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| Rural sights coming into Croatia |
We
had a great time in Hungary, and were now looking forward to seeing Croatia.
But,
at the Donji Miholjac border post, we experienced our first full-on customs
inspection. The Croatian officials even checked inside our shower and wardrobe
to make sure no-one was hiding in there!
Moving
on, we travelled through tiny villages. There were many horses and carts on the
road that had to be passed with great care, women in scarfs and shawls, wearing
socks and sandals, and men wearing leggings and braces on their pants, all
carrying pitchforks or tending their local plots of land.
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| Zagreb street |
Eventually,
we reached the outskirts of Zagreb, the capital and largest city of Croatia (population around 800 k).
But
trying to find Autocamp Plitivice, our campsite, was not fun. After traveling
the small back streets of suburban Zagreb for about 40 minutes, going 20 kms
out of our way on the motorway, then another 17 kms in small streets, we
finally found it. Once there, it proved to be well located as we were close to
transport to get into the city.
We
met a French couple at the camp who had done exactly the same thing as us, so
we were somewhat mollified.
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| Zagreb city wall view |
The
next day, we headed into Zagreb, for a day of sightseeing. We used the local bus
and tram to get into the city, then walked everywhere else. We had great fun.
Zagreb
is an old city, with its history rooted in Roman times. We found the old town and enjoyed the view from its old
city walls. You could see the wonderful spires of the cathedral and St Mark’s
Church, as well as many red tiled roofs.
Then we walked through the pedestrian area of Tkalčićeva Street, and beyond. We enjoyed our first Croatian meal, and saw the changing of the Royal Guard. Leigh’s old marching nose and feet were twitching madly. All up, we had a lovely time.
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| Enjoying the local delicacies |
While
there, we found the market, and picked up some local specialties, like burek
pastries, cevapici (meatballs), Pag cheese, and local liqueur to take back to
the campsite for dinner.
That
night, we enjoyed some of these spoils, along with other food from our various
stops and market trips. Delicious.
Moving
on from Zagreb, a total highlight for us was stopping at Slunj (recommended by
the receptionist at the Zagreb campsite).
Slunj
is a very small village (around 1500 people) surrounded by lakes and
waterfalls. The lower part of the town is built over the top of these lakes and
waterfalls, which makes it look like the water is flowing through the houses.
It is the most delightful place.
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| The waterfalls of Slunj |
It
was absolutely pouring with rain when we stopped, but it did not dampen the
beauty of it.
Our
spirits were further lifted by laughing about the five caravans that were
driven down the narrow entrance road to Slunj, and not able to get out without
uncoupling the vans to turn them about by hand!
We
moved on the same day, heading for Plitvice, less than 30 minutes from Slunj.
Plitvice
is famous for its national park which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Within
the national park there are 16 lakes, each sitting at a different level and linked by
a series of cascading waterfalls.
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| Some of the waterfalls of Plitvice |
The
lakes vary in colour, ranging from bright blue to green or grey. Apparently,
the colours are influenced by the quantity of minerals or organisms in the lake
as the sunlight strikes it. They are a natural phenomenon and extraordinarily
beautiful. We loved this part of Croatia.
After
checking out these lovely lakes, we drove to nearby Autocamp Korana for a few
nights.
When
we arrived, Leigh spotted a van with a big New Zealand scarf across its
dashboard.
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| Lovely forest walk beside Plitvice waterfalls |
It turned out to be Ross and Yvonne from
Puketapu, in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand. We soon got together and had a great time
with them, hanging out, and eating and drinking lots of wine.
It
was really good to hear a Kiwi accent and share travelling experiences. They
were heading North in the opposite direction to us so we wished them happy
travelling, and were sad to see them go the next morning.
After
they left, we went back to the lakes for a closer look. This involved two boat
rides across amazingly clear water, and a long and beautiful walk along the
river with its many stunning waterfalls. The colour of the trees was
spectacular, and with the deep blue of the water as a background, we counted
this as one of our best trips.
When
we stopped for lunch, we were joined at our picnic-table by the Dutch
caravaners who had difficulty with the steep road at Slunj yesterday. They
were great people to chat to and share experiences with. It is amazing the
number of people we keep seeing again and again at various campsites and
tourist stops as we all travel south.
Tomorrow,
we cross the mountains heading for Zadar, on Croatia’s coast.