Enchanting Croatia

We arrived in Croatia on November 5th and have been busy exploring this absolutely gorgeous, welcoming country! I had no expectations for Croatia, but have been pleasantly surprised with how much I love it! The majority of people speak English, strangers go out of their way to be helpful or kind to Logan, and the country is filled with charming little towns among rolling, green hills. The gorgeous coasts are lined with palm trees, bobbing boats, and dozens of islands amid the clear-blue waters. 

We flew into Zagreb, the capital of Croatia (in the northern part of the country). The next morning we picked up our rental car. As we walked the few blocks from our hotel to the rental car pickup, a kind man doing gardening in the park let Logan sit and "drive" his tractor. 

We spent our first day north of the city driving aimlessly through the beautiful little towns with church steeples peeking through the colorful hills. As we drove, the roadway cut through thick forests of multicolored trees. Colors of orange, brown, golden yellow and green were reminiscent of how I imagine autumn would be in Vermont. 

Our final destination was Samobor, a lovely little village tucked between Zagreb and the Slovenian border. With a small town square lined with cafes, restaurants, bakeries, a small grocery store, and an old church, we spent two hours enjoying this little gem. 

Our lunch at Samoborska Klet was amazing! Pork chops smothered in traditional gravy with fried potato slices for me. Homemade sausages, saur kraut, and smashed garlic potatoes for Taylor. The bread was freshly baked with a thick, hard crust and a soft steaming middle. It was heavenly on a rainy day! 

The colorful leaves blanketed the ground outside the church, and the town was basically empty besides a few locals drinking coffee with friends in the square. 

The next day we went into the city of Zagreb to see Jelacic Square and the surrounding streets. We loved Zagreb! Rick Steves describes it perfectly: “historic neighborhoods, a thriving cafe culture, an appealing variety of restaurants, people-watching, and virtually no tourists.” 

It was another rainy day, so we had coffees (and hot chocolate for Logan) indoors at a cafe on the square, walked to the church for some photos, and made our way to the indoor/outdoor Dolac Market nearby. By the time we got around to the market, the clouds had broken and the rain had stopped. We picked up some beautifully fresh produce for the road, some dried fruit and nuts, and a jar of honey from the nearby Medvednica mountains. We wandered through the stalls, indoor and outdoor, watched some ladies making fresh cheese and sampled a bit (it tasted like thick sour cream to me). 

We then wandered towards the fabulous urban promenade called Tkalciceva Street (no idea of the pronunciation). We grabbed some roasted chestnuts on the street (a little more dense than a potato, sweet and nutty). 

After a late lunch at a tavern on Tkalciceva Street we headed south towards Split, stopping for the night at a cute but deserted B&B near Plitvice Lakes. Our original plan was to check out the gorgeous waterfalls of Plitvice Lakes the next morning, but after more investigation, we discovered that it isn’t very stroller- or toddler-friendly. We decided to skip it and make our way south towards Split.

We stopped for lunch in Sibenik, a coastal fishing town an hour north of Split. We enjoyed the harbor promenade and lunch outside at a cafe. Fresh fish and rice soup and some amazingly tasty roasted vegetables were perfect for the chilly overcast day. Logan played at a playground and chased some stray cats before we got back into the car. 

Croatia seems to have an abundance of roaming cats in all the towns we’ve been to. They basically stay out of the way, stopping to beg for some food if you’re outside eating. Logan absolutely loves to see them, pet them, and chase them (we wash his hands afterwards)!

Arriving in Split, we met our apartment host at a grocery store in the city and followed him a block to the apartment building where we were staying. Immediately we realized we weren’t thrilled with the location, or the building. We had to park in a dark underground parking garage, filled with graffiti and packed to the brim with cars in every nook and cranny. We went upstairs for a tour of our apartment, on the 9th floor, at the end of a dimly lit hallway. Our host was an extremely kind and friendly elderly man, who was so sweet and wanted to tell us all about the city and nearby areas. By the looks Taylor and I were exchanging, I had a feeling that we wouldn’t be staying long. After our host left us, we began researching places to move. The location of our current apartment wasn’t near the city center (despite how they advertised the flat), and made both of us feel unsafe and uncomfortable (considering there were swastikas spray-painted on the walls just outside the elevator door). We bunkered down for the night and by 10am the next morning we had checked into a new flat, better-located three blocks from Diocletian’s Palace (and the Old Town of Split), and a quick walk to the gorgeous harbor. The new flat is fantastic, newly renovated, and much better suited to our needs! We were blessed by the kindness of our previous hosts who so generously refunded us our rent, even though they were not obligated.

Hours after we moved into our second flat in Split, my friend Melana flew into the Split airport to stay with us for two weeks. Taylor went to pick her up at the airport and returned our rental car, while I rushed to unpack and get the apartment in some semblance of order. 

On Melana’s first night in town we headed out to the Old Town and Diocletian’s Palace for dinner. Hidden behind some clothing stores, down a narrow alley, was a restaurant recommended in our travel book. It was a great recommendation! We shared a Dalmation Platter appetizer of dried meats, cheeses, olives, anchovies, calamari salad and warm bread. 

Melana and I drank a great bottle of local Croatian red wine. Taylor sipped dark Croatian beer. Logan kept an eye out for stray cats along the top of the stone wall nearby and later watched a centipede as it made its way up the wall and into a crack. Taylor took a recommendation from the server for a traditional meal, slow roasted beef in a red wine sauce with gnocchi. It was heavenly and melted in my mouth after I stole a taste! I had some fresh caught yellowtail while Melana had a creamy four cheese gnocchi. The food was fantastic and a great intro into Croatian food.

We spent the next few days exploring Split and Diocletian's Palace. The great Roman ruins of Diocletian's Palace are now the heart of Split, a labyrinth of streets and alleyways lined with bars, shops, cafes, and grocery stores. Above the commercial shops are apartments where locals live, their laundry hanging to dry above our heads. The palace was built by stone quarried from a nearby island, Brac (you'll read more about Brac later). Diocletian also imported marble from Italy and Greece, and columns and sphinxes from Egypt. The palace is a maze of stone, with beautiful little piazzas hidden around every corner.

At a cafe within the Palace.

Melana’s grandparents migrated to America from the Croatian island of Brac (pronounced “broch”). Her last name is actually a derivative of a Croatian name which was changed when her Dad’s family came to the US. With Melana in town it was a great opportunity for her to visit her roots. We checked the ferry schedule and took a morning car ferry one hour across the Adriatic to the island of Brac, docking in the town of Supetar. 

Headed to board the ferry.

View of Supetar, Brac harbor from the ferry.

This time of year is off-season for Croatia, so we soon came to discover that many things are closed! We arrived in Supetar and strolled along the harbor, most stores were closed, but some cafes were open with locals sitting outside enjoying coffee with friends. 

We walked aimlessly through the stone streets, and stopped at the beach so that Logan could throw rocks in the water. The beaches were made up of smooth rocks, old coral pieces that have been polished down over time, and pieces of wood. Logan loved sifting through the rocks, burying his cars (so we almost lost a few), and throwing rocks into the clear sea. 

After a stroll we made our way back to the main harbor for some lunch at a cafe. While eating we threw food to a one-eyed stray mama cat, then we returned to Split on an afternoon ferry. 

The next day was set to be thunder showers with lots of rain. We decided to celebrate an early Thanksgiving while Melana was in town, as we will be alone on the actual holiday. Melana and I were successful at finding ingredients for what turned out to be a very nice Thanksgiving dinner in Croatia! We roasted a whole chicken stuffed with citrus, garlic and onion. We made homemade sausage stuffing with baguette pieces (which was delicious), homemade cranberry sauce, smashed cauliflower with cheese, sweet potatoes, and traditional appetizers. It was also my mom’s birthday back home, so we celebrated her from across the world while we gave thanks for our many blessings!

Another rainy day found us on a local bus to the City Centre, a huge indoor mall with a great play area for kids. Taylor and I took turns with Logan in the complementary play area, that nearly rivals Chucky Cheese, while the other shopped around. We ate an amazingly good four-cheese pizza for lunch at the only restaurant in the mall. Logan burned tons of energy playing in the balls and sliding down the huge slide while we were able to stay out of the rainy weather. 

Later that evening the rain had subsided so Melana and I were able to get a girls’ night out. We went to a recommended wine and cheese bar called Zinfandel for an absolutely heavenly cheese platter and some delicious Croatian red wine. 

We still had a few more days of exploring Split and the nearby islands. One island, Trogir, is connected to the mainland by a small bridge. 

Walking across the bridge to the island of Trogir.

We took a charter bus on a 40 minute ride to Trogir, which turned out to be an adorable little town! Lots of ringing church bells, winding stone alleyways, a fortress on the harbor (next to a conveniently-located playground), and a beautiful water-front promenade. 

Again, not much was open, but we enjoyed our time exploring this beautiful stone town. While having a cup of coffee on the square we watched some kind of local ceremony outside the church. We heard something about one of the presidential hopefuls being in town, and there was singing and church bells ringing and photographers following a group of people dressed in suits. We aren’t sure what the whole purpose of it was, but it was entertaining nonetheless.

Beautiful walkway out of the Trogir town center to the seaside promenade.

We ate lunch outside on the waterfront. Logan shared a traditional cuttlefish risotto with Melana and me. The ink in the cuttlefish turns the risotto black, turning Logan's mouth black as well!

The last island we visited was a 2-hour ferry ride away. The island of Hvar, and the city of Hvar Town, are hot spots in Croatia in the summertime. Hvar Town is a walled city of stone with a grand central piazza, St. Peter’s Square. Being off season, we had limited options for ferry rides, one left the mainland at 8:30am and returned at 7:30pm. We had an entire day to pass seeing Hvar. 

We got a leisurely coffee on the square and enjoyed the gorgeous architecture of another stone town.

A view of our cafe from up above.

We then strolled the harbor promenade down to a little cove where Logan threw rocks into the water. We also came upon a Croatian mother and her young son fishing with dough and string in the harbor. Logan was fascinated with the small fish. We ate picnic sandwiches, wandered through an empty monastery, took pictures, threw more rocks, and pondered what this gorgeous island would be like in the height of summer. 

We all relish the thought of returning to Croatia someday when we can enjoy the sunshine and the sea in a different season. For now, we appreciated having the town to ourselves. We made our way back to the square to savor some deliciously fresh seafood at the only open restaurant, while sharing a bottle of Croatian wine. Later Logan played with his cars in a small park, while we waited for the time to catch the bus back to the ferry. It was a long day in a sleepy little town, but we enjoyed seeing this gorgeous Croatian beauty.

Now it was time for us to pack up and head out of Split for a few days to see some other wonderful cities. I’ll save that for another blog as there is much to share. The Croatian adventure continues, and it is a beautiful adventure so far!

Strolling the promenade in Split's harbor.

Split promenade.

Entering Diocletian's Palace to shop.