Split, Croatia

About three hours ago I arrived back in Budapest from my long weekend spent in Split, Croatia. A couple of times each year, according to Hungarian tradition, there are official four-day weekends. These happen in concurrence with various European holidays. Today, Tuesday, is a labor-related holiday akin to our "Labor Day." The government gives its people Monday off, and a couple of weeks prior "moves" Monday to a Saturday to make up for the freebie given later. In any case, this long weekend found me in Split, Croatia with three boys from my program. The journey began with a 17 hour train ride. The first eight and a half hours of it was boring and slightly uncomfortable, but pretty entertaining. The trains in Europe have compartments, similar to those featured in the Harry Potter movies. Thus you are allowed a bit of privacy, except when the train fills up and strangers join you. Regardless, it was fine. We had to transfer trains in Zagreb, Croatia. We got there about 20 minutes before the train was scheduled to leave, so we hurried to make arrangements for getting a sleeper car to ease the rest of the journey. We asked various conductors, who told us to go to the ticket booth (which was closed) before we figured out which one the sleeping car was, and asked the attendant for that car. He didn't speak any English, but when we got our point across to him, he muttered, "Nein", which I can only assume means "no" in Croatian. Thus, we spent the night crammed in uncomfortable compartments attempting to sleep upright. However, it was all made worthwhile when we arrived at our destination at 7 am. The city of Split is comprised entirely of beaches and harbors. It is known as being one of the cities with the most sunlight overall throughout the year. We dropped our baggage off and explored a bit, discovering a lovely sandy beach flanked by rockier terrain and bars that sat along the waterfront. We climbed along the rocks and enjoyed the view, which was only flawed for a moment by a brief encounter with an older gentleman sunbathing in the nude in a hidden crevice of the rocks. When the time was right we changed into swimming suits and found our way back to this magical place. This sandy beach was very clean and the water was shallow very far out. It was around 80 degrees with no breeze and not a single cloud the entire weekend. The water was not warm, but it was very pleasant once we got used to it. When I was four years old I went to the ocean, very little of which I remember. While Croatia is situated on the Adriatic Sea, it is more or less oceanic, and for the first time I tasted natural salt water and saw a tide. It was a beautiful experience. That first day we spent a couple hours laying on fluffy towels in the sun, and we all fell asleep for a while. When we rousted ourselves and made it back to our hostel, we showered off the salt residue and explored the city. We made our way back down to the beach to see what the nightlife afforded.

Along the beach there are countless little bars and clubs, as well as ice cream stands, hot dog joints, and miniature theme parks for children. We wandered along until we found a peaceful place that appealed. Like all the bars, it had entirely outdoor seating, most of which was in the form of wicker chairs or park swings near low tables. If there is any wild clubbing scenes in Croatia, (which, judging by the looks of the people sunbathing on the beach, there certainly is) we didn't find it, and we were perfectly content sitting for hours sipping on drinks and alternating between relaxed silences and laughing at each other. Days in the sun are tiring, however, as are night-long train rides, so we hit the hay early on.

The next day began with more sunbathing. In the shallow water, on the soft, flat sand, there were perhaps a dozen groups of guys, from chiseled young men to wrinkly old fellows playing some type of game with small rubber balls. As far as I could tell, the point was to smack the ball at each other trying to keep it aloft. This process involved many leaps and grunts from the men, especially the younger ones, as they hurled themselves after the diminutive ball and ending up face first in the water. If they were successful in hitting the ball, they got up dripping and flexing. If they failed their buddies laughed at them (and so did I). In any case, the guys I was with felt sub-masculine without being part of this game, so they searched Croatia over to find a ball and played for hours, giving me some much needed girl-time laying in the sun.

Later that day we climbed to the top of a "hill" to explore a "park." This is what I was TOLD we were doing, and as such, 3 pm found me scaling up the side of a mountain trying to reach a flagpole at the top. The road was apparently too easy, so the boys insisted on going, literally, up the side of this "hill." Thus, in my pretty pink top and sparkly pink flip flops I grouchily found myself in the midst of thorns and tangles while the boys played Crocodile Hunter meets Frodo Baggins. After this exhausting escapade (during which I insisted, using rather strong language, that we must find the road or else suffer the wrath of Betsy) we found ourselves at the top, and I can't even explain the view. It was fantastic. Thus, I posted a bunch of pictures on my picture web site in the album labeled Split, Croatia.

The next day we explored the Diocletian Palace. It was built in something like 295 AD and is one of the best preserved relics of Roman architecture (or so says wikipedia). It was mostly converted into shops, and it was pretty small, but still, being around old buildings is cool.

On the way back we succeeded in getting a sleeper car. That seemed to shorten the journey a lot. Now, back in Budapest everything seems smelly and dark compared to the Adriatic. I suppose that is to be expected. My advice for all travelers is to find your way to Split, Croatia, just for the joy of the cheap souvenirs and laying on the blue blue water.

Look at my pictures!