On our final day in Croatia we visited one of the most famous nature reserves in the country, Plitvice Lakes National Park. The drive was a little longer than the trip to Krka National Park, but the scenic ride from the Dalmatian Coast mollified any angst for the extra time in the car. Plitvice Lakes National Park is appropriately named, where a series of sixteen lakes collectively feed into each other - creating a unique and impressive landscape. The major tourist attraction appeared to be densely populated when we arrived, the parking lot was teeming with cars and chartered buses. Although, the protected area is the largest in Croatia, nearly covering 300 square kilometers. Clearly, there is plenty of room for everybody, however, we found ourselves among the masses when entering the gate. Fortunately, once inside the park, the populace diffused into the trails.
Veliki slap (large waterfall)
Large Waterfall and lower lakes
Lower lakes from a cave
When purchasing our park passes, the employees helped us mark our map with all the top sights and attractions. Given the immense undertaking of covering the reserve in a day, we had to refine our route with the most conducive approach. To start, we would tour the caves and the lower lakes. Later, we would board a ferry to the upper lakes where our journey would end (return to the main entrance with the "panoramic" tram). As we embarked on our adventure, it was apparent that Plitvice Lakes offers an over-stimulating serene environment. So much so that I unknowingly went for the unofficial world record of waterfall pictures in a single day (six robots have been crunching the numbers for weeks).
Small cascade
Lower lake
Hiking Plitvice Lakes National Park is a wonderful experience and highly recommended, however; it is difficult to write an interesting account because every attraction is either a waterfall or lake (for the most part). Rather than write an narrative with inundated redundancy, here is our simplified saga.
Veliki slap (again, 78 meters)
Another lower lake
We walked down the trail, stopped every fifty meters (or so) to either take pictures or admire the picturesque surroundings. Traveling to "enter lake name here" with the "enter corresponding waterfall name here," we snapped a countless number of photos (even though, cameras with SD cards default to counting).
Read the previous paragraph and replace the "name" to each of the sixteen lakes and plentiful waterfalls (if you so choose. I recommend you don't)...ha-zaah!!!
Note: The "panoramic" tram from the upper lakes is quite a misnomer - the lakes are mostly hidden by tree canopies.
Croatian Ent
Racking up the pictures of us - thanks friendly strangers
More cascading water
Trail path above small falls
One of the upper lakes
Two pictures of us in a single post
Waterfall in upper lakes
Upper lakes
More waterfalls...
The six robots broke in their attempt to calculate the total waterfall picture count. I was forced to employ our Haustiere, Bella and Duffy. Although, they are adorable dogs, their math skills are limited. Regardless, they totaled 832 pictures between Plitvice Lakes and Krka National Parks. They were rewarded for their efforts (even if they are inexact).
For Saturday's adventure, we set our course for Krka National Park - approximately an hour and a half drive southeast from our rental apartment. Leaving early in the morning, we planned to stop in Šibenik, a town close to the park and ideal location for lunch. Along the drive, we passed a strange elderly woman mysteriously lingering in the street with an onion plant*. In her defense, she was near a grocery story (Lidl) and within an appropriate radius to appear she was waiting for the bus.
An hour later, we reached Šibenik with empty stomachs and were craving cephalopod- and mollusc-based cuisine. Working from our list of potential restaurants, we looked at a few, but ended up using the old fashioned method of reading menus and picking one we liked. Once again, we had calamari and mussels at a street-side table overlooking the Adriatic. Following our meal, we briefly explored the town, passing the Cathedral of Saint Jacob (Katedrala Sveti Jakob) and Town Hall Square (Gradska uprava Šibenik) - where crew members were constructing bleachers and a stage for an unknown event. We didn't have time to stick around to inquire about the evening's festivities, plus; we were ready to hike around the many waterfalls of Krka National Park.
Stairs leading upto Saint Jacob and Town Hall
City on the Adriatic
Another twenty minutes in the car we arrived at our destination and promptly purchased our tickets. We boarded the bus by the entrance which would take us down to Ulaz Lozovac. From there, we started the "footpath," a trail mostly constructed of wooden planks that give park-goers access throughout the park that a normal trail wouldn't (over lakes and streams). Everywhere we walked, we were surrounded by crystal blue water densely populated by fish. The brochure boasted a bountiful variety of wildlife throughout the park, however; we saw mostly fish, insects, and a few birds (about 790 species shy of seeing it all). The wooden trail meandered through the middle of the park, over the Krka River, for which the park is named.
Cathedral of Saint Jacob
Near the cathedral
Small Square
Following the trail in a counterclockwise loop, we caught our first glimpse of the main attraction, Skradinski Buk, a large series of waterfalls (seventeen in total). Continuing along the path, we found ourselves at the base of Skradinski Waterfall after a lengthy decent down stairs. Here, we spent a fair amount of time sitting on tree stumps and soaked in the atmosphere while the mist of the waterfall quenched the day's heat. To complete our hike, we crossed a bridge over the natural pool created by the falls and started an ascent up a series of hills and stairs.
Panoramic of river feeding to Skradinski Buk (not pictured)
Walking along the trail
Rare photo of us in front of Skradinski Waterfall
Water falling
At the summit, we found a park employee at an information stand; how convenient, because we had questions. We wanted to visit Visovac, a small island within the park also home to a Franciscan Monastery. The only way to access the island is by ferry, but there was no schedule provided in the pamphlet (possibly the least detailed information packet ever made). When we inquired about the times, the information lady explained the last boat leaves at 16:00; giving us ten minutes to go a kilometer. Having rushed all the way to the dock, we passed a series of people, presumably those returning from Visovac before the last trip of the day.
More water falling
Sensing a theme here...
Krka River
Panoramic of Krka River
Once we reached the dock, we found a three boats and six employees. There was a ticket office opposite the boats, but again, no schedule could be found. We inquired about the 16:00 boat departure, and after a long and awkward pause, the employee informed us the last boat left at 15:00 (Note: the long pause gave the strong impression of a blatant lie). It was time for our back-up plan and luckily Julie had one. (Suggestion for Krka National Park: add boat and bus schedules to information brochure, or at the very least, put the schedule anywhere where the human eye can see it. Of the 70 employees we passed, no one seemed to be on the right page about anything).
River route our ferry would have taken
Visovac Island and glimpse of Monastery
Panoramic from the dock
There was a way to see the island without having to hike for several more hours; which was definitely not an option with the park closing at 18:00. To get there, we drove around the perimeter and followed a small dirt road until it ended at the river. While it may have been great to take a boat to the island, the view from the dock at the end of the dirt road was a wonderful consolation. Good fortunate remained on our side as we left the park earlier than expected due to the "scheduled"/nonexistent 16:00 ferry to Visovac. Missing the two-hour boat excursion had us back in the car and on the road, but I wasn't quite ready to return to Zadar. We would need dinner shortly and I wanted to return to Šibenik to walk around the quaint village once more.
Women watching the wedding
Practice Round
Waiting for the main event
When we returned to Šibenik parking was disastrous; we had no issues before, but now we were in a stagnant line of endless cars. While sitting in the caravan of parked cars, we noticed a series of boats coming to port. Exiting the boats were groups of men, women, and children all donned in traditional Croatian garb. Traffic resumed to a crawl and we realized what was causing the logjam. A bride was dancing in the streets as a small band played (assuming) Croatian ballads.
KUD "Bedem" iz Grebastice
Dance of KUD "Bedem" iz Grebastice
KUD "Nasi korijeni" Kljake
We parked the car and returned to Saint Jacob and the Town Hall square, where we caught up with the wedding party who was now mingling with the groups in traditional dress. Around the corner, where we saw workers assembling bleachers earlier, we found the main event. There was a traditional folk song and dance contest between denizens of various cities throughout Croatia - whose costumes are unique to a specific region or town. The groups gathered in a line, respectively behind a flag or crest representing their respected villages.
KUD "Dinara" Kijevo watching from cafe
Last act of practice round in line
View from dinner
The omnipresent stimuli made us forget our dinner plans; we found seats in the bleachers to see what was going to happen next. For the next half hour, we watched town after town get on stage and perform a folk song and dance number. Neither of us have any familiarity with traditional Croatian culture, however; we were captivated by the event. We soon realized it was a "practice round" and there would be a break in the action until the main competition started.
Wedding recessional meeting folk competition
Goodbye Sibenik
After the last practice act, we refocused our attention to finding a venue for dinner. Turns out, the restaurant we were looking for was only 50 meters away from the stage. Fortunately, we were seated at the only table not reserved. Better yet, it was outside with a peek-a-boo view of the sunset over the Adriatic in one direction, and the folk event in the other. Somehow, we avoided having calamari and mussels, a most welcomed change of pace - devouring two terrestrial based cuisines. To top it all off, we were able to celebrate the end of another successful day with some Belgian beer.
Video giving an idea of the events that took place in Šibenik
*Strangely enough, on the drive home, we passed (what we think) was the same old crazed woman with her onion plant still waiting at the bus station. We noticed bus service in Croatia was limited, but hours at a bus stop can't be healthy for the woman nor her onion plant. She was not there the following day, therefore; our assumption is that she found her way home after a very long day lingering in the street. Imagine spending a whole day just to get an onion plant... Also, it may have not been an onion plant; I am not a botanist.
May continues to be a very busy travel month for us and this weekend is no different. This time, we are off to Croatia for more travel adventures in a new, unexplored country. We flew to Zadar early on Friday and had a whole day to tour the city. After landing, (apparently) everyone on our flight booked rental cars through Hertz, thus we had to wait in line for an additional thirty minutes after passing through customs (Croatia is not in the Schengen Area). Luckily, we had some free entertainment while waiting; two pilots performed airplane acrobatics around Zadar's airport. Once we confirmed our reservation, we slowly drove to our rental apartment through an abundance of road work, although; that was the least of our inconveniences. Our booking agent (from HomeAway) provided little information on their location, making this venture more of a scavenger hunt than helpful directions. We needed to look for a "landmark" (restaurant) and our destination could be found "a short distance away;" challenge accepted.
Apartment found!!!
View of Adriatic from balcony
Our attempt to use the GPS failed, bringing us to an area near some construction dumpsters with a great view, but less homely than desired. Eventually, we found the (landmark) restaurant, but still struggled to locate the apartment with twenty-plus homes to choose from and no house number disclosed. Returning to the restaurant, Julie asked the owner if he could help us, but he didn't speak English. Fortunately, he spoke German and I was able to garner enough information on distance, locale, and house number. We made it! Apparently, (and to our surprise) we were lucky enough to have someone there when we arrived an hour past our scheduled meeting at 12:00 on Friday. There appeared to be some confusion during our correspondences; the renter thought we were going to arrive at midnight (0:00, not 12:00 anywhere in Europe) and not noon. Regardless, we were able to check-in and settle. For the remainder of the afternoon and evening, we foraged for lunch and would later explore Zadar.
Roman Forum
Saint Donatus and Saint Anastasia Bell Tower
Streets of Zadar
Before heading to Zadar, we thought we would eat in the nearby town of Biograd na Moru, where Julie had found a restaurant with solid reviews and was relatively close. Unfortunately, everything went the opposite to plan. Biograd na Moru was ten minutes away and finding a parking spot proved to be of great difficulty. Well, not finding parking, but a means to pay severely complicated the menial task. I squatted on the spot while Julie went to get change for the parking machine that wouldn't accept paper notes or credit/debit cards. For fifteen minutes I watched yachts and boats come to the dockside gas station, but no signs of Julie (had she been taken...? do I have to go Liam Neesson*...?). I continued my duty in the event a parking attendant neared while expanding my outpost radius, but; still no sign of Julie.
Bell in a bell tower...so literal
Fibonacci staircase
Ha-zaah!!! you made it to the top
Turns out, she went to the same convenience store numerous times to exchange coins the machine instantaneously denied. Her frustrations were compounded by an increased hunger level, creating a perfect storm of frustration, irritation, and exacerbated disgruntlement - an emotional whirlwind I unassumingly took head-on. My unbridled optimism for the day's adventure was welcomed by silence and scorn, an unusual greeting (yet, mirrored most of the Croatian disposition in our experiences). Although, after enjoying some calamari and mussels (at the first restaurant we found, not the one intended), I learned of the worst parking experience ever. A language barrier and the refusal of the vendor to exchange the coins (that didn't work) for others of the same value without making and additional purchase (apparently coins for coins was too difficult a task) resulted in a shouting match. I was a little bit disappointed to have missed such a grand event, but Biograd has officially received Julie's stamp of disapproval - it was time to get out of dodge.
View from tower, looking west
View north and northeast (left to right)
Getting back in the car, we drove back through all the road work, but fared better, hitting all the green lights along the way. We parked outside Zadar and proceeded to walk into town from the east gate. We quickly discovered a centrally located tourist information center and acquired an ever important city map. Outside the center we saw the City Sentinel, a clock tower and what appeared to be a church we could visit. However, when trying to enter, we were miffed. There was a woman sitting at a counter of a confusing museum/restaurant combination (not entirely sure what was going on) - quickly having us redirect ourselves towards the Church of Saint Donatus (Crkva Sveti Donata). There was an admission to enter, but we have an aversion to pay to see something we have seen hundreds of in Europe - we have no problem avoiding fee-based churches (some exceptions).
Self-portrait
Small marina near city gate
Kopnena Vrata (City Gate)
Next to Saint Donatus is Saint Anastasia Cathedral Bell Tower (Katedrala Sveti Anastazije) which also had a fee to walk up, but a more palatable price for the city-wide panoramic view from the top. Leaving the tower, we walked around the corner to the Roman Forum; location of ruins, Saint Mary's Church (Samostan Benediktinki Sveti Marije), and a path leading to the Adriatic Sea.
Sunset over the Adriatic
Sun still setting
Going, going, almost gone
We proceeded along the promenade parallel to the sea and made our way north to the Sea Organ (Morske orgulje) - a seaside instrument continuously played by the ebb and flow of waves crashing into a series of pipes under the dock. We enjoyed the resonating sea symphony and listened to the soothing sounds of the organ, finding much needed solace long after the parking fiasco. We returned here Sunday night following a visit to the Plitvice Lakes Naional Park to watch the sunset on our last day. When leaving the sea organ, we followed path along the water to a small harbor near the City Gate (Kopnena Vrata). We took a few pictures of the gate and later had dinner`(calamari and mussels of course) to end our visit to Zadar.
