Blogs from Dalmatia, Croatia, Europe - page 133

Hi Everyone, Great hearing from you and I'm really enjoying keeping in touch and sharing my thoughts and experiences during this trip. We were in Croatia today, arrived in the am and left several hours ago. Croatia is near Bosnia, Austria and Hungry. We have never been to Croatia before and did not know what to expect. It is a very beautiful country and the people were very friendly. Here are a few facts about Croatia from a book that I bought today: Croatia has pristine beaches and the cleanest and clearest water in the Mediterranean region. Dubrovnik is one of the most unique cities in the world, a place of ancient streets lined with stone palaces, Venetian-style buildings and bell towers. I had a lot of fun today. I bought some books and other cool ... read more

Okay, okay, technically I'm not in Croatia anymore. I would have put in an entry there, but according to Croatian business hours, if you are open until 4 p.m., you actually close at 2. Since leaving Sorrento, I've been having an Aussie/Croatian cultural experience. I headed to Bari to catch the ferry to Dubrovnik and on the way met an Aussie guy (no, Mom, I'm not marrying him!) named David who was doing the same thing. Since we were both heading to the HI hostel in Dubrovnik, we ended up spending quality time in Bari waiting for the ferry, on the deck class of the ferry, and for a couple of days in Dubrovnik. Dubrov. is a really beautiful city, now that they've repaired a lot of the bombing damage from the war. It's all white ... read more

After leaving Venice, we cruised across the top of Italy’s boot to what used to be Yugoslavia, which is now split into several small countries -- Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia, Macedonia, etc. (“the Balkans”). Croatia is a little country of five million that grabbed most of the lovely coastline on the Adriatic Sea away from the other Balkan countries. Its majority ethnic group is Roman Catholic. It’s said to be more “Italian” than the other Balkans, which tend to have Orthodox and Muslim populations. There is tension between Croatians and their minority ethnic group, the Serbs. Our destination in Croatia was Split, an ancient city founded back in Greek and Roman times. Our ship docked alongside a magnificent old Roman palace that dominates the downtown wharf area. The Roman emperor Diocletian’s mother was from this area, ... read more

The Italian tourists were returning to Croatia by 2003, but who can blame them when there are places like Brac, with its peninsular white sand beach and turquoise waters, pristine even with the crowds, and the charming towns prime for an air bnb place in a shoulder season - late May or September.... read more

Fields of lavender are remembered in a painting still hanging in my bedroom. Extract was sold in the streets and I bought a bottle for a friend but never saw her again. There were rocky beaches with pristine water. I snorkeled here for the first time and avoided sea urchins.... read more