Croatia

After getting to stretch out for a while on the train eventually 3 guys from Croatia/Macedonia joined me which turned out to be a good thing since they were able to translate for me the message that we had to unexpectedly change trains upon crossing the border. I got my passport stamped on this trip more times than in all my previous travels combined. We arrived in Zagreb and two of the guys were continuing on to Split and since I didn't think there was much to do or see in Zagreb I tagged along to the bus station. I decided to go all the way to Dubrovnick which is supposed to be the crown jewel of Croatia and then make my back up to coast. After a 9 hour train ride from Venice I wasn't looking forward to the 12.5 hour bus ride, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do. It seemed like there weren't any local buses in Croatia, just this one bus hitting every out of the way stop in the country. I think we were on the freeway maybe an hour in total and throughout the night we stopped and picked up rowdy party people going home for the night. More stops upon entering Dubrovnick for ID's. I think they were just making sure no underagers were entering since they didn't take any real interest in my US passport. Travel tip: don't bother trying to book a hostel in Croatia. First of all, there really aren't any (well maybe one). Second of all, as soon as you get off the train you'll be accosted by a group of people running towards you offering rooms. A lady offered me a room for 100kn, but I talked her down to 90kn and saved a whole $1.50! She spoke just enough English to do her business, but her daughters spoke it well and it was a decent enough room with kitchen access and a good location. When we got there she offered me coffee, but I was worn out and declined. Instead I climbed into bed and passed out. Woke up and went straight to the beach. Quite a decent into a nice cove with quite a few people on the beach which was not sand. Rounded stone with splotches of tar! Gotta deduct points for that! The water was nice though and had a good swim while checking out the local kids cliff jumping from some dizzying heights (~11 meters). One of three Brits (Dave) I left my stuff with on the beach did the big jump. Didn't hit it perfectly and hurt his back a little. To add insult to injury his mate (Alex) didn't get the pic because his battery died. After the beach I headed back to the room where I was very excited to cook up a nice veggie/cheese omlette, but between the time I dropped off my groceries and retrieved my knife from the room the lady of the house had poured me a bowl of noodle soup, bread and 2 mysterious fish. Well I couldn't say no so I ate the soup with bread, but put the fish back. My omelette will have to wait. Went for a walk along the coast, briefly me the middle daughter and later that night I finally got to enjoy my eggs.The next day I went for a walk in a state park, but apart from the views and some guys pilfering rocks there wasn't much to see. Back at the residence I met a couple from Perth who were headed to Rome so I gave them some information and in exchange Collin offered me The Davinci Code. "Sweet, Thanks" (Good book, but I think Angels & Demons was better). Repeated the beach scene, started my jogging again and in the after sunset I went for a stroll to check out "Old Town". Which isn't really old since it was bombed to hell and then faithfully rebuilt recently. None the less it was cool to check out even though I'm sure back in the day it wasn't overun with commercialism like it is today. Or maybe it was, just without the flourescent lighting? Later back at the house I met the oldest daughter, but our conversation was cut of abruptly with the arrival of her boyfriend!Repeated everything again the next day. Beach, jog and then pics in Old Town. Next morning I walked to the bus depot for a 4.5 hour bus ride to Split where I was again surrounded by landlords. One actually thought I'd pay 20 euros for a room! Eventually a nice lady offered me a room nearby for 120kn, but I told her 100kn was my limit and she agreed. Nice room with a tv and since I was staying two nights Grandma (thru the husband cause she didn't speak any English) gave me permission to use the kitchen. Dropped of the pack and went wandering along the coast. Hordes of people on the beach and frolicking in the water which is incredibly shallow. It's about knee to thigh deep for a good 120 yards. Croatia is pretty famous for nude beaches designated by "FKK", but I only saw on pair of breasts! Later I learned that there aren't any FKK's in Split:(Went for a jog in the other direction along the coast, came back and met Jeff (England) and the retired to watch a interesting movie called "Blaze". True story of Earl Long (Paul Newman) who is the Governor of Louisiana and gets involved with a stripper. Which along with his progressive stance on civil rights causes him his office. Then he runs for Senate and wins, but dies before the last vote was counted.Next day I skipped breakfast and went straight to the beach. Plenty of cute girls and many older woman, but I'll be damned if I know where they are hiding the 20/30 somethings!! Sitting at a table a group of teenage girls asked me something in Croatian so I smiled and said no comprende. But they, as all young croatians know English so I quickly realized they needed a whole Kuna (~16 cents). I gave it to them and they went off and to probably a soda. Then a teenage boy came up to me and asked for a cigarette. But when I told him I didn't have any he asked if I'd mind talking with him and his friends. I invited them to sit and we discussed politics (Bush/EU), traveling and music. One had travelled quite a bit and another was really into Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel, etc. Which was very suprising to me since they were barely out of highschool. After a while they made me promise that if I made it big in music that I'd come back to Split and play a concert. I told them I'd do one better. I'd bring Dylan to open the show. Next day I'm catching the 11:30pm bus back to Zagreb so I spend the day much like the rest and settle in for a 6.5 hour ride. Arrived and asked a couple of students who were walking to school (on Saturday!? that sucks) where I could find an internet connection. They walked me there, but I found no availability in Budapest. Damn! No sleep last night and it looks like I'll be spending another sleepless night in a train station. The internet showed absolutely no hostels in Zagreb, but I went and got a hotel guide and lo and behold there is a hostel and it's only 3 blocks away. It was run down and I couldn't check in untill 2pm, but it was cheap and in a great location. Walked around and chilled in a park till check in and then crashed. Woke, walked, took pics, went for a jog and capped it off with a very cold shower, not by choice! Met a young couple from Oregon who pointed out an earlier train to Budapest than I had seen, went and confirmed the train and finished off the night watching the locals hanging out in the park on a Saturday night.
To conclude: Croatia is a nice place to visit, but regarding Dubrovnick I feel I have to make one last comment. Everyone I spoke to said "YOU HAVE TO GO TO DUBROVNICK!!!". Well for the record I'd put it in the category of: "It's a nice place to visit for a couple of days, but don't make a special trip". It was really overhyped to me, so I just want to adjust the bellcurve a little. :) (However if you happen to be an ant with your own wave generating machine you could have some epic waves all to yourself. So Flat!!)