The Sea Is Not His Job, but His Love
An eighty-year-old fisherman from Baška, who found a two-thousand-year-old ancient statue in his net, still sets sail every morning on his 85-year-old gajeta.
An eighty-year-old fisherman from Baška, who found a two-thousand-year-old ancient statue in his net, still sets sail every morning on his 85-year-old gajeta.
In the early dawn, while Baška is still waking up, it's almost impossible not to notice Ivan Barbalić Gunga preparing to haul in the nets he cast into the sea the day before, right by the small harbor. This most famous fisherman of the town is a living legend of sorts, and Novi list spent a day with him on the 85-year-old gajeta that his father Anđelo Barbalić Gunga bought.
"Gunga is my nickname from the family. Before, when Baška was up on the hill, there were many people with the same surname: Barbalići, Seršići, Dujmovići, Dorčići..., and many also had the same first names. So, how would they tell each other apart? That's how the nickname was assigned to the family, that's how it was in Baška. And what gunga means, I don't know. But everyone knows I'm Ive Gunga," he explained proudly.
With him on the boat were two fellow fishermen: Anđelko Kos, a childhood friend, and Mario Salaj, a German. The engine was already humming, the crew was ready, and after they loaded us on board, we cast off the mooring line and headed towards the point of Škuljica on the island of Krk, opposite the island of Prvić.
"This gajeta was built in 1941, it's 6.8 meters long, and it's called Petar. It first went only by sail and oars, then it had several engines, and this current one is the fourth, a 40-horsepower Yanmar," said Ive Gunga, then pointed his finger towards the sea: "We cast the nets over there!"
Mario Salaj, who is 37 years old and comes from the area around Dortmund, has been going to sea with Gunga for 30 years. "I've been coming to Baška since I can remember, and since I can remember, I've known Gunga. My father is from Zagreb, and we have an apartment near his konoba. I started going to sea with him 30 years ago; I even have a photo of our first trip," Salaj recalled.
"To me, Gunga is great. I like his way of life; he has very good energy: he values tradition, but still has a youthful drive, and he's open as a person. And when he calls me to go fishing, I go. We don't talk much, but it's not necessary because we get along well," he added.
When we arrived at the fishing spot, the three-man crew began hauling in the nets. It was clear this wasn't their first time: Gunga was hauling, Mario was cleaning the nets of stones and other debris, and then they, along with Anđelko, separated the bottom part with the leads from the top with the floats. The catch was excellent, full of large rock gurnards, scorpionfish, two greater forkbeards, and some hake and comber.
"If only it were like this every day. This is a great catch; we're blessed," Gunga commented joyfully.
A seagull named Marko, Gunga's longtime companion, also landed on the boat, knowing there would be a bite for him too. Ive tossed him a fish, and Marko skillfully caught it in mid-air and swallowed it. "Marko is special. We're very attached. Every day when we go to sea, he lands on the boat. I'm happiest when I give him a little fish, his portion," Ive recounted.
His history with seagulls hasn't always been happy. "I got my first seagull by putting seagull eggs under a hen in our house. Four hatched, but the hen sensed something was off and didn't really like them, so only one survived. A neighbor killed it because it attacked his pigeons," he recalled. Another seagull he befriended also met a tragic end: "We were in the small harbor, and I was throwing him fish, and he ate so much he couldn't fly, and a car accidentally ran over him right in front of my eyes." That's why he says of Marko: "Marko comes every day, and I hope he won't leave before me; I wouldn't want to lose him too."
After returning to the harbor and tying up the gajeta, just a few steps separate them from Gunga's konoba at the corner of Ribarska Street and Palada. Inside, there's everything needed: fishing and boat equipment, tools, a kitchen, a large table, refrigerators with drinks and vegetables, and the walls are adorned with photos from Gunga's life.
"Everyone quickly gathers when the food is free, ha ha. But someone always brings something: wine, sausages, salad... To get something, you have to give something; that's how it is. I like giving; I've given all my life because I enjoy it, because I love company," said Gunga.
At the table gathered Vlado, Ljuba, Nikola, and Viktor. "We're here every day; in good times and bad, where else would we be. It's nice here; we're not into cafés. We always have something to do for lunch; cutting onions, setting the table," they said. Vlado suddenly began reciting his poem: "I'll tell you my story. I wandered down a path the other day. I met a girl, wild as a dream, under the blue sky of my Adriatic. Her eyes were black as soot, her gaze warm as embers. I asked her for her heart as a gift, under the blue sky of my Adriatic."
Ive then started cleaning the fish he would prepare into "supin," his famous dish. "For supin, everything goes in cold: onion at the bottom, the fish is arranged as caught, garlic and parsley, one tomato cut into pieces, three tablespoons of breadcrumbs, one teaspoon of Vegeta, pepper, and a little chili pepper," he explained.
"Of course, nothing without olive oil, but not too much, and a little water so the fish feels like a man in the shallows. After 10 minutes of cooking, add two deciliters of wine. At the end, shake the whole pan and it's done. Enjoy your meal!" he added.
It was approaching half past noon, the time when Ive takes a short break because at 1 PM his wife Vesna sets lunch on the table at their home. "She's a wonderful woman because if I didn't have her, I'd have nothing. As I sailed, she saved all the money I sent home, and we bought houses and apartments," said Gunga.
"She actually worked more than I did; she took care of three and a half houses. We did everything on her back. It's not easy to sail or fish, but it's not easy to stay home alone with a child either, without a husband who's at sea. She practically raised our daughter alone; I never went to a parent-teacher meeting at school or kindergarten. We've always had a good, healthy, honest relationship," he added.
Despite health challenges, Gunga doesn't give up. "I live each day and I'm not afraid of tomorrow. The years are what they are, but I feel good. I'm without kidneys, I have prostate cancer and skin cancer, cancer of everything. But I always go for check-ups and listen to everything the doctors say. You have to drink it, and I drink it," he said honestly.
"You know what, for a good life, you need a good wife, good company, a little drink, and to be in the fresh air," Gunga concluded.
The most unusual and most valuable catch he ever "caught" was a small statue. "It's a figure 22 cm tall, with a pedestal of 9 cm. It was July 16, 2017, when I found it in the net. As soon as I saw it, I had a feeling it was old and valuable," Gunga recalled.
"I'm not the type to sell it just to make money. I reported the find to the conservation office at the Ministry of Culture, and they took it to Zagreb for restoration and determined it was two thousand years old. They cleaned it, made several copies, and returned it to me for safekeeping. It's state property, cultural treasure they entrusted to my care, and I always lend it when a museum requests it for an exhibition. I also showed them the location where I found it, and they found more amphorae there," he recounted.
That you have to give to receive is Gunga's life philosophy, and an anecdote from Jamaica bears witness to this. "While I was sailing and captaining the ship, near Jamaica we would trade fish with local fishermen for rum and cigarettes. They were overjoyed, we were overjoyed. But one day we arrived, I looked through the binoculars, and the fishermen weren't there, but I saw buoys. I stopped the ship, we pulled up a trap, took out the fish, and put three bottles of whiskey in the trap for them. I wouldn't take without giving, not even in a million years," he said.
Gunga has been a member of the ŠRD Škrpina fishing association since its founding and always helps them. "I'm glad that the young girls (Nensi Marulić and Ivana Seršić, editor's note) took it over, and I must say they're doing a great job. I'm happy that they're grateful, that they listen to advice, and only smart people listen to advice," he concluded.
"I was born in Baška on June 16, 1945. From my grandfather, grandmother, and further back, all my family are from Baška. I finished elementary school here and then maritime school in Mali Lošinj, where I was a student in the first generation of that high school. Then I sailed with Jadrolinija, then abroad, and rose to the rank of captain. In the meantime, I opened a tavern with my brother, which I eventually handed over to him, and I started a fishing business," Gunga recounted his life story.
"Fishing isn't easy work, but I really enjoy it. I don't go out of need for fish, but because it's my hobby. I'm sick if I don't go to sea. The legacy is certainly family; my grandfather and father were professional fishermen. But I'm not; I'm an educated sailor, and I go fishing out of love," he emphasized.
