Tom's adventures through eastern Europe with two friends for 3 weeks in the summer of 2007. This site is a collection of photos, diaries, notes and thoughts.
September 3, 2007 – Dubrovnik, Croatia
After my last entry, we headed out into the city of Zagreb. It's the capital and very much looks like one. Wide open parks and squares, an efficient transport system and lots of offices. Not much else though. So, with Chris, a maths student from Chester, we wondered the streets with breakfast. I had a very chocolatey-pan au chocolat, Becka ordered a 'mini'-pizza, but ended up with one the size of her face. Not bad for 40p. The city is quite new, with straight streets and a plan. The architecture similar to Bratislava.
Food and drink is cheap, away from the coast and with many places to choose from. Our dinner that evening, I had pizza and two glasses of wine, only came to about £5 a person. The food is like most other European cities, Italian, French and German dishes.
We met another student, Jay, from Australia, we headed out in the evening. There didn't seem very many tourists out. The only other people we met were staying at our hostel. The evening ended in a small bar towards the edge of the city centre. We talked about life, the universe and everything. A policeman was having a beer, then a coffee and a chat with the bar owner. It was a quiet, damp evening, so we headed back to the hostel.
The next morning we awoke early to head to a national park. We must have looked a little puzzled at the tram station, as a kind lady helped us find the right tram and asked the tram driver to let us know when to get off.
Two bus journeys later, we arrived at a wet national park in the mountains. Plitvice National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site, has a series of lakes connected with waterfalls. The crystal-clear waters and stunning scenery are complimented by the subtle paths the Croatians have built around the park.
It was wet, but it was beautiful. We'll have to return another day to appreciate the true beauty.
We booked accommodation through an agent at the park. Privately run, you stay as a guest in somebody's house nearby. A gentleman picked us up in the evening and drove us to the near-by village where he lives. The tall houses were split into flats and looked like a Swiss village, but it was a little worn and the streets old. If you could imagine a Swiss village, but made by communists, that's pretty much what it looked like. It was a joy. It was clean, quiet and quite beautiful. A little supermarket (or just called 'market' here) had all the basics you'd ever need. They couldn't believe I had come all the way from London to their little village.
We slept well after walking around the park all day and left soon the next morning, headed for the coast. We waited at the bus stop. A large taxi-van pulled up and asked us, as well as two other women waiting, if we'd prefer to get the taxi instead. More comfortable, quicker. After some negotiation on price, we agreed for HKR170 each he'd take us the 2000km (1,250 miles) to Split, on the coast. That's £17. Brilliant. It was also four hours quicker than the bus.
We went for it, hoping he'd keep to his word. As we approached the motorway, he asked if we wanted to use it as it costs extra. £1 each, but it would save a lot of time. We smiled at let him continue. The ladies we shared the taxi with had a map from 2004, but half the motorway wasn't marked. They still haven't finished it. The roads and bridges are new and they've built long tunnels through the mountains - the longest at 5 km (3 miles). We arrived in Split, and true to his word, we paid him £18 each and he was gone.
We'd arrived in Split, originally a Roman fortress, just after lunch. It was about 25C degrees and we still had our coats on from the cold mountains. We quickly changed and dragged ourselves, with our backpacks, through the narrow streets to a tourist information centre. The friendly man in the centre explained we'd be lucky to get space at a hostel. Rachel looked after the bags while we ventured around asking at every hostel.
Unsuccessful, we went back to the tourist information centre. We looked hot, we looked tired and it looked like we'd have nowhere to stay. The man said he'd see what he could do, and made some phone calls. He told us to go to the main square outside the theater. A bald man would meet us and sort us out. We wondered up to the square and sure enough he was there, waiting for us. He questioned why I was traveling with two girls as we followed him out of the city centre. "If you need any help, you call me" he said. The streets got narrower and we followed him down a small side to a little block of old flats. It looked rather dingy. He opened the door with a smile and we walked in. Big clean kitchen and dinning room, a new bathroom and two large bedrooms with fresh linen and towels. He turned the air conditioning on and smiled "not so bad, is it?" Not at all.
Split is a very touristy city. The food and drink is more expensive. We managed a good price of £18 each for one night in the apartment, the same price as a hostel. We were lucky. We ate in that night (with a bottle of very nice Croatian £1.20 bottle of white) and wondered around the city. Another UNESCO site, the main city still keeps its original Roman walls. It is inhabited and has many shops. Wondering around it is like a modern-day Pompeii. Bars, restaurants, markets. We sat by the sea and in the squares, having a drink, watching people and chatting.
The next morning I got up early and wondered around the city. It was a Sunday and people were busy. The fish market was full of life. People were going to church. Men sat in squares and chatted. The tourists were not awake yet.
I got some provisions and breakfast and headed back to the apartment. We packed and set out for Dubrovnik. Further down the coast, it's another ancient fortress. We'd booked ahead this time and were told to wait at the bus station after the four-hour journey for collection. A large, well tanned man with a mustache turned up in an old VW Golf. He was very merry. "Have beautiful three-bedroom for you" "Lovely view" "Is very nice". He drove up the hill behind the city. "Town, that way, 20 minutes" "Straight" "My house, there, blue". We were very high up the hill and could see his three-story house. His family lived on the side and the rest were apartments. He showed us up more stairs and explained which key opened which door. We were high. We'd driven a long way up a lot of hills and seemed quite far from town. 20 minute walk seemed a long way. He opened the balcony doors and we were treated to a view we'll be enjoying for the next few nights.
Welcome to Dubrovnik. The supermarkets were closed, so we ate out. I had scampi, real scampi - Becka helped me get into them. It was absolutely delicious. I only got a few, so tucked into the bread. We looked tired so headed back to the apartment, watching a band play on the way.
Now we have some beaches to go to, some books to read and generally - relax.
See you at the beach, I'll be the one smiling