02.05.08 Zadar, Croatia

Coast to Coast

Croatia, incredible!I had no idea what to expect although it seemed that everyone I spoke to held Croatia up on some sort of a pedestal as this untouched sailors paradise.Well I am a sailor and it is a little different sort of paradise that took a little different frame of made to fully take in, although taking it in I am definitely doing.

But first, Venice another sort of paradise; a paradise for anyone that loves the water and boats for sure.So as you can imagine the moment I saw the first canal and bridge I was in heaven and it only took another couple of hours to have a huge smile beaming from ear to ear.It seemed that every corner I turned I found a new alley way, a new bridge and a new little nook in Venice.

Parking in Venice is a little less thrilling though, but in usual fashion I was able to commandeer one of the last free motorcycle parking spots and wouldn't you believe that it was the closest parking spot to where I needed to go.Mind you I still had to lug my panniers and backpack to the hostel that was on one of the neighboring islands.This of course was before I realized the amazing public transportation system Venice has set up.Just picture your usual subway system with an inbound and outbound stop, the name of the stop in big letters and then add boats.It is truly amazing to see and experience and each time I walked to the stop I was amazed at the captains' ability to maneuver the big single screw "subway car".Now, this is my kind of public transportation.I bought a 24hr go anywhere ticket and ended up just riding the boat around the main canals to get a feel for the city by water than headed off by foot.

I explored every inch of the central islands from one end to the other.What was pretty interesting about my timing was that Carnevale was going on in Venice.It is a month long festival where everyone dresses up in elaborate costumes and parties.Each night in different parts of the city a stage filled with bands or other kinds of performances fills the night air with all kinds of sighs and sounds.So exploring on foot was not only interesting for the new city sights, but also the spectacle of everyone all dressed up and performing on the street.The town was definitely alive, which was nice as most of the towns thus far have been winterized!

I managed to find the quiet part of Venice where everyone lives down by a large park at the eastern end of the main islands.It was pretty interesting walking through the streets.I was confused at first and then it hit me.No beeping horns, whizzing scooters and large automobiles anywhere.The alleys, some the size of small roads, were all deserted with maybe the occasional pedestrian heading home for the afternoon.The streets all were lined with neat houses and a look above as you walked revealed the laundry of the day. Connected to this end of the island was the more locals side of Venice.Food and beverage much cheaper and not a word of another language could be heard, which was very different from the central part of Venice where you could almost hear no Italian.

Now, I know many people have said they despise Venice.And I can imagine in the summer months it would be hell with even more tourists, but step away from those areas and you find a water paradise.Even in those areas it is nice to get caught up in the excitement of everyone seeing something new.Of course my experience was probably a little different since Carnevale was going on, but I don't think that much.I think Venice is a must see place on anyone's European itinerary.There is just no other place like it that and skip Pisa because there are enough leaning towers here to captivate anyone's interest.

There is so much still yet to discover in Venice as the maze of islands stretches far beyond the normal downtown Venice.I could spend weeks here and still enjoy it which if you have followed this blog at all you can see I get pretty restless and move on pretty quickly.I decided to leave the next day and save Venice for another trip on its own with someone to share all the new sights and spectacles with.I think a trip to the Alps skiing and then a week during Carnevale is in order for 2009!

So I left Venice in a fog, no literally I have never seen a thicker fog.The fog followed me all the way to the Slovenian border where the fog turned to a misty rain.Slovenia only has a very small stretch of coast line between Italy and Croatia, and I think it took all of an hour to pass through.I did not feel much difference from Slovenia and Italy.Slovenia is part of the EU and very much trying to live up to the standards.There was nothing really distinctive except the new flag I got to put on my pannier and the crazy Slavic language which I experienced for the first time.The only other thing I can say about Slovenia is the road signs are awful.I managed to find my way to Croatia after several U turns where as if by the will of the Gods the rain ceased and the sun came out.It was as if I was being shown this beautiful country with a spotlight.

The road into Croatia was incredible.The border crossing went off without a hitch.A quick here is my passport and description of my crazy adventure and I was waved through.As I started down the coast I was met with tall leaf filled trees and rolling hills with deep valleys.I just had a good feeling about Croatia.

I pulled into Pula, a major city during the Roman era as seen by the coliseum, forum and many roman arches that dotted the city.I was the only resident at the hostel located on a bay with sailboats at anchor.Much like my little paradise in Sicily!The rains started again and I decided after exploring Pula to spend the next day Sunday in bed rather than hit the wet road and not see the amazing view I was looking forward to seeing as I followed the coast road down to Zadar.

I am glad I did!I spent my entire Sunday in bed.No literally I only moved out of bed to hit the head and than right back to it.No showering, now shaving just sleep, read, sleep read, listen to music, and sleep.My dinner even consisted of an apple and banana I had been carrying around because I was too lazy to get out of bed and find food.What a great day.I need to make that at least a monthly habit of course on a rainy day.Sometimes I guess you just need to turn off your thoughts and I of course doing nothing but thinking as I trek down the open road needed it.

The next day brought a mixture of mist and sun.Of course the mist being far worse than rain!I had low expectations of the day as the weather was seemingly deteriorating.I started along the road in my map that was outlined in green which signifies a scenic route and miraculously the skies started to clear.I was initially disappointed with the scenery expecting a big coast line filled with tropical style trees and long curving sandy beaches.I have no idea why this was the image I portrayed of the islands and coast of Croatia, but it was.Boy was I wrong.The coast is a rocky, scrub desert that is just magnificent.It took me a while to change gears and realize the different sort of beauty that was laid out before me.The coastline is littered with thousands of islands some inhabited, but most deserted rock wastelands with an endless number of coves.This is why it is a sailors paradise and I have promised myself to return, but next time on a sailboat.

I made my way on this incredible road to Zadar which reminds me a lot of Charleston; a city on a peninsula surrounded by Marinas with the center of the peninsula being the major commercial district. It is raining today so time to get my taxes in order, but I am looking forward to a clearing afternoon and a stroll around the marinas.