Zadar and Plitvice and Zadar, Croatia, Stops 12 and 13

July 17

We have breakfast and say good bye to all the friendly people from the Katarina. It's been a wonderful week and, while we are excited to explore more of Croatia, it's been lovely being on the boat. We head off the boat in Split. We find a post office and mail back some goodies to the US and then go and pick up our rental car. Today we drive to Zadar, via Krka waterfalls and Sibenik.

However, our first stop is at a tech store to buy a new drone!

***Dmitri: Our drone died some kind of firmware fail death a couple days ago and I realize I’m going to have to get a new one. The footage from these is beautiful, and we haven’t been getting any and that just cannot stand. So, after some research, we’ve purchased a new zippy drone and from here on out we should start seeing some pretty views. It’ll take a couple days to get it registered and going and whatnot, and then game on. Jack is taking responsibility for that. I’m still knee-deep in dealing with my “old life” in the States, which has followed me like a malevolent stalker so far. Here’s hoping I can get some of these responsibilities off my plate and I can be more present soon.

Meanwhile, the UK has announced its new green list and there’s no mention of Germany or Austria. Oh, damn. But they have announced a new “green watch list,” which is apparently a green list, but one that they feel OK about revoking without any notice. And the newest entry is...Croatia! So we’re currently in a green country and in a few days we will be able to go to the UK. So, record scratch. No Austria or Germany and we’re going to attempt to head to England. This means testing and forms and like Cindy I now have a stupid cold as well. Do we have Covid, ruining everything? Probably not, but now I have to mask up everywhere and our Coronavirus tests to qualify for England are going to be a little more exciting than they would otherwise be . . .

So, instead of spending a few days in Slovenia, we decide we will keep our reservations in Zadar, then go to Plitvice, then back to Zadar to get our covid tests and plan. Yeah, it’s a hassle, but it’s also great to be able to be flexible.***

On the drive to Krka, we see a sign we can honestly say we have never seen before.

Krka is stunning. The temperature is lovely as we head out on the boardwalks to explore. A bit humid, but not ridiculously so, and we enjoy a break from the heat of the coast. It starts to pour on us, but only at the very end and we have rain jackets and umbrellas so all is good. We enjoy ourselves quite a bit and then it's on to Sibenik.

After Krka, we head to Sibenik. Driving around is a bit confusing but we find a parking lot about 15 minutes from the Old Town area. Lots and lots of rain. We have a cozy lunch and set off to explore the town, which is very cute, even in the rain. For those of you Game of Thrones fans, this is where they filmed scenes in Braavos. Lots of winding alleyways and white-stoned lanes. Very, very cute. I could have spent hours hanging out in Sibenik.

***Dmitri: You can easily see Arya Stark running around these alleyways because, she did.***

Back in the car we go and we head to Zadar. Originally we had planned to stay in Zadar for 4-5 days then head to Plitvice on our way to Slovenia, but we found out that the UK will allow people to enter who have been in a green country (which Croatia is as of just recently) so we scrap that plan. Since we have already booked Plitvice and cannot cancel, we will have one night in Zadar, one night in Plitvice, then back to Zadar. Clunky but workable. Our first night in Zadar we do minimal exploring. We get our laundry dropped off, we get some food, and we plan to be up and out early for a drive to Plitvice.

July 18

Another early morning, as we have a drive ahead of us to Plitvice Lakes from Zadar. We check out, pick up our laundry, and drive. It's pouring rain there and is MUCH more crowded than Krka. It's stunningly beautiful and if we hadn't just had a great experience at Krka I think we might have enjoyed it more.

***Dmitri: I’m unwell and lousy today, but we’re in a beautiful place. Plitvice is essentially a larger- scale version of Krka. Very primal jungle-like waterfalls and greenery and trails. Like sunset in Oia, this is another actually crowded spot, though I know it’s about half of normal. Knowing that, I’m not sure I can recommend coming. Half-full, and even pissing with rain, it’s gorgeous. Jack manages to fall and cut himself, but thanks to baby wipes from a Croatian mom who spots the crisis and the magic of ice cream shortly thereafter, all is well.***

July 19

We drive back to Zadar and fortunately we are able to get into our Airbnb early. We all nap and catch up on some sleep. We then find our first really big grocery store and stock up. Anne and Sara are in Zadar and Mia plans to cook for all of us and have them over. A note on grocery stores. Jack has found Studenac stores all over Croatia and really likes what they have to offer. In Zadar, Dmitri discovers Konzum and is pretty darn happy about it!

***Mia: Luckily for me, the two Danish girls from the cruise are staying in Zadar the same days we are, so I was able to spend more time with them. I cooked dinner for everyone at our AirBnB, and after the three of us went out to run around Zadar. Everything is walking distance and by this point we all know our way around the city fairly well.***

***Dmitri: I plan for us to do nothing. Well, that’s not true, but so far we’ve been tourists seeing things rather than just people living. I have work to do and we can’t see sights 24-7. Zadar is hopefully going to be a place we just live in for a few days. Pacing is important, and we can stay in this cheap, beautiful place for a few days to catch our breaths and catch up with life.***

July 20

First order of business today is getting covid tests so that we can enter the UK. Our next 3 weeks depend on being able to get the tests. Luckily, there is a testing site nearby and after an 8 minute walk, we arrive. The clinic is about as efficient as the ones in the US—which is to say, not very—but we are able to get the tests. They email the results fairly quickly but we want printed copies. The UK has been persnickety on all things covid and we are not taking any chances. They print and then print again a few more times with long waits in between because they keep putting in the wrong birthday for Jack. Finally we leave the clinic with our get into UK (not free) cards. And then, a flurry of booking commences. And we spend a lot of time on the phone with both Google Fi and T Mobile. No international trip would be complete without drama and customer “support” dealing with connection issues.

***Dmitri: No one has Covid! I gave it a 5% chance, but it’s still nice to not have it. I’m reading all about breakthrough cases and that’s not good but we are all OK. So, it looks like we are going to be able to hit the UK after all. Given how challenging it is to get in, I suspect we will be some of the very few Americans around.***

July 21

More plans for travel to the UK are at the top of the priority list today. Passenger locator forms need to be filled out, tests need to be ordered. The check in process for air travel has gotten a whole lot more complex. And more expensive. To travel to the UK we have to get negative covid tests in Croatia at the cost of $200. We have to spend another $400+ to get additional tests on Day 2 after we arrive in the UK. And that is with vaccines, coming from a green list country.

Today we take the drone out for an inaugural flight at the Sea Organ in Zadar. https://www.croatiatraveller.com/Zadar/SeaOrgan.html The Sea Organ is a very cool and chill

place to be. It’s on the edge of the Old Town and there are pipes built under these stone steps by the water. When the wind and the waves interact with the pipes they play music. It’s so interesting. We hear it’s one of the best places to be for sunset. We will be checking into that for sure later today. But in the meantime, Jack tries out the drone for a VERY short amount of time because almost immediately a few seagulls become interested and start flying very close to it.

***Dmitri: Seriously, the gulls looked like they were about to attack the drone. The Sea Organ is pretty cool. It's great later at night without the crowds, and we learn that you can lie your head on the steps next to the openings and it's like being next to a speaker. It's very chill.***

***Mia: The Sea Organ is a lovely place to visit, but even better if nobody is around. Sara and I went around midnight and sat for a while on the Monument to the Sun while listening to the sound of the organ. During the day, the noise of children and street performers defeated any chance of hearing it perfectly, but later around 12:30am was the best time to go. It was silent aside from the music that the waves created.

It's been nice to shift from tourists going from A to B to tourists staying in a place for a few days without destinations and must-do's.***

Our last night, we walk around and it is lovely. The weather is perfect, we sit around and listen to a guy playing guitar on a square and we even try again to put the drone up. No dice on that. Sea gulls do NOT want the interloper in their air space. After dark, we hang out and watch the Monument to the Sun light up in different colors. Zadar is a super chill place and has been the perfect stop for us. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monument_to_the_Sun