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Published: September 8th 2011
Heading south from Slovenia, I crossed into the Croatian part of the Istrian peninsula. The bus arrived in the Croatian city of Pula 10 minutes early even though it was 45 minutes late in Slovenia and we had to stop for 15 minutes at the border for passport control, so not quite sure how that happened. Pula is right at the tip of Istria, and as the name suggests, it has a very Italian past. The city has some of the best Roman ruins I've seen, including the impressive Amphitheatre from the 1st century BC (the 6th largest surviving example) as well as several Roman gates and arches dating from the same era. The main square in the city is called the Forum, and is home to the 1st century Roman Temple of Augustus, as well as the 12th century Town Hall, built on the remains of a much earlier Roman temple. And right in the middle of the old town is a 17th century Hapsburg fort which overlooks a much smaller Roman semicircular amphitheatre. This part of the city was very nice; unfortunately the rest (the majority) was really not so good. I didn't expect to see that much difference
between Slovenian and Croatian cities, but I couldn't have been more wrong. Whereas I didn't see any town or city in Slovenia which didn't feel Western European, most of Pula was dirty and run-down – a world away from anything I saw in Slovenia. Pula is a large port city, and the smell, even on the main square from the filthy port waters was disgusting. On the other side of Pula however, there is some fantastic (unpolluted) coastline; none of the beaches are that great, but the sea has is majestically clear and the rocky shoreline is very impressive to the eye. The only thing that spoiled the natural beauty, apart from the crowds, was the sheer amount of litter absolutely everywhere.
I was more than glad to visit some sites outside of the city whilst I was staying there; Istria seems to have many attractions (the coastline being the most obvious), many of which are only really accessible by car. I went to a village called Bale which was on the way to the city of Rohinj, where I also wanted to go. Bale is a small hilltop village which couldn't be more different from Pula. Bale felt
so Italian, but then it was in Italy up until 1945 when the majority of its Italian-speaking natives emigrated to Italy. Narrow cobbled streets, a small castle, a small palace and a church were the main charms of the village. There were so many cats around – I must have seen at least 20 or 25, which is more than double the amount of people I saw. I didn't stay too long before continuing to the city of Rohinj (pronounced Ro-heen). This too could not have been more different from Pula. The historic city centre juts out into the Adriatic, in a similar way to Piran in Slovenia. Like Bale, the steep and cobbled streets oozed charm, with impressive coastal views from the church in the centre of the old town. Rohinj was packed with tourists, though no more than Pula, but at least with Rohinj it was easy to see why.
After a couple of days in Pula I took a 5 hour bus to Zagreb. Being so far from the coast, Zagreb isn't exactly overrun with tourists, but as was the case with Ljubjlana, that is one of the attractions in visiting. And also like the Slovenian
capital, Zagreb has no landmark attractions, so I was just able to stroll around without having a list in my mind of places to see. The city is a lot bigger and has a lot more grandiose architecture than Ljubjlana – it was certainly nice enough, but nothing that special. Coming in on the bus, the outskirts seemed to be one giant industrial estate punctured with the odd tower block; the centre was of course more appealing but I saw everything I wanted to see in less than a day. The city, like Budapest, is actually 2 cities that have been merged into 1, though the boundaries are not as clear as in the Hungarian capital. Kapitol, which is the upper town, is home to the Gothic cathedral which must be the only cathedral I've ever seen that has protective walls around 3 sides of it (built to fend off Turkish invaders). Nearby are the pretty St Marks Square (where the Parliament and government buildings are to be found) as well as the only surviving city gate, which is essentially a walk-in chapel as it contains a “holy” painting of the Virgin Mary in front of which many people stop
to pray. The other part of the Zagreb, Gradec (or the lower town) is the historical merchants' area of the city. It is connected to Kapitol by the world's shortest (and most pointless) cable railway, even though the height difference between the 2 parts of the city is barely noticeable. Most of Gradec is given over to shops and the main squares – none of which were that noteworthy. There were quite a few museums – the usual ones such as the National Museum and the History Museum, but also some weird ones such as the “Broken Relationships Museum”. The main park area in the city, which links the train station to the centre, is surrounded by Parisian-style architecture and more than one palace (the main one was covered in scaffolding on all sides), most of which are government buildings or embassies. On Marshall Tito Square (Tito having been from Zagreb) there are some other impressive buildings, including the National Theatre. The street names in the city are confusing for anyone who doesn't know the system – every street has an official name but more often than not the name is abbreviated, which unless you understand Croatian, makes the name
of the street entirely different from the official name.
Whilst I didn't rate Zagreb that highly, I did a day trip from the city to the Plitvice Lakes, which were truly amazing. The lakes are renowned as being the most beautiful place in the whole of Croatia, which is surprising given the country's stunning coastline. Unquestionably the most beautiful area I've seen in the country so far though. The lakes were a 2 ½ hour bus ride from Zagreb (meaning a very, very early start and a late return) and are a series of 16 interlinking lakes, connected by countless waterfalls and separated by imposing cliffs. Even though it's a national park, you have to pay 110 Kuna (€15) to get in, which seemed a bit excessive, but the beauty of the place was definitely worth it. The park is divided into 2 main sections – the Upper Lakes and the Lower lakes, and are connected by both road-train and boat (which are actually included in the entrance price). As I got to the park quite early, I managed to beat the crowds to most of the Upper Lakes. It was incredibly serene to walk along the quiet forested
and lakeside trails seeing the waterfalls, the crystal clear waters of the lakes and being able to see the fish so clearly. It was a bit more annoying later in the day when the large tourist groups arrived – I followed most of the trails in reverse so I wouldn't get stuck in the midst of one, but one renegade group of German pensioners obviously had the same idea; battling through the hoards of people is to be expected at such a beautiful location, but it was still an annoyance. I caught the boat from one end of the main lake to the other before following the trail to the Lower Lakes. There were probably even more picturesque than the ones I had seen earlier – the deep turquoise colour was stunning. The main trail climbs up quite high so you can get panoramic views as well. The end of the trail is a viewpoint over “The Big Waterfall”, which was also quite a sight. In the nearby lakes I saw snakes in 2 different places – both were quite small and the ducks didn't seem at all bothered by them, so not quite sure what they live on. I
walked back along the main lake to the Upper Lakes where there was another elevated trail with inspiring views; by this time I had spent some 7 or 8 hours in the park and needed to get the bus back to Zagreb. Truly an inspirational place – hard to believe that the lakes were actually the sight of one of the major battles in the Croatian War of Independence in the early 90s.
The only other day trip I did from Zagreb was to the city of Varaždin, just 80km to the northeast but some 2 ½ hours on the terribly slow Croatian train network. If Varaždin was anywhere near the coast, it would be infinitely more visited by tourists. As it is, being relatively isolated near the Slovenian and Hungarian borders, the city is quiet and peaceful – I went on a Saturday and most of the shops had shut by midday and not many people seemed to be around. Varaždin was the capital of Croatia until a fire in the 18th century destroyed much of the city, when the decision was made to move the capital to Zagreb. Despite this, the city has preserved a charming medieval
feel, dominated by the beautiful Stari Grad castle. Lots of beautiful streets, many nice buildings and a very relaxing yet historical feel. Varaždin was undoubtedly well worth the trip from Zagreb.
After Zagreb, I had my only night bus of the whole trip. I'm happy to say it was infinitely better than my only night train of this trip (Wroclaw to Berlin), and after 11 hours I woke up in Dubrovnik in the extreme south of Croatia. Owing to the somewhat bizarre shape of Croatia, we had to pass through Bosnia & Herzegovina to get to Dubrovnik, but passport control was fortunately quick and easy. The scenery during sunrise just outside of Dubrovnik was spectacular. Dubrovnik city itself did not disappoint either. If it were not for the massive crowds and the heat, it truly would be heaven on earth as George Bernard Shaw described it. The city itself is completely pedestrianised, and is surrounded by the best surviving set of city walls in the world. These fortifications are really what make Dubrovnik stand out; the buildings actually within the walls were not as interesting – the walls and the port are really what make the city. There is
one broad avenue that passes through the centre of the city; off of this narrow lanes connect a maze of back alleys – it really is quite tricky to find anything that isn't on the main street. This main street was of course perpetually packed, and is also where most of the overpriced restaurants and souvenir shops are located. One of the first things I did in the city was to walk the city walls, as I wanted to do this before it got too hot. Breathtaking views, but too many people even at 8 in the morning (all off a Spanish cruise ship which had evidently just docked). I then took a boat from the old city port to the island of Lokrum which lies lust outside the city. The island is technically a nature reserve but was filled with people heading for the beaches. The interior has a maze of interconnecting paths which eventually lead past a ruined monastery to a fort on the highest point of the island, from where there was a picturesque view back towards Dubrovnik. Besides exploring the random streets in Dubrovnik, there wasn't that much else to see or do. I wanted to
get to the top of the hill that overlooks the city – it looks quite high up but in the end it only took about an hour to climb to the top, which is 400m above the city. The views on the way up were simply amazing – the old city with the Adriatic and the islands beyond are really something special. At the actual top, the views aren't as good as there is a former Croatian military fort and the cable car station obstructing the views. But the views facing the opposite direction from the city into the mountains in Bosnia were also quite something. Even near the cable car there weren't that many people; I appreciated the tranquillity of the climb nearly as much as the amazing views. The military fort contains a museum documenting the Battle for Dubrovnik during the war in the 1990s, and shows just how badly damaged the city actually was as well as the atrocities committed by the invading Serbian forces. Hard to imagine that a city so beautiful was a war zone less than 2 decades ago.
The most surprising thing about Dubrovnik was that I quickly ran out of things
to do in the city. Having a whole day spare, there were plenty of options for day trips, ranging from Croatian islands to Bosnia, but I decided I wanted to have a look at nearby Montenegro. The bus connections between Croatia and Montenegro are not that great (the countries are not on the best of terms) so I had to do a guided tour from Dubrovnik, which was a bit rushed, but at least allowed me to see a fair amount of the small country. The border between Croatia and Montenegro is not far from Dubrovnik – at this point Croatia is only 6km wide. On the way we passed by the Dubrovnik Riviera, where there were a dozen or so ruined hotels which were firebombed by the Serbian & Montenegrin forces in the 1991-1995 Croatian War of independence. It seems tourism never really returned to this once-popular part of the coast. We crossed into Montenegro and arrived about an hour later in Kotor, which is the number one attraction in the whole of Montenegro. My guide book describes the city as like Dubrovnik but without the crowds, but is clearly out of date however as the crowds were nearly
as vast as in Dubrovnik. An American cruise ship was in port, which is probably why the city was not at all peaceful. Kotor lies on the Bay of Kotor, which is linked to the Adriatic by the largest fjord in southern Europe, surrounded by lofty mountains. The setting is truly spectacular. The city, like Dubrovnik, was a bit artificial and very commercial (I wasn't expecting to see English everywhere in Montenegro like in Croatia). But the walls and the historic buildings within were interesting, albeit inferior to Dubrovnik. The problem with the guided tour is that we didn't have enough time to see the city properly – I would have loved to have climbed the city walls to the fortress which looks over Kotor and the Bay, but alas we didn't have time for that. We continued driving around the bay until we reached the other main tourist town in Montenegro, Budva. On the way we heard from our guide/driver all about the problems in Montenegro at the moment – corruption, over development of tourist resorts, pollution, everything being owned by the Russian Mafia etc. Budva was clearly way overdeveloped. Ugly tower blocks (many brand new) were dotted all
around the city, including on the seafront. There is one gigantic complex, half-built, located on what is supposed to be protected land – apparently the owner and the official who was bribed to allow the construction to begin are both now in prison, so perhaps they are trying to resolve the problems with corruption. We also heard what the Russian Mafia get up to here, though how much of it was true I'm not sure. The guide clearly didn't particularly like the country – but as Montenegro has been involved in bombing his city less than 2 decades ago, I can't blame him. The marina was filled with super-yachts (mostly owned by Russian millionaires) – the presence of wealth everywhere is obvious, but all of it seems to be foreign rather than Montenegrin. There were countless signs in Russian as Russian tourists seem to be among the most numerous, and the town was also filled with Serbians, presumably as they're not that welcome in Croatia or Slovenia. Budva is supposed to be the country's main beach resort, but you are not supposed to actually swim in the sea, which is dirty with sewage, with the city having been overdeveloped beyond
its infrastructure. The old town itself was pretty, with intact city walls and an imposing citadel surrounding the typical narrow cobbled streets filled with the usual souvenir shops and restaurants (everything considerably cheaper than Dubrovnik). Even though the city is incredibly artificial, I did quite like it – the coastal scenery is amazing, they just need to make put a limit on building. We only had time for one more stop in Montenegro, and that was at Sveti Stefan, which is picture-postcard village jutting out on a small peninsula not far from Budva. Originally built as a quarantine village, it is now owned by an Arab businessman and has been turned into a (private) 5* resort, so we only got to see it from the road above. We drove back to Dubrovnik, this time taking the ferry across Kotor Bay, which offered spectacular views of the fjord.
From Dubrovnik, I headed 4 ½ hours back north to Croatia's second city of Split, which was my final destination before flying back to London. I had already passed through Split to get to Dubrovnik, but as flights from Split were about half the price of those from Dubrovnik, I saved Split
for the end. And it didn't disappoint as my final stopover. What makes Split different from other coastal cities is its history. The old town is built upon the ruins of a Roman Palace, which was constructed in the 4th century AD by Emperor Diocletian as his retirement palace. Although most of the palace no longer exists, there are ruins everywhere, and many of the Roman buildings have been put to other uses, so walking through the centre is just like walking through an open-air museum. On the main square, Roman arches sit below the 13th century Cathedral Bell Tower (the views from the top were quite something). The cathedral itself was very interesting – it was built originally as Diocletian's Mausoleum in the year 305 (making it the oldest cathedral building in the world), but after the fall of the Roman Empire it became a Christian temple. Unfortunately the Christians ritually destroyed most of the Roman interior, including the Emperor's sarcophagus, but I suppose if they hadn't have found a use for it, the hexagonal building wouldn't exist at all now. Similarly, the crypt underneath the cathedral has been turned into a chapel and the nearby Temple of Jupiter
(one of the best preserved Roman temples anywhere in the world) has been made into the Church of St John the Baptist. The city walls remain relatively unaltered since Roman times; the four gates are still in use and the only entrances to the city, and although not in the same condition as when they were built, are still impressive sites. Looking at the main entrance to the palace, the Golden Gate, you can see the remnants of the grandeur which would have once adorned it. Some parts of the inner city have been left as ruins – some parts look as if they have just been in a war zone, but it was nice being able to see parts of the palace which haven't been built on. The vaults and rooms beneath the old palace are incredibly well preserved – they were filled with debris and rubble for centuries and have only recently been excavated; consequently they haven't really changed since Roman times. Outside of the Roman centre, there isn't much else to Split. The seafront boulevard (the Riva) is very modern and filled with restaurants; there are quite a few beaches dotted around either side of the ferry
port. Just to the west of the city is Marjan, a green forested hill jutting into the sea, from where there were panoramic views of the city. So Split was definitely a nice city, though it can in no way compete with Dubrovnik for beauty. They also need to do something about their stray cats – there are so many of them, absolutely everywhere in the city (even in the Palace subvaults!).
Split is the jumping off point for many of Croatia's islands; whilst I would have liked to have visited a few of them, I only really had time for one so settled on Hvar, which is probably the most popular with foreign tourists. It was a one hour catamaran ride (on very choppy waters) to Hvar town, which is the largest settlement on the island. The island is incredibly wide but only a few kilometres long (similar to Cuba), so I wasn't really able to see that much on the island as it takes a very while to get from the west end to the east end. Hvar town proved to be thoroughly charming, and nowhere near as busy or touristy as I had expected. The old
town is reminiscent of many other ones I have seen in Croatia (though Hvar has the largest town square in Croatia), but the harbour area with its views of the fortress above was what made Hvar for me. The fortress itself basically served as nothing more than a viewpoint – they seem to have eradicated anything of historical interest on the inside, but the spectacular views over Hvar town and the islands beyond were always the main draw. From Hvar I took a bus to the other main town in the west of the island, Stari Grad (meaning old city). Stari Grad is where the car ferries to Split depart from, but despite this the town was deserted of both locals and tourists. It was quite a pretty town (not as nice as Hvar) with another nice harbour and all the stone cottages with matching green shutters. The ferry back to Split from Stari Grad was much slower (2 hours) though seeing the sun set over Split was more than compensation for this.
Split was my last destination in Croatia – I've just flown back to the UK. It's been an amazing 3 months in Europe, so I'm sorry it's
come to an end. Croatia in the end was a bit of a mixed bag – some of the sights were unbelievably beautiful (the Plitvice Lake were definitely the highlight, just ahead of Dubrovnik), but it feels as if in Croatia they are trying to exploit tourists as much as they can, so it definitely wasn't the friendliest country I visited. The hassle with travelling (poor infrastructure and buses/trains just not doing what they were supposed to be doing) also made the country less enjoyable to travel in than say Germany. Speaking of Germany, Bavaria has probably been my favourite area I've been to on this trip, though my favourite city is definitely the first place I went to – Stockholm. I definitely started the trip off on the right foot! Thanks to anyone who has gone to the trouble of reading through every blog I write, but from me that is all (for now at least).
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