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.