It's a Sunday, 9/15/19

Opatija,  (O-pa-tee-a), at the head of Kvarner Gulf in the Adriatic Sea, is a popular tourist resort and health spa and has been since the mid-1800's.  Back in the day of the Austro-Hungarian period, Opatija was considered a seaside resort on the Austrian Riviera.  It has a Mediterranean climate, similar to coastal Southern California -- dry hot summers, with mild, wet winters -- ideal for snowbirds!  The city also sports some beautiful old relics and historic villas of those bygone eras.

Aside from those virtues, Opatija has the Lungomare -- the famous coastal promenade, stretching seven-and-a-half miles from Volosko to Lovran, with Opatija somewhere in the middle.  I know we didn't walk the entire distance, but we covered a good part of it, enjoying fresh sea air and the picturesque coastal landscape.  Early evening was the best time, away from the glaring, hot sun, and easing into long shadows and cool evening breezes.

Our OAT group stayed at Hotel Agava, behind this Grand dame, but they're affiliated.  Our hotel didn't have a pool, but this one did:  a super-duper indoor-outdoor pool available to both hotels, which Jimmy and I used this afternoon and really, really enjoyed.

Directly off the Lungomare boardwalk is the Church of St Jacob. Originally built in the 14th century as a Benedictine Abbey, this church is an architectural masterpiece.  It's also how Opatija got its name, as abbey in Croatian is opatija.  Inside, it appears simple, rather than ornate, and therein lies its beauty.

Above is an enlargement of the church's folksy interior dome,

and below is the clock tower.

Per our normal MO, the four of us -- Bernice and Ibby, me and Jimmy -- walked and walked, both on the Lungomare and Opatija's main street.  We looked in shops and studied restaurant menus.  I liked this ancient-looking wisteria vine.

I could live here.

Along the Lungomare is Opatija's small harbor -- the starting point for excursion boats of traditional boatmen who (in the local dialect) were referred to as barkajoli. The barkajoli transported their passengers along the Riviera and even to nearby islands, at first by rowing and later by motorboat.  They became a symbol of Opatija's tourism.  The monument to the barkajol (above, right) is a small contribution to the memory of this tradition.  I messed with the photo, liked it, and kept it this way.

Boats of all sizes and colors and descriptions peppered the harbors.  On the Lungomare, we discovered "hidden" coves, pebble beaches with sunbathers (one lady sans top), children playing, and lovely landscaping.

The water is a clear aqua-blue, and the seacoast is rocky and very scenic.  Nope, we didn't go in the water, but I guess we should have!

Boats, gulls, and a swimmer!

This was a day we four chose to hang around town and not join the group on an optional Hill Towns of Istria tour.  On our own we walked and shopped for T-shirts for the guys, ate a fish lunch at the southern end of town, and walked some more.  Opatija is a charming town, a place where you could easily spend a month or six in the winter.  Tomorrow morning we will enjoy breakfast on the hotel patio overlooking the main street.  Then, we're off again, this time on an unbelievable tour!

Plitvice Lakes, Saturday, 9/14/19

We packed it up last night and pulled out of dynamic Zagreb early this morning ... and were on the road around 8am, traveling overland (that means:  By bus) to Plitvice Lakes National Park.  It wasn't a long drive -- 64 miles -- and we'd arrive approx 9:30.  Everyone was eager to see this park, we'd heard so much about it.

The park was already streaming with groups of tourists.  We'd be walking on narrow, clumsy boardwalks, with people strung out in a long line, so Mario "deputized" Jimmy (he's wearing an OAT DEPUTY tag).  Mario would lead the front and Jimmy would bring up the rear, so no one would get left behind!  Goodness, so many people crowding the walkways!

This map may not help you much, except to give you the general scheme of the lake system -- 16 named and several smaller unnamed lakes, cascading one into the next.  These lakes have been divided into Upper and Lower Lakes, and I can state right now that I wish we'd had two or three days (not hours) to explore this roughly 116 square mile park.  There's miles of hiking trails to range over.  The water is an exquisite turquoise.  

Profuse waterfalls and cascades are an extraordinary sight!

Without going into bunches of detail (and the area involves lots of detail) the lakes are part of the Dinarides karst region, one of the most impressive karst landscapes in the world.  (Jimmy and I used to live in Florida, where karst/limestone is prevalent.)  The formation of these lakes was made possible with the building of the tufa (or travertine) barriers, and the lake system is believed to have been formed 12,000 to 15,000 years ago.  Enough technical info.  Basically, the entire lake complex is outstandingly beautiful.

Water cascades (or escapes) over the tufa (travertine) natural dams, throughout the greenery between the lakes.  Such an amazing sight ... and sound!

An elevated boardwalk allowed us to walk from one side of a lake to the other, and we could watch the clear, clear water splashing from lake to lake below our feet.  

Hidden in the flowers and leaves is a good-sized, noisy cascade.

I'm standing in front of the highest waterfall in the park, altho you see only a fraction. The Large (Great) Waterfall (Veliki Slap in Croatian) is 256' high situated at the end of Lower Lakes. Considered the most beautiful waterfall, it's also the highest in the whole of Croatia. What is unique about this waterfall (in comparison with the others in the Park) is that, while the other Plitvice waterfalls are formed by the spilling of waters from lake to lake, Veliki Slap was actually formed by the Plitvica Potok River.  Falling water is tumbling from the cliffs all around me.

Plitvice is alive with flora and fauna.  Above left is a Gray (Mountain) Wagtail, and next to it is Brown Trout easily seen in water as clear as what flows from our kitchen tap, a lady Mallard swims with fishies, and a Cyclamen (one of many) I saw growing on the hillside.  I know there's much more to see.

You can see people on a boardwalk on the opposite side of the lake.

Just beautiful.

I wish you could've heard it, too. 

Milanovac Waterfalls and Cascades.

Click on any photo to enlarge,

and use your back arrow to return to this post.

We hitched a ride on a boat like the one above to a dock that was closer to where our bus had to park  (think: North 40), and then we got our aerobic exercise hiking uphill to get to that bus!  My gosh, I could liken this park to any national park in the US -- it's a natural wonder.  I'm glad we were able to visit, and I'd recommend this to anyone.  Be nice to have a couple of uncrowded days ... but I will always carry magical memories of Plitvice Lakes.

Lunch was nothing special at a local restaurant that catered to large groups and there were at least three BIG groups.  After that, we were back on the bus, heading for the coast.

Yay, the coast!  The seaside town of Opatija, to be exact, in the Kvarner Gulf ... and not that far from Slovenia or Italy!

Almost off the formidable, yet impressive two-lane highway winding down from the hills and back to the water!  Oh boy!

On the way to Opatija:  Looking at the longer, graceful span of the Krk bridge in the distance, connecting mainland Croatia to the Island of Krk.  Built of reinforced concrete, it's among the longest arches of any construction.

And this is the view from our hotel window!  We're on the fourth floor of the Hotel Agava, with a window that really does open to the sea.  While leaning on the windowsill shortly after checking in, Jimmy and I watched a wedding procession parade down the street with accordions serenading the couple.  How cool is that?  The air is redolent of the sea.  We're going to like it here.

Before dinner, Mario took the group for a walk-about of Opatija to see what the town has to offer.  It was a lovely evening for a stroll.

The Maiden with the Seagull has a history behind it, as you may guess.  Read it here, if you're interested.  Our stroll led us to our restaurant for dinner -- the Bistro Yacht Club, where we had a waterside table with a view ... and a most excellent fish dinner.  Afterward, we walked the short distance to our hotel.  

And watched the full moon rise over the Kvarner Gulf.

Nice, very nice.

WHAT A DAY!!

Off the beaten path, Friday, 9/13/19

Into each overseas trip we take, a day off from the "maddening crowd" seems to be required for Jimmy and me.  Today was our day to ourselves.  Jimmy was feeling a bit less than up-to-par, and an all-day bus trip with the group to the north didn't sound like his cuppa tea, either.  So, we told our guide to count us out, we'd go off on our own.  He thanked us and hoped we'd have a good time, regardless.  Mario is one of the good guys.

It's a mere hop/skip/jump from our hotel to the Lenuci Horseshoe -- the U-shaped system of city squares with parks in Zagreb's Lower Town.  It's a marvelous chain of greenspace parks, with statues and fountains and benches, walking paths, and ornate buildings like the Art Pavilion, below, as seen from King Tomislav Square.  We didn't make it inside the Art Pavilion, but someday I think it would be a treat to spend a few hours looking at the treasures it holds. 

Out and About on a beautiful morning -- at King Tomislav Square Fountain.

Zagreb has a plethora of statues, including big, stately ones like this bronze statue of King Tomislav (the first Croatian king) in front of the Railway Station.  Jimmy is dwarfed by the king!

Behind the king's statue is Zagreb's Main Station, the largest in Croatia and the main hub of the Croatian Railways network.  This building was constructed in 1892 ... and they don't make 'em like this any more!  We walked through it and the interior is as old-worldly as you might imagine, and very welcoming.  At the exit platforms where you would catch a train, we tried to count the tracks, but got to a certain point and gave up.  Lots.

On the way from the Main Station to the gardens,

Jimmy spotted this cute li'l truck.

This is the huge Croatian National Railways building, responsible for organizing and regulating train traffic ... it has to be at least a block long.  The architecture is classic 1903.  I'd love to see the inside.

This was our morning's destination -- Zagreb's famous botanical garden.

No admission to enjoy the 11+ acres of beauty.

Not positive what the plant is; regardless,

it's the biggest one of these I've seen!

Woohoo! What a trumpet flower!

We'd hope to enter the Exhibition Pavilion, but the door was locked.

So, we sat for a few minutes, instead.

Several small pools in the park contain water lilies, and other marsh plants, and at least one pond harbors lotus which had the big brown seed pods that my sister and I used to collect for our nut wreathes.  We saw a number of tiny frogs, plus the big guy, above.

And plenty of turtles below the bridge.

You see the giant lotus leaves and seed pods around the fountain, upper right.

We walked and walked,

so taking a seat in a gazebo is kind on the feet.

Upper left -- the glasshouses were blocked off, no entry, perhaps for renovation.  Beyond that is the huge Croatian State Archives Building (with owls as guardians on each corner).  Who thinks of doing this kind of decoration?  Lower left is the marvelous Japanese Pagoda tree, it's limbs helter-skelter, sort of how my joints feel some mornings!

Walking through the gardens was so relaxing, peaceful even, as we made our way from garden to garden, viewing some of the over 10,000 plant species.

This eyeful is the Croatian National Theater, from 1895.  Many of the buildings in old Zagreb were influenced by the former Austro-Hungarian empire architecture.  Guards at the entrance (like college guys) wouldn't let us in, darn it.  I tried to imagine how many rooms this grand ol' dame might house.

At the theater entrance is this wall fountain called The Source of Life (Zdenac života), designed by Croatian artist and sculptor Ivan Meštrović in 1905.  Jimmy admired it, but I thought it was kind of weird.

Connected at the far end to the National Theater is the Opera House, obviously related by color if nothing else.  We stood and gawked for a while, amazed at the structure itself.

Here's the flip side of the coin -- the tapering, 95 foot needle sculpture in front of the Academy of Music.  We couldn't find out a thing about the adjacent orange sphere.  Art, I guess.  Look at the two buildings together -- old school vs modern, yin/yang, as dissimilar as can be.  The contrast makes the city more interesting!

On this laid-back day, we wandered from Lower Town, and up the steps (rather than the funicular) to Upper Town where we scarfed down a pizza for lunch, and strolled around some more, and then made our way back down to the Palace Hotel.  We napped and when we awoke, our OAT group had returned.  Evening meant a lively trip with Bernice and Ibby to the Burger Festival again across the avenue ... and probably a stop at the ice cream vendor!

While it sez "laid-back" day, we still manage to put miles on the shoes!  Every day we put in over five miles, and today was no exception.  Guess it must be good for us!

Tomorrow will be extra special.  Oh boy!