Valuable Lessons Learned in Croatia...

* Be prepared for some drama on the high sea. Sadly, there were some disgruntled passengers on board our tin can cruise (we were pretty disgruntled with them as they woke us up in the middle of the night several times when they returned fumbling drunk) and besides peeing on the captain’s bed, they stole a bunch of passports (including ours). While the captain called the police, the passports mysteriously reappeared.

* Don’t drink from a water fountain while wearing a big floppy hat unless you want to get soaked.

Our Last Day in Croatia...

Once again we got to an early start so we could drive down to Croatia’s capital Zagreb to meet back up with Tom and Narcisa. They’d invited us to spend our final night at their place, but then decided there would be more room if we stayed with her parents, who speak no English but were amazingly hospitable. After snacks, Tom and Narcisa showed us around their hometown of 785,000 people. While there were some lovely parks and historic buildings, there were also a large number of ghastly Communist-designed apartment blocks. It was definitely interesting hearing an insider's take on the war and aftermath.

Getting Well in Slovenia...

Next, Jimmy wanted to head to Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. I, however, thought it would prudent not to walk around again the day after Plitvice, but instead to head to a spa to recuperate. After much discussion about why a boy who grew up like Tom Sawyer would ever consider getting a massage, we headed to Lasko, Slovenia home of Wellness Park Lasko. The drive through the rolling hills of Slovenia was beautiful; uncharacteristically, we stayed focused on the spa and did no sightseeing. The hotel was brand new and we were the first American guests. The thermal center featured a retractable glass dome over a variety of different pools including this martini glass whirlpool. Jimmy wasn’t feeling much like Tom Sawyer after an hour in a private jacuzzi sipping champagne followed by an hour long sychronized Ayurveda Couples Massage (a 5000-year-old Indian healing technique) .

One of Europe’s Most Beautiful Natural Sights...

After a 6+ hour drive through the mountains of Bosnia, we made our way back into Croatia to visit the incredibly picturesque Plitvice Lakes National Park, our 4th UNESCO World Heritage stop on this trip. This park is made up of 16 lakes interconnected by cascades of varying sizes. We got an early start in an attempt to beat the crowds, but mostly we were separated from the masses because we chose the longest hiking route. The trails varied from paths high above the lakes (where I took these photos) to down to the water’s level to crossing the water on wooden walkways. We were so enthralled with the natural beauty and desire to see everything that we hiked for almost 8 hours with just a beer, apple strudel and ice cream bar for energy. Sadly, I could barely walk after I finally sat down for dinner, but it was worth it.

More Time in Mostar...

While we’d only intended to spend 1 night in Mostar, it was so interesting and incredibly cheap (other than when the waiter tried overcharging for the house wine) that we stayed for 3 nights. We spent many hours sitting at a bar in the shadow of the bridge working on writing a novel about women fighting terrorism, the idea of which came to Jimmy in a dream. We also wandered around the Islamic section of town shown above to go into a few mosques. I climbed a minaret for the first time, but somehow I was still nervous despite knowing that the small spiral staircase had been renovated since opening in 1552.

The Old Bridge...

After driving around and seeing the destruction, when we arrived in Mostar’s city center it felt surreal, like we’d been transported to Disney’s Epcot Center. With just a few remnants of shelling left, the central area was very charming with the highlight being the Old Bridge, a historically symbolic point where East meets West. The original Turkish bridge was built in 1566, but was sadly completely destroyed in 1993. Under UNESCO’s guidance, the bridge was rebuilt in 2004 utilizing the original techniques and as much salvaged material as possible. Following an old tradition (the first diver was recorder in 1664), several tourists jumped the 69 feet into the river below. Needless to say, it never crossed my mind to jump, but Jimmy was tempted until we saw a fellow hit the water at the wrong angle and need rescuing.

Mostar Instead of 5-Star...

After Darlene and Mike left, I was all set to find a posh beachfront hotel for a few days, but Jimmy had other plans after reading Rick Steve’s advice that to have a truly memorable visit to Croatia it was necessary to cross the border into war-ravaged Bosnia. So, farewell 5-star and hello Mostar. And there’s no doubt that it was a memorable visit. I’d never seen war damage before and it was quite shocking and heartbreaking when we pulled into town and saw how much damage still existed 13 years after the war. Thanks to foreign contributions, much of the city center has been rebuilt, but you can still see remnants such as the below building next to our hotel.