The blog is back…this time, in Croatia

May 15, 2022

I’m back to the blog after a long hiatus! Not only due to COVID, but also due to general laziness. However, now that travel is a possibility again, it felt like the right time to start recording my adventures again!

Note that, again, due to general laziness, I am getting around to posting my final posts about a year after my trip. Better late than never, as they say….

I decided to take my first international trip in 1.5 years was to Croatia. A lot of people have asked why I decided to go to Croatia, and the reason isn’t really very well thought out. Since Google had us working from home for most of the year, I took advantage of the opportunity to work from NYC for two months. I thought that, while I was on the East Coast, it could be fun to go to Europe since it’s a much shorter journey vs. making the trip from SF. I initially had Italy on my mind, but in researching some itineraries, I came across one that started in Venice and then went through Croatia; what I was reading about what there was to do in Croatia really appealed to me! Conveniently, airlines began flying directly to Dubrovnik from NYC on July 1, so that made the decision even easier.

Overall, I spent 11 nights in Croatia (click for links to those posts!):

2 nights in Dubrovnik

2 nights in Korcula

3 nights in Hvar

2 nights in Split

Visit to Krka National Park, overnight near Plivitce Lakes

Visit to Plivitce Lakes

1 night in Zagreb

Flew back to SF from Zagreb, with an 18 hour layover in Lisbon.

Overall I felt it was the right amount of time in the right spots; if I were to do it again, I’d actually probably reverse the order, working my way from Zagreb to Dubrovnik, to end the island portion on the more chill/relaxed Korcula. But with flights as they were, this was a better option for me! I loved my trip to Croatia, the people are among the friendliest I’ve ever encountered (and spoke very good English), the food was amazing, the vistas breathtaking, and I got to spend time on the sea, ancient towns, and in some beautiful national parks.

Dubrovnik

May 15, 2022

Activities

Walked the walls

Evening walking tour via AirBnb experiences

Cloisters museum

Boat trip to Lokrum

Cable car

Eats

Taj Mahal (Bosnian food)

Pantarul

Snek by Congo (breakfast)

Restaurant on Lokrum (could not tell you the name, but there are only a couple, and it wasn’t particularly amazing)

Peppino’s (gelato)

Boca Pena (also gelato :)

Drinks

Bakus wine bar

“Hole in the wall” bar

Panorama bar at top of cable car

Acommodation:

AirBnb

Day 1:

My flight to Dubrovnik was a direct 8 hour journey, where I miraculously managed to sleep most of the time. My AirBnb organized a driver to pick me up from the airport, so getting to my accommodations was super easy. I got my first introduction to Croatian hospitality from my host who was super friendly and spoke perfect English (like most Croatians I encountered!). Here’s where I stayed; it was about a 10 minute walk to the Old Town- not bad going down, but it was hundreds of steps to get back up! The amazing view made up for the effort though:

After quickly cleaning myself up, I set out to explore the old town. According to all the locals I talked to, the Old Town is usually extremely crowded, with lines to even get in, and literal shoulder to shoulder crowds. However, due to COVID, tourism is way down (one data point: they used to get 5-6 cruise ships PER DAY, now they get 1 a week). So, I had a really enjoyable experience wandering the streets without too many people around.

I had a tasty lunch and a much-needed espresso at Taj Mahal, a Bosnian restaurant (not Indian food, as the name might suggest). After some aimless wandering, I decided to walk around the walls of the town, despite the afternoon heat. In drafting this blog post, I made a note to myself here to “look up some info” about the old town walls, but I never followed up on that, so I guess just take my word for it that they are a great way to catch some views in Dubrovnik!

Sweaty and tired, it was obviously now time for ice cream from Peppino’s…and then a nap. Feeling adequately refreshed, I signed up for an evening walking tour via AirBnb experiences with the enthusiastic and knowledgeable Barbara. We learned a bit more about the history of the city, and ended at a wine bar for some Croatian wine and what would be the first of many cheese/charcuterie plates. The wine provided the social lubrication needed for the group to socialize a bit, and I ended up meeting some folks who I would hang out with the next day: a group of American army officers stationed in Germany, and the memorably-named Pookie, who was also traveling alone from Oregon.

Day 2:

I met up with my new friends for breakfast at a place on the main square called Snek (I wouldn’t necessarily give it top marks, but I was starving and its as the first place we passed!). From there, the guys wanted to kill some time before going to Lokrum in the afternoon. We visited the Cloisters Museum, which was recommended to us by Barbara; it usually includes the oldest continuously operating pharmacy in Europe, but since it was a Sunday, that part was closed. The museum was…okay. For $4 it was a decent way to spend 20 minutes, but not a must-see.

Next we headed over to the famous stairs where they filmed the “Shame” scene in Game of Thrones. According to multiple sources, a few years ago, tourists would strip down to re-enact the famous scene, so they had to impose a hefty fine to keep people from doing that! Don’t worry, I kept my clothes on for a photo….

Next we checked out the views from “Buža bar” which translates to “hole in the wall;” it’s a rustic place with seats overlooking the water, where you can jump in if you’re braver than I am!

We boarded a boat to Lokrum, which is the closest island to Dubrovnik and easily reached by a boat that leaves every 30 minutes. I’m sure in non-COVID times, Lokrum is filled with annoying tourists, but when we visited, it actually seemed more like a place where locals go to picnic, play soccer, and relax near the beach. Naturally, they also filmed some of Game of Thrones on this island, so we checked out those locations, and got our photo on the Iron Throne (one of many I saw on my trip).

We spent a couple of hours exploring the island, then it was back to the mainland for my new afternoon tradition of ice cream (this time from newcomer The Boca Pena) and a nap.

My AirBnb was conveniently located near the cable car, where you can take a quick ride to enjoy views over the city and a meal or drink at Panorama Bar at the top.

After enjoying some local wine and the sunset, I headed down and met my new friend Pookie for dinner at the NYT-recommended spot Pantarul which is in a less touristy area of Dubrovnik.

The next day its was time to enjoy one last view from my terrace before a 6 AM ferry to the island of Korcula!

Korčula

May 15, 2022

Activities

Biking and Wine tour with Korcula explorer (two of my favorite things!)

Sunset kayaking tour (a great tour, and I met a great friend!)

Ferry to the mainland (Oberić) to hike up to Monastery - skippable)

Eats

LD Restaurant (Michelin star restaurant, we went for lunch, and made our reservation by just stopping by the night before)

Lole Tapas Bar (yum yum, and the server was so friendly and fun)

Aterina (this was ranked #1 on TripAdvisor, but I wasn’t overly impressed. Maybe I just ordered wrong!)

Fabris (I had breakfast here b/c it was the first place I saw, it was large and good but kinda overpriced)

Aurora (I dream about the overnight oats here, they were so good!)

Radiona (I went for lunch where they have a limited menu, but my octopus salad was good!)

Drinks

Massimo Cocktail bar (this is worth seeing, it’s in the turret of the old castle walls and they bring the drinks up via pulley)

Wineries:

Popić

Vitis (Popić and Vitis are right next to each other with beautiful views and friendly vibes. I liked the wine but I’m also not picky about wine!)

Bire (recommended to us by people but the service was not very friendly, and no views, I think it’s skippable)

Acommodation:

AirBnb (great spot less than 10 min walk to old town. Many stairs to get up [typical Croatia])

I arrived to Korcula bright and early at 7:30 AM. I opted for the early ferry from Dubrovnik because I had my heart set on doing a tour that was only running once that week. More on that soon!

Korcula is a beautiful island, about a 1.5 hour ferry journey from Dubrovnik. It’s center is an old town (this will become a theme), with ancient cobblestoned streets and walls around that once protected the town; I also spent some time in the Lombarda part of the island, which has many wineries and its own town center (which I didn’t get the chance to properly explore). Korcula was very laid back and un-crowded (likely due to COVID), and again, I lucked out with an AirBnb with an incredible view!

My first morning there, I had second-breakfast at a hotel restaurant near my AirBnb called Fabris (overpriced, but tasty!). From there, I met up with my tour group for a day of cycling and wine tasting! The host was John, who is originally from London, but quit the rat race to enjoy life on Korcula several years ago. We biked for about an hour through the Lombarda countryside, passing olive groves and vines. Many people on Korcula still live a very traditional lifestyle, they harvest olive oil and make wine mostly for their own consumption or for selling locally, and that’s their whole job! Very different from a life of meetings and emails…

We enjoyed wine tasting at two spots right next to each other where we sampled the local varietal, Grk, as well as Rose, Plavace Mali (a red wine that, tbh, I didn’t really care for), and tasty sour cherry schnapps. No day in Croatia would be complete without a cheese and charcuterie board, and Popić did not disappoint in that department! It was a great afternoon of learning about local life and enjoying some laughs with my fellow tourists (one guy actually works with my best friend from college! Small world!)

Putting my Peloton practice to good use!

After an exhausting afternoon of relaxation at the wineries, I took a nap, and then spent the evening walking around Korcula until I worked up an appetite for dinner at Atarina (it’s rated #1 on TripAdvisor, but I thought it was just okay).

During my evening wandering, I peeped the breakfast menu at a cafe called Aurora, so returned there the next morning for the most delicious overnight oats of all time!

On the recommendation of John the tour guide, I decided to take a boat over to the mainland, a peninsula called Oberić. To be honest, I thought Oberić was going to be more exciting than it was….there just isn’t really anything to do there, aside from lay on the beach alongside vacationing Croatians. If you know me, you know that laying on the beach is not in my repertoire, so obviously I found something much less relaxing to do. There is an old monastery with sweeping views that is a steep 20-30 min walk from the port, so I set out to climb up to it…the best way to enjoy a view is obviously when you are covered in sweat. The monastery itself was boring, there is a nautical museum that I paid a few bucks to go into, but since I am not a model-ship enthusiast, it didn’t have much to hold my interest. But the views were great and I got to sweat out a little bit of that wine from the day before!

Some old model ships in the museum. Pass.

Back on the island of Korcula, I had a light lunch of octopus salad at Radiona. I’d been on the fence about signing up for an evening kayaking tour, because a) I don’t know if I like kayaking that much, and b) I was feeling kind of tired. But decided that I didn’t have anything better to do that afternoon, I signed up, and I’m do glad I did!

The tour took us to three different small islands off the coast of Lumbarda where our host, outdoorsman extraordinaire Boris, told us about some of the history and flora and fauna of the area. It was great to be out on the water, and I was able to paddle the whole 3.5 hours without my arms falling off (but it was close, tbh, kayaking is hard).

The best part of the kayaking tour was that I ended up meeting another girl traveling solo, Margot, who would become my travel companion for the next week! She is from America, but currently living in London for work, and we discovered that we had pretty much the same itinerary. While we didn’t initially decide to travel together for the whole week, that’s what ended up happening, and I couldn’t have asked for a better travel companion!

The first of many fun nights together, Margot and I decided to grab a bite together after our kayak tour, at Lole Tapas Bar. The waiter was super friendly, and invited us to sample some wine that he just got that he had been waiting years to try. So he uncorked the bottle, and poured a glass for Margot that unfortunately came with…A GIANT BUG. Ackkk! None of us had ever seen anything like that before! The next bottle was, luckily, insect-free.

Margot and I had both heard about a bar on the island that is housed in turret from one of the old walls, so we decided to check it out. You have to climb up a ladder to get to it, and they bring the drinks up by pulley system! While I was done drinking for the night, I served as videographer for the many flaming shots that guests were enjoying…

Very cool location for a bar! Photo from korculainfo.com

I had originally planned to leave Korcula early in the morning the next day, but Margot convinced me to stay another afternoon, because we both really wanted to try LD restaurant, and visit a couple more wineries. So after breakfasting once again at Aurora, we started our morning with some wine tasting, this time going by taxi (not bike) to Bire, which was recommended to us by the waiter at Lole. For me, it wasn’t a standout. The wine was probably better than the other wineries I visited, but there wasn’t any view to enjoy, and, unlike everyone else I met on Korcula, the man pouring the wine wasn’t very friendly (though he did look exactly like Tom Cruise!)

Next it was time for the main event of the day, a fancy lunch! Like most of the restaurants in the old town, LD Restaurant is located on the water, making a beautiful backdrop for a relaxing lunch. Lunch did not disappoint, we had four beautiful courses, including their signature Prawn gyoza.

After our leisurely lunch, we still had several hours to kill before the ferry to Hvar (there are only two per day), so decided to climb the clock tower for an aerial view of the old town, before continuing our day of wining and dining back at Popić winery, where I’d been the previous day on my tour.

Finally it was time to board the ferry for an hour-long journey to the island of Hvar! I loved the time I spent on Korcula, it’s quiet pace and all the amazing people I met

Hvar

July 27, 2021

Activities

Three Caves Boat Tour (Literally the worst website on earth but the tour was good. The guides weren’t the most engaging ever, but they structure the tour to avoid crowds)

Cycling in Stari Grad

Eats

Black Pepper (delicious upscale Croatian food)

Fig (Non-Croatian food in Croatia, good for when you need a break from the usual!)

Bocca (decent pizza place on the main square)

Hora Hvar in Stari Grad (Very cool restaurant on a farm. If you go, plan more in advance than me and order the traditional “peka” which requires 3 hours advance notice)

Aroma Gelato

Drinks

Hula Hula (I think this is a day party place, we went at a weird time and it was kinda empty but had a bunch of weird people there. I’m sure it’s more fun if you go at the right time)

Carpe Diem (I don’t even feel like i can comment on this place, we went at an off time of day, and it was COVID so was not its usual vibes)

Accommodation:

Hotel Villa Nora (Great location, very friendly staff and BOMB breakfast, definitely recommend)

Hvar is one of the most-visited spots in Croatia, and with its reputation for being a bit of a party island, I initially wasn’t sure it would be for me! In fact, I originally booked an AirBnb on the quieter side of the island, Stari Grad, which is about 30 minutes by car or bus to the main town. However, after looking at all the recommended restaurants, bars, and activities that I wanted to check out, I realized it was going to be quite a hassle to go back and forth, so canceled at the last minute and booked a hotel in the center of town and was very glad I did.

Margot and I arrived on the evening ferry, and my hotel sent someone to meet me at the port and carry my luggage/walk me to the hotel- seriously, Croatian hospitality is second to none! My initial impression of Hvar was that it was SUPER crowded compared to Dubrovnik and Korčula, it was the first time I felt like I was in a really “touristy” spot, and the first time we had to wait to get a table for dinner! We ate at a place called Black Pepper, where we shared some amazing buratta, black truffle pasta and something called “taste of the sea” (like a tuna bruschetta). A great start to our visit on Hvar!

This post would not be complete without a shout out to the ridiculous breakfast at my hotel…every day included some different tasty surprises.

Just what you want to eat before squeezing yourself into a bathing suit

Our first day was a boat tour of some of the many islands and caves around Hvar. We spent the day jetting around on a small speedboat to several beaches, places to snorkel, and some hidden (and not so hidden) caves.

My main accomplishment on this tour was, for the first time ever, not getting sunburned while being on a boat all day. Yay me!

We of course visited the famous Blue Cave; this particular tour took us in the afternoon to avoid crowds. When you get to the Blue Cave, you have to buy a ticket and go in a different, smaller boat that takes you into the Blue Cave. Apparently in the morning, sometimes you have to wait for 2+ hours to get into the Blue Cave. Luckily, we only waited about 10 minutes before a boat was available to take us inside. Because it was high tide, the already-small entrance to the cave was even smaller, so we all had to duck down to get into it.

For dinner, Margot and I hit up Fig, which has an eclectic menu that includes curry, burgers, and burritos. While I know that doesn’t sound good, it was actually great (so good, in fact, that Margot later also visited to their Split location to try the breakfast burrito!) Both Margot and I had a recommendation for a bar called Hula Hula Hvar, a beach bar, so we decided we should go check it out. I’m not sure if it’s more of a daytime place, or if it was just kinda dead because of COVID, but it was not the happening hot spot we expected. It was a few drunk people and one really old dude, so we stayed for a drink and then went to the much more interesting Aroma for some late night gelato.

After a day of sitting on a boat, we were craving some physical activity, so took the bus over to Stari Grad (where I was originally supposed to stay), and rented bikes to explore the “Stari Grad Plain,” a UNESCO world heritage site, which, according to their website is “cultural landscape that has remained practically intact since it was first colonized by Ionian Greeks from Paros in the 4th century BC.” Obviously we took advantage of all this unique history to….bike to mores wine! This time, in a small village called Vrboska, where we sampled some local wines at Carić.

Margot had heard about a restaurant/winery/farm called Hora Hvar which is located in Stari Grad plain, so we decided to check it out, and ended up spending several hours there tasting their wines, enjoying (you guessed it) homemade cheese, charcuterie, and a giant plate of grilled meats and veggies. We got to see a little bit of the farm as well, including their donkeys!

TBH, not that interested in the donkeys.

Visiting Hora Hvar was an awesome way to spend the day, the only downside being that we had to then bike back after several glasses of wine! If you ever find yourself with the chance to visit Hora Hvar, I would suggest calling ahead ~3 hours and ordering traditional Peka (a dish cooked for a long time under hot coals)

Naps were in order when we returned, but our day didn’t end there! We also wanted to hit up the beach club, Carpe Diem. Now, I know what you’re thinking, which is that I am not at all a beach club person, and you are correct! But we decided that we just wanted to check it out for the sunset, and then leave…the leaving part actually is mandatory because the club is open as a day party until 10 PM, and then closes for two hours, before re-opening from midnight to 5 AM (NO THANK YOU). You have to take a boat to and from the island where Carpe Diem is located, so we got one at 8:30 which was the perfect time to catch the sunset from the water.

When we arrived, Carpe Diem was DEAD. It was like, post-apocalyptic vibes...which was, for me, much better than the alternative of being filled with hundreds of obnoxious drunk idiots. While it was a little eerie, we got to see the whole place with almost no one else there (with the exception of 5 drunk Spanish guys and a French bachelor party). I think the emptiness was a combination of being there at the last-popular time and, of course, COVID.

After a couple of very overpriced drinks and snapping some photos, we hopped on the last boat back to Hvar, where we had a quick bite on the main square at Boca before turning in for the night.

The next morning, we had a few hours before our ferry to Split, so we walked up to the fortress for some exploring and, once again, VIEWS! The theme of this vacation, in case you were wondering is: walk up things for views + eat cheese/charcuterie

I was so glad to have Margot to explore Hvar with, even though we didn’t really do the “party island” thing, we did get to see the ghost-town version of the party spots, which was interesting…and not something I would have done on my own! I’m not sure how fun Hvar would have been had I been there all on my own, but with a friend, a couple of days was the perfect amount of time there.

Split

July 27, 2021

Activities

Walking tour via AirBnb experience (not amazing, but it was only $12- definitely worth $12 :)

“All about Olive Oil and Wine” via AirBnb (super unique experience, you go to this hot Croatian dude’s farm and he shows you around then you have wine and a cheese/charcuterie plate. Interesting way to see a different part of Split!)

Dioclecian’s palace (if you visit here, I’d suggest trying to get a guide, we just walked around and didn’t really know what we were seeing)

Green market (farmer’s market, made me wish I had a kitchen to cook something!)

Eats

Šug (pretty good, not a standout)

Buffet Fife (traditional Croatian, super inexpensive)

Zinfandel (touristy but good)

Gelateria Emiliana (I went here at least twice, must eat!)

Drinks

Noor (very cool tiny cocktail bar)

Accommodation

Heritage Hotel Antique Split (LOVED this hotel, most helpful staff on earth and also a good breakfast)

From Hvar, Margot and I set off to Split, on our final ferry ride of the trip. I’d heard mixed things about Split, some people who had visited felt it was more of a stopover spot, while others said it was their favorite place in Croatia! While I am glad I visited Split, it doesn’t make the top of my list for spots in Croatia. It has some really interesting historical sights, a maze-like old town, and can also be a jumping off point for boat tours (having done that already in Hvar, I didn’t do that in Split).

Once again, I was greeted at the port by my hotel (having someone hold your name on a sign never gets old), for assistance carrying my bags and making my way to the hotel. I stayed at Heritage Hotel Antique Split, where the staff was SO friendly and helpful at every turn, if you ever visit Split, I cannot recommend it highly enough.

Our afternoon was low-key, with lunch at Šug, gelato (for me), and a nap. Rested and refreshed, we joined a walking tour to learn more about the history and key sights of Split.

We befriended another girl on the tour, Vana, whose family is from Croatia and was on her own for a day before they arrived. We recruited her to join us for sunset views and a bottle of wine on Marjan hill, a popular park overlooking the city.

Vana had a recommendation for a Croatian restaurant called Buffet Fife, so we headed there for dinner, where we sampled a bunch of traditional dishes, including stuffed peppers, cevapi (traditional sausage ), beef with gnocchi, and, for the youths of the group, some shots of grappa (I passed on that one).

That evening in Split was the finale of some singing competition…we weren’t able to actually go in and watch it, but stood on the outskirts and listened until a drunk old woman started dancing with us, at which point it was time to move on! We grabbed one last drink at Noor, a very cool cocktail bar in the old town. Because of COVID, everything in Croatia has to close at midnight, which suits my lifestyle just fine! We called it a night and said goodbye to our new friend Vana!

If you read my post on Korčula, you may remember that I went on a Kayaking AirBnb experience; our host Boris said that he had heard good things about a tour in Split that was called “All about Olive Oil & Wine.” So Margot and I booked it, and set off for a day on the farm! Note: we since decided that the tour should be re-named “Farm to Table” because it wasn’t really all about wine or olive oil.

We drove about 20 minutes outside of Split to a town called Klis, where our host Marin showed us his family farm. Similar to the farms in Korčula, Marin and his clan mostly just use their products for their own family and sell some at local farmer’s markets- it’s not a big industrial production. We got to eat figs picked right from the tree, a kind of pear I had never seen before, and learn a bit about making olive oil and curing meats.

Of course, no tour in Croatia would be complete without homemade cheeses, meats, olive oil, and wine…so that’s what we did next! It was all so delicious, but after this, I will need a good monthlong hiatus from anything resembling a cheese plate.

That evening, we visited the well-preserved underground of Dioclecean’s Palace. It looked cool, but the signage didn’t really do a great job explaining it, and we both agreed it would have been much more interesting with a guided tour. For me, the coolest fact about the place was that it’s where they filmed all the scenes of Khaleesi and her dragons in Game of Thrones!

After our not-tour of the palace, we had a quick but tasty dinner at a rather touristy spot called Zinfindel, and then set off for an evening stroll around town. Tonight, instead of a singing competition, there was some kind of…children’s dance festival thing happening (“Mali Split” or “Little Split” is what the sign said). Like the previous night, we couldn’t officially enter the event, but were able to find a spot to view it for a bit. While I had no idea what was going on, it seemed like fun for the local families!

The next morning was a little bit sad! It was finally time for Margot and I to part ways, with me continuing on in Croatia, and Margot headed to Berlin to work there remotely for the week. We had one last small adventure, climbing the bell tower for, YOU GUESSED IT, views!

Then we took a quick lap around the green market (farmer’s market) in search of Soparnik, a local speciality. Soparnik is kind of hard to describe, but it’s very thin layers of pastry with Swiss chard and olive oil in between. Our walking tour guide told us that you can get Soparnik in bakeries, but the only good one is sold by one woman at the green market, so we tracked her down and had a taste, yum!

Snack in hand, and hugs goodbye to Margot, I went to go pick up my rental car, about which I had MAJOR ANXIETY. I am already a nervous driver, and add on top of that being in a foreign country, and driving a stick shift; my first car was actually a manual, so I know how to drive one, but it’s something I do only about once every two years. But it was time to conquer my fears and hit the road to visit some of the inland National Parks in Croatia: Krka and Plitvice Lakes!

National Parks! Krka and Plitvice Lakes

July 27, 2021

You may know that I often spend a good part of my vacations hiking and being outdoors, so I was super excited to visit two of the best known national parks in Croatia: Krka and Plitvice Lakes. They definitely didn’t disappoint!

From Split, I drove to Krka National Park. It should have taken about an hour, but have I mentioned I am a nervous driver? So it took me a bit longer, since I drive slow, and had to stop to set up my cell phone charging/navigation situation (since the shitty rental car had nowhere to connect a phone to charge or to play audio). Anyhow, I arrived safe and sound. Most people take a boat there, but I opted to drive my car in so that I could check out a couple of different areas of the park.

The main sight to see there is the big waterfall, Skradinski buk.

It’s one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been, but I was really shocked by how crowded it was, the experience was basically waiting in line to take a photo of the waterfall. Given how un-crowded everything else had been up until this point in my trip, I think I was expecting that to also be the case at Krka. However, my hypothesis is that Croatian people don’t visit the “tourist” places like Dubrovnik, but they DO visit their own national parks, so while there were probably fewer foreign tourists, there were still a lot of Croatians there. Despite the crowds, I’m still glad I saw it, but if I could do it again, I’d get there much earlier in the day.

Because I had my car, I decided to take a quick detour to the town of Šibenik, before continuing my visit in the park. Šibenik is another cute old medieval town, with some fortresses you can climb, and cobblestone streets to explore. To be honest, I was feeling very hot and tired and stressed about the driving, and didn’t totally enjoy my visit to Šibenik. It felt a bit like I was going through the motions, checking our a fortress and views because that’s what I was supposed to be doing. Had I been in a better mood I might have gotten more out of it. But at least it was a good place to stop and have a snack and some caffeine. Oh well!

Continuing on in Krka, I drove to the second most visited site in the park, Roški Slap. I think I expected Roški Slap to be something it wasn’t (I was picturing more waterfalls), but it was enjoyable in a different way. They have built 571 stairs that you can climb up to viewpoints, and to a cave that was once home to ancient people (cavemen…if you will). Climbing 571 stairs in 90 degree heat is not exactly a great time, but the payoff was some great views, and some coolers temps (and cool headgear) in the cave.

From there, I walked down to what I thought was going to be a waterfall, but was actually just a swimming area on the river that comprises the park. I sat there for a few minutes but wasn’t interested in swimming, so called it a day and hit the road once again!

It was another 2.5 hour drive to Plitvice Lakes; while I didn’t visit both parks in the same day, I wanted to stay overnight close to Plitvice Lakes so that I could arrive first thing in the morning; especially after seeing the hordes of people at Krka, I wanted to see the sights with a fewer people around!

I stayed at the cute and comfortable Rustic Lodge Plitvice, where all I did was get a pizza to go from a nearby restaurant, and go to bed early.

The next day, I was up early to get to the park when it opened, at 7. Since I left my hotel before they started serving breakfast, I was glad to have half a pizza from the night before as my morning meal!

Plitvice Lakes is the most-visited national park in Croatia; it consists of a series of waterfalls and lakes that are colors you can hardly believe exist in nature. Getting there early seemed to be a good call; there were only a couple dozen other people around, so I felt more like I was on a scenic nature walk than in an amusement park (which is what Krka felt like). The park makes it super easy to explore as much or as little as you want, with different routes (ex: Route C) that have super clearly marked signs to follow. It isn’t really an adventurous hike per se, but more of a pleasant stroll along wooden walkways and through some shady forests.

Me with the tallest waterfall in Croatia!

I asked a guy to take a photo of me, but he decided to take a video without telling me, so I present to you…the world’s most awkward video:

After completing “Route C” I decided to try to drive to what is supposed to be an amazing aerial viewpoint of the park (the “postcard view” as they call it). I drove about 15 minutes down a super narrow windy road (great for my anxiety….) to some GPS coordinates I found on a blog. I think I successfully found the right area, but the view wasn’t really what I expected. I was probably in the wrong spot, but I guess I’ll never know where the right spot is! I took a photo anyway.

My trip to Plitvice Lakes took about 4 hours in total, and I was so glad that I was able to see it…it was something very different from the rest of my trip, which up until that point had mostly been comprised of old towns, wine, and gelato. From there, it was off to Zagreb for one night!

One night in Zagreb

July 26, 2021

Activities

Free Spirit Walking Tour

Eats

Zrno Bio Bistro (Vegan place next door to my AirBnb, healthy salad time!)

La Štruck (Specializing in a regional dish that is similar to lasagna, unique and delicious!)

Frank & Otto (Tasty breakfast)

Melt Gelato (They have cashew gelato!)

Accommodation

AirBnb (I liked this place, but it was way bigger than what I needed and the AC wasn’t great!)

In planning my trip to Croatia, Zagreb wasn’t on the top of my list for places to visit, but it’s where my flight was leaving from, so I got the chance to spend an evening there. I had an Airbnb close to the center of town, which came with a parking spot. The parking spot required driving through a doorway that was about 2 inches wider than the car itself…thank god for my Airbnb host’s sister who offered to drive the car in for me (and, the next day, drove it out)…otherwise it would have been a disaster.

When I got in, I was SUPER tired and hungry from waking up at 6 AM to visit Plivitce Lakes, and subsisting only on breakfast pizza up until this point (now 2 PM). I decided to prioritize food over nap, and ate at the closest place to my AirBnb, which happened to be a very tasty vegan spot. At this point in the trip, I really needed a salad in my life, and this fit the bill perfectly.

After unsuccessfully napping, I decided last minute to join a free walking tour of Zagreb. The guide was great, but the weather was DISGUSTING. It was about 97 degrees, no breeze whatsoever, overcast, yuck. The tour was very worthwhile, but between the heat, being tired, and not having eaten enough, I was not feeling my best. I tried to take in some of the information anyway!

Especially the information on dinner recommendations, which led me to try a place called La Štruck. They serve a regional dish called, you guess it, Štruck! They have both sweet and savory versions; I only tried the savory kind, which I’d describe as a cross between lasagna and mac and cheese. Feeling I needed even more dairy in my life, I had my last gelato of vacation at Melt…they had a cashew gelato which was something I hadn’t seen before but was so delicious. Yum! Definitely made up for missed calories earlier in the day.

The crappy weather continued the next day, this time, thunderstorms instead of heat! I have to admit, I preferred the rain, and, since I was leaving that morning, it’s not like it ruined any plans I had to walk around the city. I did manage to get in a big and delicious breakfast at Frank & Otto and made a short visit to see the farmer’s market (so much amazing looking produce that I wish I could take home!).

Compared to some of the more tourist destinations that I’d been in for the trip overall, Zagreb definitely stood out as a place where people really live. I know that sounds kind of stupid and maybe obvious, but it made me realize how based around tourism all the other spots I visited were (not in a bad way!) While people weren’t as friendly and English-speaking in Zagreb, I felt like I got a small peek of a more authentic Croatia. I definitely could have spent more time there, but sadly it was time for vacation to start winding down.

I got to the airport waaaay ahead of my flight. My mom will be happy to hear that, since I usually get there very last minute which stresses her out. I needed to return my rental car, and take a COVID test to re-enter the US, and I wasn’t sure how long either of those things would take. Both tasks were super easy and efficient, which, combined with a delayed flight, left me with about 4.5 hours sitting in the Zagreb airport. While I can say many positive things about Croatia, the Zagreb airport really needs some more snack options. The international terminal only has a duty free shop, two restaurants (both grills) and one coffee cafe. Nowhere to buy a snack that is not a hamburger, a croissant, or a duty free bottle of whiskey!

As part of my long journey home, I had an 18 hour layover in Lisbon. I opted for a hotel right by the airport, but took an uber to the center of town for one amazing last meal at a restaurant called Essencial. Since YOLO, I opted for the full tasting menu, with 6 courses and 4 wine pairings. It was all amazing, and now I will never eat again. That’s a wrap on Summer Vacation 2021! I saw so many beautiful places, met friendly and interesting people, ate some great meals, and tasted every possible local gelato. I hope you all get the chance to visit Croatia some day, it’s a truly magical country with so much to explore!

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South America...and beyond!

In early 2017, I took a 3 month sabbatical from work to travel in South America, and blogged about it along the way. Since then, I’ve taken a few more noteworthy trips, and am sharing my experiences with you here!

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