Water Falling From Everywhere

After leaving Split, Croatia, one of our favourite stops on this trip, we headed inland where we would finish our trip. Still on a high we weren't disappointed. Plitvice Lakes turned out to be an amazing national park. There are 16 lakes cascading into one another, creating thousands of waterfalls. 18 km's of walking paths allowed visitors to cover both sides of most lakes and get close to the multitude of waterfalls. There were also 2 shuttle tram and 2 short ferry routes to shorten the the distance exploring the NP for those who do not prefer to walk as much as we do. While the Lower Lakes (4) area has the largest waterfall, the Upper Lakes (12) have just as much to offer and seemed to be void of the many large tour groups that frequent the park making it easier to navigate the narrow boardwalks throughout the park. While walking along the trails you needed to keep your head on a swivel to catch the multitude of waterfalls that appeared everywhere. It really is a fascinating place to visit and we highly recommend it to anyone that travels to Croatia.

From Plitvice Lakes National Park we took a two hour morning bus to Zagreb. Since we only had that day to explore the city we made the most of it, walking around both the Lower and Upper Towns. Unlike the Old Towns that we have been visiting in Croatia, Montenegro and Bosnia-Herzegovina, Zagreb reminded us more of other European cities that we have visited........lots of 4-5 story 17-19th century buildings, large public squares, elaborate cathedrals and bustling food markets. The Trg Bana Jelacica square (dancers, monument, public events), Dolan Market (food, flowers), Cathedral, Stone Gate (holy shrine) and the Lotrscak Tower (noon canon bast, views) were some of the highlights. Our only disappointment was not getting into the unique Museum of Broken Relationships documenting love stories with sad endings from around the world. Unfortunately for us the museum was closed for one day to do some renovations.

We are now back in our cozy home following a long day of flights (via Amsterdam). According to our clock we arrived home 6 hours after we left Croatia but the 8 hours we gained due to time zone changes will take our bodies a few more days to adjust.

Our Croatia adventure had so many highlights it is difficult to pick out a few. Almost every place we visited had a medieval flavour to it. The Croatians, and their close neighbours, have done an excellent job of preserving / reconstructing their historical properties which they are very proud of. The Adriatic Sea coastline, where we spent most of our time, was very picturesque and provided us with the opportunity to indulge in delicious seafood meals. Then finishing our trip in Plitvice Lakes NP, where mother nature is at her finest and on display, was very refreshing. Finally, it is always special to travel with one or more of our offspring, and this trip featured our oldest daughter and her boyfriend. Hopefully we will find many more travel opportunities like this one.

The Big Waterfall, not far from Gate 1 where we entered into Plitvice Lakes National Park.

We continued to be amazed at every turn by the number and beauty of the waterfalls as we walked around the park.

No shortage of clean, cool water supplying the roots of the healthy vegetation.

The view from one of the upper paths providing a different perspective from the one we saw walking along the boardwalk.

These are only a few of the many, many pictures we took while in the park.

Rushing streams ran beside the boardwalk or under it in many spots.

Looked like a good swimming hole but that was only allowed for the trout that populate the waters (who navigate the waterfall drops better than humans).

The Dolan Market in Zagreb. Strawberries were in season and plentiful throughout Croatia much to the delight of my dear wife.

St. Mark's Church with it's colourful tile roof. Our timing was fortunate because the organist was inside practicing when we entered the almost empty church.

We found a fabulous place to eat on Tkalcicera Street in the Lower Town which was a popular street to drink / dine on. This particular restaurant featured Sri Lankan food which was delicious. It was a break from the meat and boiled potatoes which were pervasive in Croatia.

My Music Video Premiere

For our final day in Dubrovnik we decided to take the harbour ferry to Lokrum Island which is close to the Old Town. We spent the day there wandering around the island which had a thousand people on it but was desolate compared to the tourist hordes in the Old Town, many of them cruise ship passengers. There were peacocks everywhere on the island and it was mating season so it was entertaining to watch the colourful males parading themselves with all their feathers in full display (and not having a lot of luck). While there were many other interesting sights to see on the island (inland pool filled by high tide daily, rocky seashore, nice walking paths, botanical garden) we also came across an indie band playing the same song over and over (Jolene by Dolly Parton) at various points around the island, often close to where we were. When we got on the ferry to return to the mainland, the band was also on the ferry and when a young boy near us showed interest in the guitar they played the song again and recorded it with the youngster playing the guitar (assisted). When we got off the boat I asked the guitar player what was going on and he mentioned they were recording a music video that was going to be released shortly. The band manger sent me the video a few days later and to my surprise I am featured in the video (two significant appearances)........well not exactly but that is my personal opinion......and the rest of my posse received some air time as well. You can check it out on:  https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yl0u3EvEnuI 

After leaving Dubrovnik we drove to Mostar (Bosnia-Herzegovina) where we said goodbye to Pascal who had to return home to work in Basel, and spent the day exploring the Old Town which featured a famous bridge (1556) where trained people dive off of it into the Neretva River, a 25 metre drop. The temperatures (air and water) are a bit too cool this time of year so the only divers we saw were the ones on the deck of the Diving Club with beers in their hand. The town had a Turkish flavour to it, so we had to visit the bazaar, a mosque and a vintage Turkish House, as well as the War Photo Museum which had chilling pictures of the 90's civil war in Mostar on display.

From Mostar we took the bus back to Dubrovnik where we caught another bus that took us to the island of Korcula (the bus actually got on the car ferry). We didn't have a lot of time to see the Old Town but we did catch a beautiful sunset while walking around the small, walled town and had a delicious dinner at Marko's before settling in for the night, dreaming that we might be the future Marco Polo (born here). Early the next morning we caught the ferry to the island of Hvar where we spent 2 days close to Hvar Town. The first day we walked around town checking out the fortress (a nice steady climb), seaside promenades (east and west) and a favourite lunch (for me) of marinated anchovies. With heavy rain in the forecast we did some grocery shopping and arrived at our apartment just before the deluge started. Great timing. We had dinner in and played card games for the rest of the evening. The next day we took the local bus to Stari Grad (which translates to Old Town) which was just as scenic as Hvar Town but with less tourists.

We have spent the past 3 days in Split, back on the mainland. It was another very enjoyable place to spend time. Diocletian's Palace is the main attraction, with walls built around it and a small city within. The medieval history in Croatia is either well preserved or reconstructed, making it easier to imagine what life would have been like back then. The climb to the top of the cathedral bell tower rewarded us with 360 degree views of the entire city. Visits to the Fish Market, Green Market, seaside promenade and a hike up to the top of Marjon hill completed a very busy but satisfying day. We spent another day doing a day trip to nearby Trogir, further up the coast. The Old Town is built on a small island and the new town has expanded on both sides of the bridges. After walking around the scenic town (local market, tiny fortress, churches, seaside promenade) we discovered a beautiful square with an outdoor restaurant where we enjoyed our lunch in the sunshine (more small fish for me). Life is good.

This morning we said goodbye to our daughter Rachel who had to return to Switzerland for work tomorrow. We had a fabulous time travelling with her, and Pascal for the first week, and we will have to wait for another opportunity to be with our brilliant scientist again. Following a 5 hour bus ride inland we are now in Plitvice Lakes where we will have the opportunity to walk around the 16 colourful lakes (blue, green) and the multitudinous waterfalls that link the lakes together.

Within the first few minutes after landing on Lokrum Island this male peacock started strutting his stuff and calling out to nearby females who seemed to be ignoring him.

It was Easter Sunday and when I dropped into the Information Centre to collect a walking map of Lokrum Island, they were handing out Easter Eggs to the visitors. "Sreton Uskers" translates to Happy Easter.

Taken from the top of a mosque minaret, the Old Bridge in Mostar (used for diving competitions) over the Neretva River.

Some of the chilling Civil War photos on display, and Turkish rugs, in the museum housed in one of the Old Bridge towers.

One of the many narrow streets in the Old Town of Korcula with the Cathedral bell tower in the background.

A lady still waiting for her fisherman husband to return to the Hvar shore.

View of Hvar Town from the fortress to which we climbed, proving it was not impenetrable.

While enjoying drinks near the Stari Grad harbour, we were entertained by a young gymnast trying all sorts of stunts while his siblings watched and his mother paid no attention, silently engrossed in her book.

Looking down on Stari Grad from the top of Glavica Hill, a short hike that we did while exploring the town.

Some Roman guards in a time warp out front of the Cathedral of St. Domnius within Diocletian's Palace in Split.

Opulent gold and marble designs throughout the Cathedral, built by the Venetians.

View of Split from the top of the Cathedral Bell Tower. While at the top the noon bells rang out, extremely loud sound for us but deafening for the unlucky tourists who were caught in the stairwell right beside the bells. We noticed the warning sign when we returned to the tower base.

A full table of condiments at the local market in Trogir, highlighted by olive oils but also offering everything else a chef could dream of.

My lunch plate of delicious small fish (smelt in this instance) paired with the finest wine available within the small island town of Trogir. I shared the wine but not the whole small fish......actually the ladies wanted no part of my meal.

Exploring the Adriatic Sea Coastline

Our first post on this adventure comes from Dubrovnik, Croatia, situated on the coast of the Adriatic Sea with its warm climate this time of year (20C). We arrived here 4 days ago following a whirlwind stopover in Toronto and cottage country where we had 13 separate visits with family and friends over a 10 day period. We wish we had more time to spend with everyone but that is life now that we live on the other side of the country and don't find enough opportunities to return to our roots. As busy as it seems, it is always a treat to see everyone again and catch up on life and recent family additions.

After arriving in Dubrovnik we headed immediately to Kotor, Montenegro, further south along the coastline where we met up with our Swiss daughter and her boyfriend. We had 2 wonderful days there staying within the Old City walls in a 2 bedroom apartment and spent almost all of our time within the walled city that was mostly built between the 12th and 14th centuries. The narrow, winding, cobblestone streets made it an adventure every time we left our room. We even climbed the 1350 steps up to the fortress castle at the top of Old City. Not interested in duplicating our path back down we descended along a secondary path which we quickly found was not used very often, making it difficult in many spots to find the stone steps where the vegetation had overgrown the path. With a bit of scrambling we did make it back down and amazingly ended up less than 50 metres from our apartment patio.

Yesterday, on our way back to Croatia, we made a slight diversion to Trebinje in Bosnia-Herzegovina where we walked around the walled Old Town and enjoyed libations in the town square at an outdoor cafe on a nice, warm day. Our most interesting observation was of a nearby table where some locals were consuming multiple shots of a clear liquid (likely vodka since there is still lots of Russian influence here). When we cam back a few hours later after walking around the Old Town their table had grown in size, they were singing (actually sounding pretty good) and ordering more shots. We weren't sure we could keep up with them, drinking or singing, so we left. While in Trebinje we also made quick trips to an ancient bridge (1574, now pedestrian friendly) and a monastery situated on top of hill which provided scenic views of the town and surrounding area. The drive back to Dubrovnik involved another hassle-free border crossing and added a few more stamps to our passport.

The four of us spent today walking around the old walled city, including a wall top walk that was 2 km in length surrounding the city, and up to 25 metres high at some points. With the sea on one side and small forts at every corner, it would have been difficult to penetrate the high, thick walls when wars were fought without planes and missiles. Being over in Europe really helps you understand the importance and impact of history on our culture, something we don't all appreciate in our 'new world'. There are still many people living within the walls but in order to do so they need to sacrifice their privacy since thousands of people walk on top of the walls every day, and even more when the cruise ships pull in which they happened to do today. At the same time there have been many reminders on our trip so far (war memorials, waiting to be reconstructed buildings) about the 1991 - 1995 civil war that took so many lives in the former Yugoslavia. Tourism dollars are helping with the recovery and additional accommodations are rapidly being built.

The seafood has been abundant along the coast and we have had our share with more to come as we head further up the coast once we leave Dubrovnik in a few days.

Sretan Uskers (Happy Easter).

The Staples siblings re-union in Muskoka.

Old Town Kotor in one of the larger streets allowing for outdoor dining.

Looking back at some of the 1350 steps on our way to the fortress and castle at the top of the hill. The mid-way chapel, Our Lady of Health, was named after 14 people in the chapel safely survived a series of bombings during the civil war while many others perished.

After finding our way through several overgrowth patches on our way down we looked at the next segment and determined it was too late to turn back so we marched on.

During our visit to Trebinje in Bosnia-Herzegovina we wandered over to the pedestrian-only Arslanagic bridge that was built in 1574 for all vehicles at the time.....horse and buggy.

The local market in the town square in Trebinje........plants, food, clothes and herbs that looked suspiciously like something that is currently illegal in our home country.

View from the wall while walking around the Old City. Most of the non-church buildings were shops, museums or restaurants at ground level but homes above the street level.

View of the wall walk after the cruise ship tourists had boarded buses to take them back to their ship.

This was apparently the number 2 beach in Dubrovnik (the best beach wasn't much bigger).......small and still lots of small pebbles but at least devoid of the rocky coastline.