Joyful Visit

One of the most enjoyable times in our travels is when we have a visit with one or both of our daughters or with Tessa.  And, of course, with our friends we have met along the way. 

The last four days have been so happy for us!  Cody met us in Zagreb, late on a Monday.  Hoping to negate jetlag she was eager for a short walk around this beautiful town that evening before a good night’s sleep.

With only one full day left in Zagreb, we made the most of it, walking the historic city with Vid, our favorite guide, and strolling through the beautiful U-shaped Lenuci’s Horseshoe Park. If you come here, just follow that itinerary to see all the must-see points in Zagreb. 

The highlight of our trip was Plitvice Lakes National Park. It is one of the most visited places in all of Croatia. The 3-hour drive alone, from Zagreb on country roads passing cornfields and small rustic, purely Croatian villages, was so pretty and beautiful. We wondered why we were seeing no tour buses or streams of traffic heading to this very popular place, but the views were so charming we did not give it much thought. Because I get bored with eye-popping scenery and need my phone for email, Instagram, and Googling, we always use Stan’s phone for navigation. Later we figured out that Stan’s navigation app was set to “Avoid Highways.” Hmmm, no wonder we traveled country roads but it was a blessing in disguise.  

The park is spectacular . . . just as Disneyworld or Las Vegas is for first-time visitors. Thankfully Plitvice Lakes is a UNESCO World Heritage site so people cannot destroy it. Walking trails are formal, meaning no one can just decide to hike up into the woods or to the top of the escarpments. In peak season it’s four trails endures 11,000 visitors a day arriving by car, caravan, and by huge buses.

We visited off-season but on our first afternoon there, the crowds were almost unbearable. I worried we might be pushed off the wooden walkways into the water. The next day in our guided tour, the atmosphere was much different. Rain was forecasted, and before our 6-hour trip was done, it arrived with thunder and much cooler temperatures. We did not care. We had our raingear.

Unless you are local and know the holes, there is no swimming, no fishing, and no boating on these lakes. Visitors can only follow set paths in and around the mountain and the 16 stair-step, terraced lakes, and multiple waterfalls over limestone escarpments and moss-covered rocks. It is one of the most beautiful pristine places we have ever seen. The water in fast-moving streams filling the lakes is perfectly clear and pure. It is safe to drink. The lakes take on an entrancing blue hue from the sun and from minerals gathered in their path down through the country. 

Sometimes things work, and sometimes they just don’t. Our Airbnb host recommended a Bistro. He said they had the best lamb in the area. We all agreed we’d give it a try. As our 6-hour hike wore on, we thought about how satisfying a good hot lamb dinner would be after all our exercise and cool temps. By the time we finished the hike, we were chilled, tired, and hungry. We could not wait. We each ordered the house specialty, Lamb on a Spit. Our plates arrived piled high with roast lamb, roasted potatoes, and bits of carrot. I think we were thinking of the taste of herb-crusted lamb chops. I guess we were not expecting random chopped chunks of ribs, and joints. We took home two big boxes of leftovers. Some was food for the kitty we adopted at our Airbnb. Some I merely tossed. I saved the best pieces and a day or later made a delicious lamb stew adding sauteed vegetables, herbs, and lots of paprika.

Shortly after we first arrived at our Airbnb house (down a country road through pastures and off a dirt lane in the middle of a farm), a young kitty greeted us as we moved in. She looked healthy, was friendly, and followed us around in and out of the house. She liked being petted, seemed to enjoy talking with us, and was clearly tame. Her meow had a hungry sound though. I chopped a thin slice of deli ham and put it on a plate for her. She gobbled it as if she had not eaten in days and then looked for more. I gave her another slice. The next morning, she brought her sister. I gave them scrambled eggs. Later that day, we bought Kitty Kibbles. Both Kitty and her sister chowed down on the cat food but that evening and the next morning they delighted in the leftover lamb.

On our last night at the farm Airbnb, Stan left his Teva’s on the patio to “air.” The next morning they were gone! Both shoes were gone! We searched the yard and surrounding area. No sandals. Because we were in a remote location, the chance of someone just passing by and taking them was zero. Brown Bears live in the Plitvice Lakes National Park and in the surrounding area, Could a bear have visited our patio without our knowing? Not likely. Oh, wait, could Kitty and her sister have pilfered the shoes? Not our Kitty! We think yes, and can picture Kitty and her sister dragging off their cumbersome loot. We think they might be in their den, bellies full of lamb and lounging off the damp ground on cushy rubber soles.

We got to do all this with Cody. We spent four nights and three full days together exploring and enjoying beautiful, exciting, adventuresome lands that were all new to the three of us. What joy! 

She moved on. Sadly. Cody has only ten days here and then must return home to her dogs and her work. Our time together clicked off four of the ten. With only six days left, that girl will go on her own and see all we hope to see in the next month.  

She’s one smart, brave, and adorable woman. All our girls are. Oh, how we love them!

Sadly, no photo of Kitty.