Plitvice Lakes NP, A Day in Paradise!

A map of the area to give an idea of the scope.

The first viewing of the 'Big Falls' on the lower lakes.

A day of stunning views.

The ferry across Jezera, the largest of the lakes.

A panoramic shot from the view point.

Amanda, our guide and Angie from Calgary.

Not just lakes and waterfalls, but forests and the beginning of fall colours.

One of many happy hikers.

 Sunday, September 29th.

We woke up this morning to blue sky! Not that it’s been awful, just that today of all days, we all want sun… we’re off to Plitvice Lakes, one of the most beautiful, natural places in Europe. 

We departed Zagreb at 8:30 and made for Plitvice, where 16 lakes, each at a different level, join each other in a series of cascading waterfalls. ‘Surrounded by dense woods, this is a region of unique beauty. The travertine terraces have been continuously reforming themselves over 10,000 years as calcium carbonate dissolves and settles, forming barriers and cascades. The lakes are also home to a huge variety of flora and fauna including 120 species of birds and a variety of mammals and fish species. The park opened to the public in 1949 and thirty years later the entire area was protected as one of UNESCO's Natural World Heritage Sites’.

We drove along a two lane highway through beautiful forests covering low mountains until we arrived and met our local guide at 11. She gave us the lay of Plitvice Lakes National Park and gave us some options on where to go and what to see. Some people picked the easier half day guided tour, but most of us chose that plus 5 hours of free time for hiking and exploring this beautiful park. The guided part was on the lower lakes, then we took a 15 minute ferry boat across the largest lake to reach the other side where we caught the shuttle bus to the top of the series of lakes and made our way back down through the woods and around the lakes and myriad of waterfalls. At one point I spotted a lookout up on a ridge over the path and shortly afterwards I saw a sign indicating it went up to the lookout. Amanda had not told us about it and I wasn’t really sure if we had enough time or frankly how long it would take, but I couldn’t resist an overlook of the area. I coaxed Shayna to come and Angie joined us. It was a fairly steep climb for about 15 minutes to the lookout and then another 15 down the other side to complete the loop. We all agreed the view was worth the effort.

Then we walked back down for a couple of hours enjoying all the views that are in the photos above and plenty more. We met Amanda towards the end and walked with her to the exit and a hotel where we had a drink and waited for everyone to arrive. We were all impressed with not just the natural beauty but the way that the park has been designed and maintained. The water is crystal clear and the enirnoment and flora and fauna well protected.

Then we boarded the bus and headed to our hotel for the night. The drive up the mountain was amazing. It was a narrow road with big drop offs and which was not really designed for our large coach. But our driver did an amazing job getting us up there and passing the cars coming the other way, which required slow maneuvering and some backing up of the cars as we tried to get past. Finally we arrived at an amazing place. We are staying at a rustic little resort that almost resembles a camp. Our room is in a two story cabin with wood walls, wood ceiling and a bathroom equipped with modern fixtures including a glass shower and raised sink. It has a restaurant and a petting zoo area and a playground for kids. It was dark when we got here so I didn’t see much, I’ll check it out more tomorrow. We had a good group dinner and a few good laughs before bed.

Zagreb Walking Tour

Governor Jelacic Square, with his statue.

Part of the market.

The guard gate of the old Grad or castle.

The church of St Marks...

and its beautiful roof.

A non tourist.

Another nice facade.

We ended our tour here.

Saturday, September 28th.

It rained hard throughout the night and the temperature went from 27 yesterday to 17 this morning. When we met Amanda in the lobby after breakfast she told us that since we had this afternoon as free time and it was raining so hard and the afternoon looked better weather wise, that she was flipping the itinerary. So Shayna and I took advantage to wash a few things in the sink and walk to a local laundromat to dry them.

Zagreb's cityscape is an interesting mixture of classic Austro-Hungarian architecture and gritty socialist structures. The city has an eclectic mix of Italian, Turkish, and Austro-Hungarian influences, reflected even in its coffee culture. Zagreb is located on the intersection of several important routes between the Adriatic coast and Central Europe. It offers visitors the Baroque feel of the Upper Town, picturesque open-air markets, and lots of shopping. Perched on two small hills encircled by Renaissance-era walls, the city’s oldest district is home to many of the city’s main attractions. This picturesque medieval part of the Croatian capital boasts its most impressive architecture and great views over the rest of the city.

The first stop on the city tour today was at Governor Jelacic Square, undoubtedly the very heart of the capital. Located in Zagreb's center, the square is dominated by the statue of Josip Jelacic who became the governor of the triple Kingdom of Dalmatia, Croatia, and Slavonia on the 23rd of March, 1848. We walked around the city with our excellent local guide, Ivan, who explained what we were seeing, some of the history and his take on where the country finds itself now. We walked back down to Kaptol, St Catherine's Cathedral, the Church of St Mark, St. Stephen's Church, and Lotrscak Tower. Our last stop on our tour was at the popular Museum of Broken Relationships, where you can read some of the featured sad, funny, and highly personal stories of heartbreaks from over the world, each of which has an object attached that relates to the story.

We had an hour back at the hotel before meeting up in the lobby for our walk to tonight’s dinner restaurant. Another good meal and lots of conversation as we continue to bond together as a group. Back to sleep and really excited about tomorrow’s trip to Plitvice Lakes.

Opatija to the Capital, Zagreb

 Lorraine and Terry with us

Some of the Austrian/ Hungarian architecture.

Interesting mix: Soviet on the left, Austrian on the right and very modern in the middle.

Two examples of buildings damaged by...

the earthquake of March 22, 2020.

Friday, September 27th.

We had time after breakfast to go for a walk down to the seashore and view some of the beautiful Austrian architecture of the old hotels and chateaux along the shore. We met up with Terry and Lorraine and enjoyed watching the waves crash over the barrier walls. Shortly after walking back to our hotel we boarded our coach and traveled inland for 2 and a half hours from Opatija to the capital of Croatia, Zagreb.We were on the same highway as yesterday which used numerous bridges and tunnels to cut through the mountains and valleys along the coast. It must have cost a fortune to build it.

We arrived at our new hotel, which is part of the Best Western chain housed in an historic Austrian building in the centre of town, checked in, dumped our bags and then immediately headed out for lunch (instead of dinner tonight) as a group. We ate in a restaurant in a mall. The food was a feast and included two types of salads, breaded fried cheese balls, bbq’d chicken wings, salmon, pork stuffed with cheese and little local sausages called ‘cevapcici’. Then we walked back to the hotel and we had the afternoon to ourselves. Some people went for walks or shopping, some to do laundry and Shayna wanted to visit a historic cemetery that has Christians, Jews and Muslims all buried in it. Angie, Angela, and Caroline decided to join us. Amanda walked us to the bus station to catch a local bus to it. In 2000 the region experienced an earthquake which damaged 2,000 buildings in Zagreb, many of which are still closed off for repairs. We saw evidence of this walking to the bus station.

When we got on the bus and tried to pay, the driver just smiled and waved us to our seats without paying… not really sure why, maybe he saw us counting our money, couldn’t be bothered and just waved us through; but it was nice. The cemetery was huge and we walked past hundreds of graves covered with large marble tops but didn’t see any Jewish ones. However, it was a lovely sunny warm day for a walk outside. When we finally got to the main gate we decided to take the bus back. Surprisingly it was the same driver and he did the same thing… not sure what the locals thought when we didn’t have to pay.

When we got back, Shayna and I decided to beg off going to dinner or drinks and just relax, catch up on our travel notes and read. 

Piran, Slovenia to - Porec, Pula and Opatija Croatia

Just a pretty corner....

The inner courtyard of the Euphrasian Basilica.

The Byzantine altar of the Basilica...

and the detailed mosaics above with Mary centrally placed....

in both scenes, which was quite revolutionary.

The Amphitheatre in Pula.

One of several Roman arches. 

Wall art.

The church and tower built with blocks from the Amphitheatre. 

The Lady of the Sea and the skyline of Opatija.

 Thursday, September 26th.

We departed Piran in the morning and continued by road across the border into Croatia where our first stop was Porec, a pretty seaside town dating back to the Roman period. We met our local guide and had a very informative walk through the ancient narrow lanes, to see the ruins of the Roman Temple of Augustus, and visit the Euphrasian Basilica. This church was built, and rebuilt several times over the ages and houses some of the finest Byzantine mosaics in the world. The mosaics are made from coloured pieces of stone and glass. The main mosaic above the altar created in the Byzantine era has two scenes depicting Mary, Jesus’s mother centrally positioned between the 12 disciples and then between the most important people of the area. Our guide said this was the first illustration of a woman being the most important figure, hence the first step in woman’s lib. The Basilica is listed as a protected UNESCO World Heritage site. 

We also stopped in Pula, called Pola by the first Illyrian settlers and Polensium by the Romans. We visited several Roman ruins but the most impressive site in town by far was the huge amphitheatre, located near the harbour. It rivals the Colosseum in Rome and was built in the same era. I learned that the Romans had half circle theatres for acting entertainment, but needed a complete circle theatre for gladiatorial fights and executions of prisoners and Christains, and amphitheatre means two theatres. All of the inside seating was stolen over the centuries to build other structures including the town’s main basilica. Built entirely of local limestone, the amphitheatre was designed to host gladiatorial contests and could accommodate up to 22,000 spectators, although only about 6000 people lived here at the time, which means that ‘tourists’ came to see the spectacles. We learned that the gladiatorial contests were not fights to the death. It cost too much and took too long to train them to have them die, so there was fake blood in their armour and the battles were fixed much like the WWF. 

Then we loaded up again and took a modern four lane highway that contained numerous bridges and tunnels (including one 5 kms long!) to our next stop in Opatija, the oldest established and still one of the most popular Croatian resorts. A Rijeka businessman built the first villa here in 1844, and after a visit by the trend-setting wife of the Austrian Emperor, the town was promoted as a handy health resort for aristocratic Austrians. We had an excellent group meal again in a local restaurant and then Shayna and I walked down to the water’s edge with David from Toronto and Angie, an English woman who now lives in Calgary. Then back for the night.

Postojna Caves and Predjama Cave Castle

The train ride in is 12kms.

The formations are incredible.

I found the cave fairy!

The amphibious inhabitant... the baby dragon!

The cave castle Predjama.

The age of knights.

The main living quarters.

The stairs out of the back of the castle up into the caves.

The amazing view from the castle over the valley.

The only seaside town in Slovenia...Piran.

The clock by day...

Octopus for dinner.

The clock tower and main square by night.

 Wednesday, September 25th.

Today was an excellent day. After our buffet breakfast with a group of Slovenian soldiers who were staying at the same hotel, we drove along the banks of the Soca River. We made our way out of Alpine territory to the region and plateau of Primorska. The Soca is a valley of wonderful colours, full of waterfalls, pools, ravines and canyons, with its own distinct flora and fauna. The blue-green Soca River flows over white gravel and through a fairy-tale landscape with a stunning vista at every turn.

We drove for two hours to the Postojna Caves where we had a guided visit. This region was once submerged by a deep sea; today the landscape is characterized by subterranean rivers which have carved out magnificent caves. The cave is 27 km (17 miles) long and over 2 million years old, and consists of a series of caverns, halls and passages with enormous stalactites and stalagmites. The caves also have their own unique ecosystem, flora and fauna; the most famous creature endemic to the caves is the so called Proteus Anguinus, or "human fish", a small pink, blind type of salamander equipped with both gills and rudimentary lungs. I’ve been to a number of different caves around the world but this was a unique experience. We boarded a train that took us for a 10 minute ride for about 12 kms into the cave. From there we disembarked and walked on a paved path through several different areas of the caves all the while passing a myriad of stalactites and stalagmites either growing down from the ceiling or rising up from the floor of the cave. There are also pillars where the drippings from the stalactites eventually meet and attach to the stalagmites. We walked for about 45 minutes past thousands of these amazing formations before arriving at the large aquarium with the cave's famous inhabitant, the blind proteus or olm, which is referred in local lore as baby dragons. They are about a foot long and are the largest cave animal in the world. We were not allowed to take photos as the flash disturbs them and blinds other people around the tank, so I took a photo of a postcard in the souvenir shop.

We had lunch at a cafe there and then drove for about 20 minutes to Predjama Castle, located in the middle of a 123m (403 ft) high, overhanging, limestone cliff, in the entrance of a cave. The castle was built in front of a cave system and attached to the rock formation. It was defended by a drawbridge and the usual castle embattlements, but if the castle was breached the occupants could retreat into the caves behind and pull up another drawbridge to lock them in; but there was a secret exit where they could still get out and plenty of water inside from the cave itself.  It's been described as a "masterpiece of medieval ingenuity, courage, cunning and defiance". Its white walls, roofs, turrets and chimneys jutting from the mountainside, built onto solid rock, make it the most unique and picturesque fortress you will ever come across in Europe.

We continue to Piran, on the Istria peninsula, beautifully located on the Adriatic. The town resembles a large open-air museum, with medieval architecture and a rich cultural heritage. Narrow streets and compact houses give the town its special charm. The area is Slovenia’s only access to the Adriatic Sea and although it is Slovenian, most people here speak either Italian or Croatian. We checked into a lovely little hotel and then went for dinner on the harbour and enjoyed a wonderful seafood meal. I had grilled octopus and Shayna had a large bowl of mussels, clams, langustine, scallops and scampi. After dinner a group of us walked around the small town square with Amanda and found an outdoor bar where we had a nightcap.