Copacabana!

The copacabana beach lacked the glamour of the NYC night club it was named after but it seemed to be a good spot to bed down for the night. Chels and I formed some grooves in the pebbles and ate some bread while we watched the sunset. The best part of the night came soon after the sun had fallen and half our bottle of wine had been drank. In the middle of our  conversation, we both happen to catch a shooting star!

Getting ready for our night on the beach!

We slept about as good as you can on a public rocky beach, and had the sound of the waves to lull us back to sleep after any interruption during the night. The rest of the day was spent doing absolutely nothing! We lounged on the beach from sunrise to sunset, taking a coffee break about mid day to write some postcards and a walk to the market around dinner time. Unfortunately this market had no Vegemite, which we would later run completely out of.

Our set up :)

We changed locations on the beach for the second night because we figured if security saw us they might think we were making a habit of this and ask us to leave. Our new spot was probably the rockiest spot on the beach which made it tough to find a groove. I was afraid that if I wiggled around to much it might not turn out to good for my backside. By the time we woke up the next morning we were ready for a night in a hostel.

No more Vegemite!!! NOOOO!!!

Brad writing some postcards!

Dubrovnik is not an easy town to walk around, it is spread out long ways and we refuse to pay for public transport; so we spent the morning walking around trying to find accommodation with free internet. The youth hostel was a ripp off (becoming a trend), so we ended up hitting up this villa that our new friend Long Hii (who we met on the beach and helped fix his sandal) had told us about. When we arrived the owner told us that he had accidentally overbooked the room but he could place a mattress on the floor for one of us. Instead of being mad, we were pumped to be in a position to negotiate, two for one. After some rest and a much needed shower, we took a long walk to Dubrovnik’s Old City.

The old town!

The walk was well worth it. The old city is in great condition, even after being bombed only 10 years ago! Restaurants and shops line the stone streets along with a church here and there. We decided to grab a drink at this bar called Buzo, perfectly located on the water. Finishing up our tour of the old city with a seat on a bench on the port, where we ran into Long Hii. We grabbed a bite to eat on the walk back and the night ended shortly after.

Drinks on the side of the cliff!

View from breakfast in Korcula!

Chel’s and I headed out with our packs, and new friend Trina from  Vancouver who we met on the ferry. Quick note to those who live in America not familiar with kilometers, 48km is approximately 30 miles and by about mile 3, or km 5, we were hurtin! No driver wanted anything to do with three foreigners with massive backpacks so as soon as we got to the next small town Trina dropped off. Not feeling like backtracking, we pushed on hoping to get to the next town before sunset. Travelers luck hit us right as we were about to give up as a bus came bombing around the corner. We jumped in front of it and flagged it down. Just happy to sit down we didn’t mind paying a few Kuna to ride.

First attempt at hitchiking!

It was a good thing we caught this bus because we had to travel up and over the mountain to get to our destination. So instead of a multi-hour trip, it took just 4o minutes. Although we were glad to have gotten a ride, those feelings changed when we realized that nearly all accommodation on the island was NOT OPEN yet (thanks for the heads up lonely planet). We used out traveler instincts and headed to the nearest watering hole. The owner of the wine shop ended hooking us up with guy who had a few rooms available.

Our drinking buddies!

We met some Aussie’s staying at the same place as us and we had a few drinks in the owners cellar/bar. He kept giving us pitchers of wine and the day seemed to be getting better and better. The owners name was Simon. We took Simon for the type of guy who just didn’t like to drink alone and shared his wine for a good time, and Scott, the Aussie we met, told us he had been giving out drinks the night before. We were all about it. However, when Simon called me outside and revealed that we owed him a good bit of money for the wine we had been drinking, I felt scammed and off to bed we went.

We woke up the next morning wanting to get out of there asap. Simon didn´t put up a fight when we refused to pay..maybe he knew he was in the wrong and we went our separate ways. The highlight of the day was that we got to enjoy some bacon and eggs for the first time since we left, and it was delicious. We read some of our book as we waited for the bus and arrived in Dubrovnik around 7pm.

After a lovely day at the park, we returned with Klaus and Hter to Senj…first stopping a very cute and quaint little restaurant and watermill down the road! It was really beautiful and they caught all their fish fresh before serving it to you…very cool! I didn’t even get anything to eat, but they gave me a free tank top for a souvenir!

Free tank!!

After another night in Senj, Brad and I had planned to find our own way to Zadar, but Klaus came up to us and offered to keep driving us, as they were heading south too! We happily tagged along, because not only was it a free ride, but it was great company! Zadar was really really nice!

Yachts at Zadar!

It had an awesome harbor and promenade with lots of cute cafe’s! We spotted an awesome yacht and were temped to try and find some work But apparently Zadar is known for its amazing sunsets..which we sadly didn’t see..even Alfred Hitchcock wrote about them! But really were mostly excited because this one nice cafe had FREE internet!! ahh we were so excited, cus at this point, were still anxiously awaiting for an email about Samantha’s baby…boy..girl…was it here yet?! Still no news, and on we went to Sibenik

Boardwalk at Zadar!

Sibenik the city…may or may not have been nice…but we did not find out! The camping site was way outside the city and the bus had stopped running from the campsite! But the campsite was actually a HUGE development of hotels, sporting activities, clubs and more! We again, saw a beautiful sunset like we have every night in Croatia *so lucky!!* and walked around to find some live music in one of the hotels! When we made our way back to our tent, Klaus and Hter had broken out their wine and chocolate and we sat and had great conversation with them all night! After the first bottle of wine, out came some German beer and champagne! They were truly so kind and generous to us!! And we just loved hearing all their stories and learning about the German music and culture! Before we left the next morning, we took a picture with them…or as Klaus says “I must make a picture”!

“Making” a picture!

After Sibenik, we made a quick stop over in Trogir, which was a beautiful old little town on the 
coast! We all loved it!!! They had some castles and pretty churches there, but i really like all the big wooden boats! We were also lucky enough to catch some traditionally Croatian music and dance right by the water! After some sightseeing, we ran into the fresh food markets, and had to buy some fruit and bread! We also grabbed some fast food…a cheeseburger…which was AMAZING and HUGE!! Brad and I shared it and were full! Half of it is still bigger than two cheeseburgers from McDonalds! It comes with tomatoes and cucumbers too which really add a nice touch! For some reason, i thought my Oma and Grandad would have really liked the Trogir!

Fort at Trojir!

Traditional dance!

Massive burger!!!

Then we were off to Split, where we sadly parted ways with Klaus and Hter…only after eating some of their delicious strawberries they just bought in Trogir! We were so thankful for them, and will always remember them…hopefully even find them again when we are in Germany! We found a small family run hostel there, which was very clean, had a full kitchen, and satellite TV and free internet! SO nice and the son was super nice and helpful! Of course…i jump straight online to find out that KYLIE was born!!!! Brad couldn’t stop smiling and we walked down to the promenade to celebrate with a bottle of wine by the water! There
were tons of kids around, so of course we just couldn’t stop talking and smiling about what Kylie will be like when we meet her! The promenade was great! Nice benches and plants everywhere with an awesome view of the ocean! We really liked it, but there was no camping, and we were ready for some beach time on the islands anyway, so decided to move on the Hvar in the morning!

Welcome to the world Kylie!

We woke up early, as we usually do when camping and packed everything up so we could leave right from the park. Klaus offered us a ride back…so nice!! So we accepted! The sun was shinning bright, we had arrived at the park free of charge and got a student discount for our entry tickets.

Boardwalk through the falls!

Brad enjoying the trees :)

The day had started off great and was about to get better. As soon as we walked in we could see the largest waterfall in the park, which is about 78 meters high with offshoots shooting in every direction falling to the turquoise blue lake below. The natural bridges made of split logs rest right on top of the waters surface. They coexist perfectly with the parks landscape, not disturbing any views and more importantly any ecosystems.

In awe….

The treasures of the park kept coming as we were able to walk right up to a collection of waterfalls, which led is into a series of tunnels and pitch black caves. After finishing up with the first half of the park we hopped on the ferry boat to take us to the next half. Although the pictures may all seem similar, each falls had a different look and feel. The flow of water in an unstoppable force, something to admire and respect, a reoccurring theme of Plitvice. Our hike ended with a walk through the forest. The leaves on the trees seemed lime green and their trunks were covered with an awesome dark green moss which. The surface area of the park is over 270 square km and we covered nearly all of it. Not trying to sound cliché but it is impossible to justly describe the beauty of Plitvice National Park, you just have to see it. This was a dream made reality for us, a definite must for any nature lover with the proper means!

Loving all the greens!

Finally, a sandy beach!

BUT when we arrived, the campsite was very very cool! It had everything…tons of restaurants, cafes, a market, a bakery, a playground, mini golf, ping pong tables and it was right on the beach with beautiful sunsets!! People definitely lived there permanently! But it actually reminded me of the caravan park i would go to with Oma and Grandad! So brought back good nostalgic memories! Too bad though…a lot of the things were still closed…apparently the whole island opens up on May 1st…so we were a few day shy!

Beautiful view in Rab!

So it was pretty miserable as it did NOT stop raining for a day and a half straight! We pretty much hung out in the tent and at one of the cafes all day..played cards, did a lot of sewing, read our lonely planet book…luckily, on the 3rd day we were there, it was nice enough to walk around the town. The Romans had some old establishments there, and they actually let u walk in them and explore. We climbed to the top of an old lookout point, and had a beautiful view of the city! Then we stumbled upon this amazing trail that winds through the woods, and it was so nice! And we had been so good the last few days with not eating out, so we decided to go out for some cevapi…mmmhhm Meat again!

The tower in Rab!

Enjoying a refreshing swim!

Typical lunch for us!

Of course, on the day we leave, it is absolutely gorgeous outside with not a cloud in the sky!!
Luckily our bus wasn’t leaving until 4, so we found ourselves a big rock on the coast and soaked up the sun! It was sooo nice! I loved that rock…i think it was just because it wasn’t raining…but we made a nice lunch on it…und a really comfortable groove to lay on! Didn’t want to leave, but we had made a firm decision to go to Plitvice lakes national park…even though it was going to cost us some money!! So we caught our bus to a town called Senj! It was cool because the bus had to go on the ferry, and i had never really done that before…0o the things that excite me!

Crazy fallen tree!

When we got to our campsite in Senj, it was straight rocks!! AND we found out a bus wasn’t leaving to go to Plitvice for 4 more days!! Ahhhh we did not want to stay in Senj for 4 days….so
we were planning on making the walk (we later found out…yeah right…we could NOT have done it!) and camping along the way! As we enjoyed the sunset, we suddenly head music and looked behind us to see an older man playing the accordion! How cool! Before we knew it, everyone from the campsite was gathered around and we were being force-fed (although we were not objecting) homemade Italian wine, champagne, Italian cake!! Everyone was singing or humming along..It was Great!!

Accordion celebration!

It was hilarious trying to communicate with everyone…we even broke out our language book as this Italian man was trying to speak French to us! Phew…that was hard! The accordion player, Klaus, spoke English too and when we said USA everyone immediately thought California!! It was awesome…everyone was so nice! Then these two younger kids who were backpacking from northern Germany joined us, and luckily spoke wonderful English! It was nice to be able to communicate again, and they brought up in conversation that we were trying to head to Plitvice to Klaus, and he offered us a ride with them!!!! It was the best news ever!! It was a pretty late night for everyone, but eventually we go to bed…excited for what was ahead of us!