned to Croatia: We wanted this for our children

They left for Australia with a simple plan—to earn enough to put windows and doors on their unfinished house, and then return to Croatia. The planned two years turned into decades of life on the other side of the world. However, they never gave up on returning. Today, their story continues right where it began—in Croatia.

The story of the Jurjević family from the series "Croatia My Choice" is a story of nostalgia, family, and the persistent preservation of the Croatian language, culture, and faith in Australia, but above all, about the desire to return home one day.

Leaving to Earn for Windows and Doors

Frane Jurjević was the youngest, the tenth child in the family. Some of his brothers and sisters had left their homeland even before he was born. When he first arrived in Australia in early 1987, he met his sister, who had left a year before he was born, for the very first time.

Frane and his wife, Milena, had already started building their house in Croatia at the time. The basement was excavated, the walls were raised, and the concrete slab was poured. The plan sounded simple.

"Come on, if the opportunity arises, let's go just to earn enough to at least put windows and doors on, to close up the house," Frane recalls.

They left. And a full 36 years have passed since that departure.

"We Never Gave Up on Returning"

Milena says that despite the years spent in Australia, the desire to return never left them.

"As my husband said, let's go earn for the windows and doors and we will come back. Of course, but we never gave up on returning," she said.

They knew that returning would not be possible if their children lost their connection to Croatia. That is why they taught them Croatian culture, faith, and language from an early age. When they came back to Croatia in 1999 for the first time after twelve and a half years, they made an important decision. They would start building a bridge between Australia and Croatia.

The children went to Croatian school, church, folklore groups, and drama sections in Canberra. The family came to Croatia, met their relatives, made friendships, and learned the customs. Returning was a constant topic at the family dinner table.

The Daughter Returned with a Child the Same Age She Was When She Left

That connection to Croatia was passed down to the new generation. Martina Boljkovac says that one of the biggest reasons for coming back was her son. She wanted him to grow up in his homeland, culture, and faith.

Her life story came full circle in an almost unbelievable way. She left Croatia with her parents when she was one year old, and she returned with her own child—who was also one year old.

"Because of that, I truly and firmly believe that this is God's hand touching us so that we would all return together like this," Martina says.

"Life Is Very Short"

Returning was not just about going back to their roots. It was also a choice for a different lifestyle.

Martina describes everyday life in Australia as a constant rush—a bag in one hand, a coffee to go in the other, headphones in her ears, and always on the move.

"Life is very short," she says, explaining that they asked themselves where they wanted to spend their lives and where life would be of higher quality.

Stipe Jurjević speaks similarly. For him, Canberra meant more stress, running around, work, and obligations, while in Croatia, he feels he has time for people and daily life.

"Here you really feel like your head is light (at peace)," he describes.

Children Discovered Freedom in Croatia

Valentina Čorak particularly remembers something that surprised her after living in Australia—the freedom that children have here.

When her son first asked her if he could go to the playground alone with his friends, she couldn't imagine just letting him go.

"She went after him and sat at the playground, until her son told her, 'Mom, you don't need to be here,'" she emphasized.

It took her some time to get used to it.

"That is normal here, which is beautiful, because after all, that is what childhood is about," she says.

They Also Started Their Own Businesses in Croatia

Returning did not mean giving up on career ambitions for the family members. Stipe started his own business in Croatia related to rehabilitation and physical therapy, and he says he is very satisfied with how the business is growing.

Martina and Valentina are working on a digital platform project for nautical tourism, which is intended to allow local service providers to present their offers and contribute to the development of nautical tourism on the Croatian coast. However, the family also speaks openly about the fact that adjusting after the move back was not simple.

Milena says that the first year was not easy and that money was not the main problem. After decades spent in a different system, it took time, patience, and nerves to adjust to life in Croatia.

"They Don't Have This 'Aria' and Our People Over There"

Frane perhaps describes what they missed most during all those years in the simplest terms. Almost everything they had in Australia, he says, they have in Croatia too. But there was one thing they didn't have.

"We don't have this aria (air/vibe), as we would say in Dalmatia. We don't have our people around us," he added.

He missed exactly that way of life—the ability to greet someone from a hundred meters away, shout something across to them, and feel a closeness with the people around you.

"That is that mentality, the way of life... nowhere compares to how it is here with us," he stated.