We took the scenic route from Split, Croatia to Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina.  It was a scenic drive along the  Croatia coast which they refer to as the Dalmatia Coast.  (Dalmatian dogs actually get their name from Dalmatia.)  The drive was pretty easy considering you go up and down the hillsides.  Construction on the highway was the only thing that we would have to slow down for.  They stick little stop lights on the highway instead of flaggers.  The road was pretty much ours which made it a really nice drive.  I pulled over to a little parking spot to take a couple of photos.  You can see the white and black mountains, the blue green water and ruins of what once was.

Here is a video of Split.

We decided to leave Trogir a little early and stop in Split for an hour.  It was a little rough leaving our parking spot in Trogir and I even had a man who lived in the house next to our spot try to get the car out.  I think I would have had a hard time getting the car out if it was automatic.

Split is on the Adriatic and is the second largest city in Croatia.  Split is centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian.  The palace was constructed around AD 305.  This is what we wanted to see and I was determined I would find a parking spot.  We basically drove all the way into the center just to find out the parking lot was full. Split is also the hub for ferry boats to all the islands and Italy.  I turned around and then realized I was in the ferry line for Italy.  Yikes, I don’t have time to take a boat to Italy when I should be heading to Bosnia & Herzegovina later in the day.  I got turned around and found some parking a little further out.  Of course I’m pretty sure I’m the only fool who paid money to park since everyone else never put money into the machine.

Split was good for a short visit but I’m not sure I could handle the crowds all day.  The palace was worth the visit and we were treated to a nice choir which I will post later.

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Here is a short video of the sights of Trogir.

Here is a short video clip of Plitvice National Park.

I hope someday I wake up and find this type of delivery on my front door.  I would take fresh bread on my doorstep any day.

I guess they are short on space for soccer fields.  They built the fields around the castle next to the Adriatic Sea.  It was early in the morning and there was a team practicing on a little field next to the field.  I guess they practice in tight spaces so they learn to keep the ball in control and not kick it into the sea all the time.

The drive from Plitvice to Trogir (along the Adriatic Sea) was about 3 hours.  Trogir is an island that is on the UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Driving instructions weren’t the greatest to the room we were renting.  The streets were narrow, full of cars and people and then you have the Vespas cruising by you on either side.  It took us about 3 times driving around trying to find the sign that sounded like would be a big sign we couldn’t miss.  In fact, it was a little brown sign, and the turn wasn’t really onto a street but a little ally way.  Driving in Trogir really helped my confidence with the stick, but I have determined that I think it is way easier to backup than it is to go forward.  The room we rented also said parking is no problem that they have a spot.  They didn’t mention that it was a very small street and hard to get in and out of.  I was just hoping nobody would come down the street at the same time we go up. There isn’t room for a person to walk by the car so I’m not sure what you would do if a car came.

We knocked on the door and waited.  Knock again and still nothing.  Check in was to start at 2 and we were there around 2:30.  Hmm we didn’t have a phone to call so we weren’t sure what to do.  Really doesn’t help when you have to go to the bathroom.  We tried to see if the WiFi was unprotected so we could email, but no luck.  We had no way to contact the owner.  So we left a note on the car and headed into town with as much of our valuable belongings as possible because we need to find someone with a phone.  We walk to the tourist office which was closed (Sunday).  We then walk over a bridge and into old town.  We find another tourist office and the lady kindly called the owner for us.  The owner lady drove and picked us up.  (Turns out she was busy cleaning a room in the back of the house.)

Trogir has a long history but you can tell by the architecture that Venice had some influence.  The white cobblestone walk ways are so clean that it is easy to slip.  It almost seems like you are walking on marble.

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Here is a video of different scenes of Zagreb.  There is plenty of music on the streets, the tram system seems efficient and the market is full of action.

The first day at the park was one to remember but the second day was still full of amazing water features.  We had a wonderful dinner the night before to give us the energy to get back up in the morning and hike around the other part of the park that we couldn’t see the first day.  We stayed at a little pension that was amazing.  The dinner was a 3 course home cooked delicious meal.  The mother made the food and you had your choice of a meat version or fish.  You can guess, I picked the meat version and it was amazing.  The first course was chicken noodle soup which included pasta that she made.  The main course was salad, vegetables from the grill, rice and meat.  The meat was 2 little sausages called ćevapčic.  I know the name of these sausages because I asked the daughter if she could write it out for me.  They were so good that I wanted to make sure I found them again.  She told me that they were sausage from Bosnia & Herzegovina.  Then there was another sausage but more spicy.  There was an amazing chicken skewer and a pork chop.  All the food was prepared from the grill.  For dessert there was an apple strudel.  Oh and I tried the plum brandy as it is suggested to have before you start your meal.

I was still pretty stuffed the next morning but then she made breakfast.  I was ready for a nice walk in the park after all the food I enjoyed.  My day at the park almost got off to a bad start as we were going to get off the boat to start our walk when a man in front of me whipped his backpack around and knocked my lens cap off.  It rolled to the edge of the boat and the man’s wife was able to catch it just in time.  Phew…

We walked around the lakes at a pretty good pace because we had to be back to our pension to check out by 11.  I have never seen so many lakes that create such beautiful waterfalls.  I always think that I will get tired of seeing another waterfall but when I come around the corner, there is just another different waterfall awaiting.

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