Lotršcak Tower, Zagreb

It is noon in the city of Zagreb. At noon the cannon is fired from the centuries-old, three-story Romanesque Lotrscak Tower in the southern ramparts. The cannon was fired for the first time from a building on the Strossmayer Promenade in January 1877.

In the 13th century, Hungarian King Bela IV demanded the city build a defensive tower on the southern ramparts. The tower is 99 feet high with walls over six feet thick. Its loud bells warned of fires, storms, the closing of the gates, and the proximity of Turks. The cannon, like so many things in Zagreb, is an item of legend.

One story goes that the cannon was fired at noon into the Turkish camp and hit the Turkish Pasha's lunch platter of chicken. Some say King Bela only said to fire the cannon daily to prevent rust.

Historically, the tower has served as an observation post, a battery, a warehouse, a coffee shop, a billiards parlor, a residence, a gallery, a museum, and a belvedere. It has always belonged to the city of Zagreb. It has been rented out in its 900-year history to get money as needed from time to time.

Today the tower and belvedere are open to the public. The gallery can be entered on the ground floor. There are stairs on the northwest corner leading to the top. Do not mind the cannon. You will not be shot unless you're carrying chicken to the Pasha.