Tag Archive | Split

Sadly Leaving Split and Journeying to Dubrovnik in Croatia

Oct5

Friday, September 30, 2016:

Split-Dubrovnk, Croatia

Split was so spectacular that it simply stole our hearts away.

After a very comfortable night and a very good sleep, Chriselle and I awoke in our Air B&B feeling very pleased with the choice we had made. We showered and then packed away our bags and took them down to the real estate agency where Laura took charge of them as check-out time was 11. 00 am. We then left to find ourselves a spot of breakfast.

Breakfast by the Harbor:

Split was already hopping at 9.00 am when we set out to get some baked goods for breakfast as the cruise ships that come in each morning and disgorge vast crowds of passengers arrive early. As we walked towards the center of Old Town to find a bakery, we kept running into these hordes with their tour guides rattling off all sorts of information in varying languages. As we searched for a bakery, we wandered out of the Town walls and into the more modern part of Split. As we neared the waterside, we could see many watercraft bobbing lazily—from small yachts to big cruising ships, there were an impressive variety of them. When we did finally find a bakery, I got a hazelnut and chocolate twist with a cup of decaff coffee—and Chriselle got something along the same lines. We found ourselves a bench facing the water and people-watched as we munched on our goodies that tasted so good as we were ravenous.

Aimlessly Exploring the City:

A little later, we did some more strolling aimlessly. Everywhere we turned, there was something wonderful to see. We walked the length of the waterside promenade, we nipped into souvenir shops to buy magnets and postcards, we browsed in a few shops and bought T-shirts as gifts and then when Chriselle became deeply charmed by a cloth bag in the shape of an owl, we scoured some of the street-side stalls to make sure we got the best bargain. She did eventually find the one that she most adored and feeling very pleased with her purchase, we walked on.

A little later, we came across a flea market that was full of knick-knacks as well as a section that sold fresh fruit and veg. I bought a small quantity of dried figs as I really do love them. Munching on them, we browsed through the vintage and antique items until Chriselle found a heart-shaped topaz-colored crystal pendant that she adored. I bought it for her as a small souvenir of our times together. She immediately put it on and was once again very pleased with her buy.

More aimless wandering took us to parts of the Town we had never seen. We continued our Walking Tour as laid out in Lonely Planet and found Diocletian’s private apartments in remarkable form. We entered an ethnographic museum and enjoyed looking at the various exhibits that delineated varied aspects of Croatian life—dress, food, jewelry, crafts, hobbies, etc. All of it was a very good introduction to the region and its people. We entered a church and found the interior decoration dazzling. We did not climb to the top of the five-tiered Tower as we’d had enough of climbing the previous day. However, we made sure we combed through every alley, nook and cranny that the book suggested we comb—and at each turn, we were enchanted. We were also glad that we’d had a chance to see the buildings and the square the previous night in electric lighting as the look by daylight was completely different.

Departure from Split and Arrival in Dubrovnik:

By 1.00 pm, we returned to Laura at the agency to pick up our bags and begin the short trek to the bus station. We boarded our bus to Dubrovnik for a 2.00 pm departure with expected time of arrival being close to 6. 30 pm. Once again, it was a beautiful drive as we hugged the Adriatic coast and passed numerous hazy islands throughout.

What was also interesting about this drive was that for a part of it we traveled through Bosnia-Herzogovina. In fact, our coach made a short stop after we had our passports checked by border control. While we were in Bosnia, we used rest rooms, bought souvenirs and snacks and took some pictures of the lovely area through which we were passing. What a thrill it was to stop in Bosnia and spend a little while there! Little did we dream, when we had been reading about the dreadful war there, that we would one day travel to these parts of the world! It was a huge thrill for both Chriselle and myself. Not too much later, we were entering Croatia and going through another border check-point. Luckily, these stops were quite speedy and did not cause us too much impatience or anxiety.

Arrival in Dubrovnik:

By the time we arrived in Dubrovnik, twilight had already descended upon the city. At the bus station, we found out about our on-going journey to Montenegro, two days later, and booked our tickets. We then bought tickets for the local bus that took us from the bus station to the Old Town where it terminated. Here again our accommodation was in the heart of the Old Town (an Air B&B arranged by Chriselle) and with very good directions, we managed to find it quite easily. The only hassle was that it was at the very top of a steep flight of stairs which was not a picnic to climb when we had our baggage with us. Still, we could not complain too much as the accommodation was very classy and very nice with a spacious room and a very modern bathroom. Once again, we stashed our things and decided to go out in search of dinner—which would also give us a chance to take in the Old Town by Night.

Our first impressions of Old Town? Well, it is every bit as glorious as our friends had told us. This entire vast sprawling Town is made of marble—it has marble paving, gorgeous palazzos, superb Baroque churches that are as beautiful on the outside as they are within, and loads of lovely restaurants, cafes, bars and shops studded all over the place.

Dinner in Dubrovnik:

With the best intentions of discovering the city the next day, we sauntered around until we found Cele, a restaurant in a busy square that was lively and fun-filled and offered live music. We ordered Croatian beer and decided to try some of the seafood for which Croatia is famed: we had a vast tureen of mussels with a thick and flavorful broth for which we were provided bread so that we could sop it all up (it was delectable!) and a platter of grilled vegetables that included eggplant, zucchini, mushrooms, tomatoes and cucumbers. They were very well seasoned and slightly charred and dressed with balsamic vinaigrette. We really did enjoy our dinner and our beer and felt pleased that we had not yet had a bad meal on our trip.

Once dinner was done, however, we did not waste too much time hanging out as we really did need to catch up on our sleep. It was easy to find our accommodation once we knew were to go and about a half hour later, we were preparing to call it a day knowing that we had an absolute treat in store as we began a proper exploration of the city.

Until tomorrow, cheerio…

 

Goodbye Slovenia and Hello Croatia–Arrival in Scintillating Split.

Oct5

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Slovenia-Croatia—Off to Split

Early Morning Rising:

Our coach to Split was scheduled to leave at 7. 10 am from the Bus Station at Ljubljana. Since we would be leaving our hostel before breakfast service began at 7. 30 am, we asked for a packed breakfast and were delighted to have it waiting for us at Reception when we checked out at 6. 30 am. A few minutes later, we were trawling our strolleys along on the ten minute walk to the bus station and feeling quite sorry to be leaving Ljubljana and Slovenia in general as our travels had proven to be such fun.

Long Coach Ride to Croatia:

I was excited to be traveling towards Croatia. I had wanted to visit the country for many years and had heard a great deal about its unspoiled beauty. We had a long ride ahead of us (about 10 hours) so Chriselle had wisely equipped herself for the journey by picking up a paperback from the hostel’s book exchange service. It kept her wrapped up for most of the journey which was actually much more pleasant than we had imagined as we made many stops.

We had a border crossing into Croatia and passport checking and stamping about an hour or two into the journey. It went off painlessly and smoothly and in no time at all, we were on our way again. Once in Croatia, we discovered to our great annoyance, that we were required to pay 3 kunas (about 50 cents) each time we wished to use a public toilet in any one of the bus stations. This literally involved begging for a few coins or exchanging our euros coins with fellow travelers as we had not yet exchanged any money. Croatia in the only country that uses Kuna—so you need to use them up before you leave.

We also had a connection to make in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, which was once so much in the news. That connection was a dismal failure as we were kept waiting for a coach for over an hour. When the coach finally did arrive, there was neither an apology nor an explanation for the delay—I guess public services do not function with the same efficiency and courtesy in other parts of Europe as they do in the UK.

Driving around Zagreb on our departure from the bus station and on to the highway, we got to see much of the city—at least its suburban parts. Needless to say, everything is brand spanking new as the city was almost wiped out in the 1990’s war that devastated the region and re-drew the borders of countries in Eastern Europe. It was fun to be able to see another capital as we did not have the time to spend seeing Zagreb in any more detail.

Bye and by, we arrived at our destination. Our journey was made pleasant by the food we were carrying (apple, ham and cheese sandwiches, apple juice that was in our breakfast bags) and the snacks we had bought (potato chips, chocolate) and which we munched as the miles flew. Outside, the scenery changed with many green hills and mountains receding in the distance to blue-grey outlines of many more. It was quite lovely indeed and it offered us a break from the strenuous walking and climbing we had done during the past few days. Once we hit the Adriatic coast, it was the incredible blue of its waters that offered stirring sights as did the lovely small and large coastal towns that we passed where we dropped or picked up passengers.

Arrival in Split:

We cruised into the City of Split at about 6.00 pm while there was still plenty of light. Chriselle had made a booking at an AirB&B that was in the heart of the Old Town. As soon as we alighted from the bus, we went to the bus station to book our onward tickets to Dubrovnik for the next day and asked for directions to our hotel. We discovered that it was just a fifteen minute walk away and it was with great pleasure that we set off in search of it.

Finding our Hotel and Settling In;

We knew that our accommodation was located in the very heart of the Old Town of Split. It did not take us long to leave the new city behind and enter through the walls of the Palace of Diocletian, through the Silver Gate. A few minutes later, we were completely enchanted by what we saw—for the Old Town of Split is composed entirely of the palace that the Emperor Diocletian built as his retirement resort. He never did occupy it; but through the centuries the entire place has remained a living entity of human activity. There are ruins and well-preserved buildings and temples but there are also contemporary homes with washing hanging on lines, children playing in the streets, stray cats darting all over the place and a general sense of vibrant life all around.

We found the agent Laura who handed us our keys and showed us our room with its en suite bathroom. It was small but comfortable and certainly served our needs. We surveyed the place quickly, used the facilities and left immediately as we did want to catch some parts of the Old Town before the light faded completely.

Exploring Old Town and Diocletian’s Palace:

And so it was that we used the Lonely Planet Walking Tour to start off our exploration of the ruins of Diocletian’s Palace which rose up all around us. We were located literally in the midst of it all in an old building with an old door and with lights on sensors that came on as we passed each floor. It was a bit creepy and not something I would have enjoyed doing alone, but with Chriselle for company, my bravado swelled.

We started at the towering sculpture of Gregorius Nin—which dwarfs everything in its surroundings. Then we began our walk through the maze of streets, admiring the intricate sculpture, the architectural details, the surface decoration at each step, of this grand and mighty edifice that has withstood so wonderfully the test of time. We arrived at the Peristyle which is the main building of the Palace and which looks like a grand Roman Temple. It has retained most of its original details. Standing not far away is the five-tiered tower of the neighboring church—sort of like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Everywhere we were stunned by the late-evening crowds most of whom were part of organized walking tours with guides speaking in varied languages.

After we had scoured parts of the Palace and become quite enchanted indeed by what we saw, we decided to look for a place for dinner as we were both ready for a nice meal. Our long coach drive had taken its toll on us and we were ready to kick back and relax. Hence, when we found a lovely restaurant in People’s Square that offered outdoor tables and lots of opportunities to people-watch, we settled down there with cold beer and one of the best pizzas I have ever eaten—it was a seafood pizza with fresh prawns, capers and green olives on a generous bed of mozarella cheese. As we dug in, we were simply delighted by our meal and our surroundings and the lovely soft lighting which gave the entire Palace a magical ambience. Indeed, I was very glad that Chriselle and I did some exploration by night as our impressions of the city in broad daylight would be quite different altogether.

After our meal, we presumed we would get directly home—but along the way, we heard music and stopping to listen, we discovered that it was a guitarist and a female singer who were seated outside the Luxor Hotel and Restaurant to entertain patrons who sipped wine as they lounged, Roman-style, on red cushions on the Temple steps. Of course, we joined in right away, because we both love music and knew all the songs she was singing. Some brave British women and a couple of kids were not content with singing alone—they jumped into the space in the center and began dancing. It was all fun, very lively, very friendly, very much the kind of spontaneous experience you encounter in your travels that remains forever embedded in your brain. Well, for me, this too was one of the highlights of our travels and we enjoyed it immensely. A little later, we decided to go back home and get some shut eye as the morrow would bring us more sightseeing delights.

Until tomorrow, cheerio…