Blogs from Croatia, Europe
Les lacs émeraude de Plitvice, en Croatie (Véro)
Published: May 24th 2012Europe » Croatia » Central Croatia » Plitvice Lakes National Park
May 24th 2012
Nous avons quitté le bord de la mer ensoleillé pour nous diriger dans les montagnes vers les lacs de Plitvice. Pour ce faire, nous avons emprunté l'autoroute-à-130 et puisque la route montait... montait... alors ils ont bien pensé à ça les croates : ils ont construit plein de tunnels! Il y en avait un qui était de 5km! C'est long 5km dans un tube noir (eille on ne roulait pas à 130 là-dedans!) À notre sortie du tunnel, une mauvaise surprise nous attendait : la température avait complètement changé! On était rendu dans les nuages gris et il pleuvait! Malheureusement pour nous, il aura plus au cours des 2 jours où on aura voulu aller voir les lacs :( Ils se trouvent dans un parc immense qui peut se visiter en 2 jours, même plus, et ... read more
May 19th 2012
19thMay 2012 Saturday We decided to investigate the rural area around here in Belavici. The houses are very Tyrolean, all have spikes on their rooves and we see evidence of snow poles and snow ploughs also each house has a large wood store. Everywhere is very green and wooded, both deciduous and coniferous plantings. There are small scale market garden type cultivation but very few animals, occasional cows, goats and no sheep that we have seen. There are still some signs of the desolation caused by the war 20 years ago. We crossed many rivers and had vista of rapids and small cascades. The road bridge at Tounji over the Mreznica was very Romanesque! It even had some statues. We lunched at Sinji before walking around Rastocke where the Korana gorge is carved out by the ... read more
May 18th 2012
Day 7 Venice Shock, horror it's raining and only 11degrees - what a change from yesterday! We bought a two day pass for the boat shuttle so no choice but to go back to Venice for the morning. Could be worse I suppose. It began to really pour it down so we ducked for shelter under the arches of the Doge's Palace, and realised we were in a queue for admission into the Palace so that seemed a good idea. About half an hour later we were inside behind a tour made up of the whole population of France! We eventually got ahead of them and followed the route round the palace. It was actually amazing and we were glad we went. The last boat to the ship was scheduled for 1.00 in time for sailaway, ... read more
May 18th 2012
De Hvar, nous avons pris un traversier de 2 heures jusqu'à Split, 2ème plus grande ville de Croatie. Outre le fait qu'elle est sur le bord de la mer, la raison principale de visiter cette ville est le palais de Dioclétien, une ancienne résidence construite par l'empereur romain du même nom en l'an 305. Selon Wikipédia, c'est l'un des édifices de l'Antiquité tardive les mieux conservés Ce n'est pas vraiment un palais, c'est plus une petite et jolie vieille ville où l'on retrouve maintenant majoritairement des restaurants, cafés et magasins ainsi qu'un flot incessant de touristes japonais à travers les petites rues étroites. Le Lonely Planet mentionne que le tourisme de masse n'a pas encore atteint cette ville, j'ose pas imaginer quand ça va être le cas. Oui je sais, je suis un touriste moi aussi, ... read more
May 18th 2012
18th May 2012 Friday We drove to Zagreb the capital of Croatia. Parked underground and made our way on foot to the Main Square Ban Jelacic which is recognised as the main focus of modern Zagreb, the trams were very busy and well used. We were greeted in the square by crowds of teenagers all wearing colourful T shirts – blowing whistles, singing songs and throwing flour bombs! We asked one of the groups and they told us that they were all celebrating leaving school/ graduating – last day of term!!All very good humoured. We walked up steps out of the square and through the flower market and into The Dolac market where fruit, veg, local cheeses and local produce were all on sale. The local delicacy the Licitar was also on sale which is a ... read more
May 17th 2012
17th May 2012 Thursday Awoke to blue skies! After breakfast – lovely fresh bread! - We took a walk around the locality it is beside the River Mreznica which appears to be quite flooded because of the recent rain. It is very rural here. The authorities are replacing a dilapidated wooden bridge with a more modern construction. We understand that this will take another 6 months to complete. Drove into Karlovac to track down a road map – the town appears quite austere, it was heavily bombed in 1991 as the frontline of the conflict was only 5 Kms away and it still shows some of the damage sustained. Back to the caravan sunny but quite cool.... read more
May 16th 2012
16thMay 2012 Wednesday We left Drage in sunshine, we were waved off by our German and Austrian neighbours who also offered assistance with getting the caravan hitched- though no problem with the Disco up the steep slopes of the site. Left the Dalmatian Coast and drove high up into the mountains, over 3000 feet. Still some snow on the top. We then hit the rain arriving at Camping Slapic, Duga Resa. We did miss one turning and had to turn around in the Skoda factory car park!. The lane to the site is under re-construction so that was interesting. A bit lumpy bumpy – no tarmac in places. Pouring with rain, muddy pitches, cool, but we are here it can only get better!!... read more
May 15th 2012
15th May 2012 Tuesday We returned to Krka National Park to undertake the Skradinski Buk walk We drove to Lozovac where at this time of year you park and are transported by Park Bus the 4Km down into the gorge. Initially we were told that as we had a dog we could drive down (as dogs are not allowed on their buses) However when we had paid and drove to the barrier a very officious young Ranger told us HE was in charge and refused to let us through!! So we parked and walked down the footpath to the bottom of the gorge – very steep!! We then undertook the beautiful walk around the multiple cascades which took us well over an hour – but worth it. We were then faced with the problem of the ... read more
May 14th 2012
14thMay 2012 Monday Quieter night, the Bora is slowly subsiding, temp 16c early morning. After breakfast we headed for Zadar, the second largest city on the Dalmatian coast, extensively bombed by the Allies in Second World War. The old town is still partly enclosed by the medieval walls. The roman forum was pillaged to build churches near the site of St Donats Church. The church was dedicated to an Irish Bishop. Also around the old Forum are the Cathedral and a convent. The newer attractions are the sea organ where you can listen to the sounds of nature created by underwater pipes, and the newer attraction of the huge light sensitive dish which accumulates solar power during daylight and radiates a hypnotic glow at night. Bar B Q back at the van, still coolish, but according ... read more
Encore de l'eau bleue à Hvar, en Croatie (Véro)
Published: May 14th 2012Europe » Croatia » Dalmatia » Hvar
May 13th 2012
Nous avons quitté l'île de Korcula pour nous rendre sur l'île de Hvar. Pour s'y rendre, il fallait prendre 2 traversiers, un après l'autre, et mettons que pour faire une histoire courte, on a failli manquer le 2e.... on est arrivés juste à temps! J'ai couru acheter notre billet et lorsque je suis revenue, Phil était déjà monté dans le bateau avec l'auto et ils ont monté la "gate" derrière moi fiou! Si on l'avait manqué, on se serait rajouté 2h de route yessssssss! On avait quand même prévu de s'arrêter à mi-chemin pour la nuit, question de ne pas trop faire de route en une journée. Phil nous avait trouvé une chambre dans un hôtel sur le bord de l'eau, dans un village-un-peu-perdu-où-tout-est-fermé-car-c'est-la-basse-saison. Il avait choisi la chambre la moins chère vu qu'on restait là ... read more
