Day 2 Croatia

Croatia may be the most beautiful place I have ever been. I got up early (yep, amazing) and spent the morning walking around the old Diocletian Palace area of Split and ate breakfast at Lvxor Cafe, named for Luxor, Egypt, which I wasn't able to visit. Reason? Well, in 305 AC 15 statues of the Sphinxes were transported to Split for this colossal palace being built along the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Today only one of these Sphinxes remains watching over the palace area directly outside of the Lvxor Cafe. I ordered the most delicious cheese strudle, light and creamy with sultanas, all powered in sugar. I boarded a bus around mid-day and headed for Zagreb, Croatia's capital city.

As usual no bus ever arrives to its destination on schedule, at least not its final destination. I am not exactly sure how this works being that every bus I have taken in Croatia has left from its origin on time. I arrived in Zagreb in the late afternoon/early evening. Thankfully, I had read enough to know I could purchase a tram ticket at any of the Tisik shops (kiosks). Public transportation in Croation (at least where I have been) is convenient, clean and well-used. I jumped on a tram right outside the bus station, which took me into the center of Zagreb. Trg bana Jelacica (square) was hoping with activity. As I exited the tram, my ears were filled with enticing music coming from the stage set up in the center of the square. Lots of people were coming and going from shops, meeting up with friends for dinner and catching the trams crossing through this square to destinations throughout the city.

My first stop was the Tourism Board office on the edge of the square. I love these offices, as they not only make recommendations of where to stay, but call to find out if there are vacancies and then give you a map with directions on how to find it. Both in Split and Zagreb the women working in these offices have directed me to reasonably priced accommodations in nearby walking distance. Tonight I am at the Fulir Backpacker Inn, sharing a room with up to five others, although, I don't believe we are full. This hostel only accommodates 10 people, so it is a perfect size for feeling some level of comfort with everyone who is coming and going. I have already met at least four others staying here (2 New Yorkers, 1 Turk and an Aussie from Perth). The owner is quite friendly, easy-going, etc. All one anticipates finding in a backpacker establishment.

On the steet I bumped into some SAS students I know fairly well. Ironically, this was the group of girls who had asked me about going out with them in Zagreb. We aren't suppose to travel with students, and I make a point of avoiding situations where I might need to report on student activities. So while I did not go out on the town with them, I did join them for dinner at Leonardo's. We met two Bosnians and an American who are working in Sarajevo right now. The American is based in Germany, but in the Balkans for six months. He's an attorney, so I gently interrogated him about what he does. Of course, there was a limit to what he could share -- government work related to the war recently fought in this region. That's enough to make some educated guesses. The crazy part of meeting up with them is learning this same American went to the same high school and college as one of the students. There are those six degrees of separation again. I capped off the night by finding my way to what is rumored to be the best ice cream in Zagreb. It's freezing outside -- signs along the highway were reporting zero degrees Celcius and below -- but how can I not evaluate the best ice cream in town!