Plitvice Lakes and Zagreb - 28-29 September

After leaving Matt in Split I jumped on the bus to the Plitvice Lakes which are in the highlands of Croatia about half way to the capital Zagreb. After a 4 hour bus trip we made it to the lakes and I made the last second decision to get off the bus instead of going to my campsite first which was about 5km down the road. This turned out to be the best idea ever as I could store my luggage at the information centre and then there was a shuttle to the campsite at 5pm. This gave me about 3 hours in the lakes before the shuttle so I started by following the 2-3 hour track that takes in the big waterfall and most of the lower lakes. Basically at Plitvice there are around 10-15 lakes that are all on different levels and flow directly into the next lake by a number of waterfalls. Many of the walkways are also just boardwalks over the lakes that often go across the top of these waterfalls so the water is running directly under your feet. The water is also extremely clear and a crazy blue colour that I haven't seen before. All of this makes the lakes an awesome sight and something you have to see.

I started by walking to the main waterfall where I found a small side track (not an actual track) that took you up to the top and right around the edge of the waterfall. From here you could also get a good view of the first few lakes and even all the people below taking their photos. After heading back down and around the first few lakes and into a big vertical cave I realised that I had almost finished the 2-3 hour track and had more than an hour until the shuttle so I decided to try and do the 3-4 hour one. The only difference with this one was that you took a boat across the largest lake (that separates the upper and lower lakes) and then there was a shuttle that took you back to the main gate. I asked the guy how long it should take me and he said 20 mins for the boat which was about to leave and then 10 mins for the shuttle which goes every 10-15 mins. Armed with that info I jumped on the ferry and headed across the lake only to discover that it took me to the wrong side and that I had to wait another 10 mins for the ferry to cross to the correct side even though it was less than 100m away. Once finally across I headed up to the shuttle only to see the shuttle leave just before I got there. The woman also told me that it only goes every 25 mins meaning that I wouldn't make my shuttle to the campsite. I looked at the map and saw that it was only just over 2km so I decided to just run down the road to get back. I ended up getting back perfectly in time to grab my bags and jump on the shuttle.

That night my accommodation was a small wooden cabin with just a bed and a table but after a big day it was all I needed. The next morning I got the 9am shuttle to the lakes from the campsite and got going. I was aiming to catch the 2.45 bus to Zagreb so I had about 5 hours to see what I had missed the previous day. I walked all the way around the lower lakes to get to the upper lakes where I spent the next few hours exploring them. In the afternoon I still had a bit of time so I decided to walk back the long way around the other side of the lakes. It was really nice and peaceful there as I got away from the tourists and had some time to myself which was nice. I ended up getting back with just enough time for lunch before the bus which was perfect. While the weather on my two days at the lakes was not the best as it was overcast and drizzly they were still amazing and it was nice to be out in nature again.

That afternoon I arrived in Zagreb with quite low expectations but just wanting to try see a bit of the city before I headed to lake bled the next day. However the city was much nicer than I had thought. I checked into my hostel just as a free walking tour was leaving so I just threw my stuff into the room and headed out on that. It was a nice small group with just around 6 of us and the guide which was cool. We headed first around the upper city and learnt about the history of the city, before heading to the lower part. On this tour we saw the worlds shortest public funicular, the canon that goes off every day at noon, the museum of broken relationships where people can send in objects of their old lovers with the story behind it, the parliament buildings, the stone gate and its painting of Mary that survived the fire, the central marketplace with the komica (grandmothers), the cathedral, the main square, the scale model sculpture of the solar system that is spread around the city and finally ending at the edge of the big horseshoe shaped park plus much more. When we finished the tour everyone was quite hungry so we all decided to go to the restaurant suggested by our guide to get a typical meal, the strukl. This is basically a baked dish of salty cheese and it was delicious, especially washed down with some plum rakija (local spirit). We then all went on a bit of a pub crawl where we tried out a number of local beers before heading home in the early hours of the morning. The next morning I was up extremely early to catch the train to Slovenia (that once again was actually a bus across the border and then a train). So all in all I had just over 12 hours in Zagreb but I feel like I spent it quite well and got a bit of a feel for the city. It would have been nice to stay another day and go and have a closer look at some of the museums and explore a bit more but that would have to wait for another trip as it was time to go to Lake Bled!