After leaving Mostar, we finally departed Bosnia-Herzegovina. On our way to Dubrovnik, we passed by a Catholic church that many believers go on pilgrimage, and a Serb Orthodox monastery. In the afternoon we finally reached Dubrovnik, in the south of Croatia. Dubrovnik, historically, was a major city-state that rivaled Venice. Nowadays, it is home to an old town fortified by a wall, and beaches that are visited by millions of tourists every year.
Our hotel was not in the old part of the city, but at least we could enjoy part of the beach. Thus the first day in Dubrovnik I lay on the beach and relaxed. The view is absolutely incredible and the water was remarkably nice. It was also the birthday of a colleague on the trip, so a group of us went out to dinner in order to celebrate. I had a delicious sea bass; testament to the strong sea food industry in Dubrovnik and in the Adriatic coast.
The next day, I lounged on the beach for awhile in the morning. In the late afternoon I ventured off to the old part of the city with a friend. We walked around for awhile, getting lost in the small streets inside the fortified part of the city. The city reminds of a cross between Venice and Florence. Many churches, old columns and arches line the streets, along with cobble stone steps.
And unfortunately, scores of tourists flood the city. However, I thoroughly enjoyed my stay in Dubrovnik. I hope to go back at some point and enjoy the city and the beach for a longer period of time.
After Dubrovnik, we left to Split, north of Dubrovnik. Split is also on the Adriatic coast and is the second largest city of Croatia, after Zagreb. Split is known for being a hotbed for Croatian nationalism. Also, I could see that there is large base of support for Hadjuk Split, the local football team. Posters and murals of the team seem to be everywhere. Unfortunately, I did not enjoy Split as much as I would have liked to. I went to the beach and relaxed for a few hours. After, I ate a nice dinner with some colleagues, who I then proceeded to walk around the city with. There is a very nice promenade along the harbor filled with vendors of all sorts. I cannot say anything more of my time in Split, as I was there only for a very brief period of time.
After departing from Split, we headed towards Plitvitza National Park. First we stopped in Knin. Knin is historically important as it was the capital of Serbs in present-day Croatia during the Serb-Croat conflict of the 1990s. Now it is predominantly all Croats living in the town. We finally reached Plitvitza, where we rested and prepared to see the National Park the next day. Today, we saw the beautiful lakes and waterfalls in the Park. We walked along many different paths (getting very lost at one point), and exploring different parts of the Park. I saw incredible natural beauty, as the water of the lake was very serene and the waterfalls extremely impressive.
After strolling through the National Park, our group finally left to Zagreb, our final destination. The days ahead are our last of the trip. However, much work still awaits us and many sites remain to be seen.
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