Wednesday Morning (on the plane)

I wanted a change of scenery, so I booked a trip to Croatia. I’m on the plane right now flying into Zagreb, where I will have an hour to rush across the city to catch the last bus heading to Plitvice Lakes. If I miss it, then I have no idea what to do but I’ll worry about that later.

At the airport this morning I had one of those moments of simple happiness. I had access to a private lounge which made me feel exclusive for about an hour. The eyes of all the old couples and businesses people were on me as I walked in to pour myself a Tuborg beer, glass of chocolate milk, and a plate of croissants and salami. An odd mix, but that’s what I desired at 9 AM this morning.

I do a lot of things alone, but I have never committed to a full trip by myself. I love doing things with other people but equally enjoy doing things myself. It is a full four days of doing whatever I want without an obligation to accommodate for others.

My research before this trip was non-existent. I got impatient looking at details online so I booked my flights and figured I would coordinate the rest later.

Of course, I never actually did that so now it really is a do-as-you-feel trip.

Those are my airplane thoughts for now, so we’ll see how this journey goes. I do really need to catch this bus when I land.

Wednesday Afternoon (on a bus)

I’m writing now from a bus. Is it the bus I need? Still not positive, but I’m optimistic. In two hours, I will hopefully be arriving at Plitvice Lakes.

A collection of burley Balkan men helped me navigate my way through Zagreb. It was a series of head nods and pointing but certainly no smiles. Approaching a group of them all circled up smoking was rather intimidating, but it got the job done.

To be honest I was expecting sunny weather here, as that’s the only thing that comes up on google images (the extent of my preparation). Seeing mounds of snow outside the bus window is a bit disheartening but I guess that means the weather can only get better from this point.

Thursday (at the hotel)

I just read that last sentence to remember where I left off and laughed out loud. It did in fact get worse. Much worse, but I’ll get to that in a second.

I did make it safely to Plitvice Lakes and had a dramatic entrance. After needing the bus driver to pull the bus over to come look at Google maps on my phone, he graciously went a bit off route to drop me off. I stepped off the bus into a foot of snow on a winding trail in the middle of the woods. From there I could see a dimly lit parking lot. I ventured that way and to my relief saw the hotel.

The staff were perplexed where I had come from and why I was there. At this point I was wondering the exact same thing.

I spent the night in the hotel since National Parks don’t offer much night life. I was fine with this after a day of stressful travel, so I ordered room service and went to sleep.

The morning offered a fresh feeling of optimism. I bundled up and headed to the park. My first step outside the door I immediately noticed the snow had now accumulated to about two-three feet. Like I said, much worse.

I embraced it at first, kicking icicles and snow as I went along the trail. Then it became terrifying. So much snow had piled up on the branches that mounds of snow and branches began to collapse. I was now walking in a mine field hoping to avoid being nailed by a branch falling 30 feet.

This next part really sucks. All the main trails were closed due to the snow so I really couldn’t see anything. I was trying to think of a bright side or a way to fix it, but I just couldn’t. There was nothing I could do so I went back to the hotel. I was feeling dejected and regretful of my decision.

Things then got creepy. The hotel is a massive facility, but there are only about 15 other guests staying here. They decided to only power half the lights and play eerie pop music in every room. Each room has one staff member who stands in the corner and stares and smiles at me the whole time. I decided to get out of there and go for a walk. About 15 minutes away from the hotel one of the staffers appeared out of nowhere, circled around me, then slowly walked in front of me while looking back every few steps. I was terrified and thought I was in a horror movie.

I’m now back in my hotel room ready to get the hell out of here. Although it’s been a bust so far, I do think I’ll find this experience funny in the future. That’s if I make it.

Friday

Day 3 took it upon itself to make things even more difficult. My next destination was Split, but once again my lack of preparation let me down. There were no busses from Plitvice to Split until Sunday. My next best option was to take a bus back to Zagreb (3 hours), then from there take a bus to Split (5 hours). It was essentially an entire day of travel, but I had no choice.

I woke up at 5:30 to catch the bus to Zagreb. The shuttle driver had not arrived yet so I had to walk in the middle of the road jumping between lanes as cars came from either direction (I couldn’t walk next to the road, as there were still massive snowbanks). It was sketchy to say the least and I did fear getting hit a few times.

I arrived at the bus stop 30 minutes early to avoid any possibility of missing the bus. I then missed the bus. Apparently, I was on the wrong side of the road, so I stood there watching the bus I needed zip right past me. Most definitely the rock-bottom point of the trip.

I retreated to the hotel and took advantage of the free breakfast that was still available to me. As I ate my hardboiled eggs and kiwi, I was genuinely worried that I was going to be stuck there for the entire weekend and miss my flight home.

I then had a stroke of luck as I found an alternative bus that was making its way through the park a few hours later. It was the lifeline I needed.

This time out I had a shuttle and knew which side of the road to stand on. I was even more cautious and arrived an hour early. It was pretty cold standing there, but I filled my time making a snowman and seeing how far I could throw snowballs down the highway. After a while my hands were freezing, and I was ready to get on a bus. Unfortunately, the bus wasn’t showing up. After waiting 25 minutes past the scheduled time of arrival, I had a bit of a breakdown. My phone was not working so I was unable to call anyone or get any help. I had no clue what to possibly do so I just sat down.

Another 15 minutes passed then miraculously a tiny bus wheeled around the bend. It was the ultimate sense of relief, and I walked up to the door of the bus displaying just about every emotion. The driver had a blank stare, of course, and asked for my ticket. Ah shit, I didn’t have a ticket.

I pulled out my credit card to indicate that I was willing to pay whatever was needed so I could board the bus. The driver returned a head shake with a growly “no card”. I told him I would pay cash, but I had no idea if I even had any euros in my bag at the time. I started digging through my bag and found a leftover € 12.60. He told me the ticket price was €12.61. I couldn’t believe it, and neither could he. I got him to break character when I asked if he could spare me the one cent. He laughed and motioned for me to get on the bus.

I knew from that point that my luck had shifted, and the trip was bound to get better.

It was a peaceful ride to Zagreb. Upon arriving I missed the bus to Split, but this was really for the better. I had three hours to explore Zagreb which was absolutely worth it. I did a speed walking tour to see as much as possible then eventually made my way on the next bus to Split.

It was a 5-hour journey but unbelievably comforting knowing I had nothing else to figure out to get where I needed to be. It was another quiet journey until an old Croatian women opened conversation asking where I was going. This led to over an hour of her teaching me Croatia’s history and showing me pictures, and even a TikTok of different spots to visit. She was horrified to hear I was alone which made me nervous.

At about 21 (9PM), we arrived in Split. I walked off the bus to see palm trees and yachts, which I couldn’t process considering where I started my day. I got a Ćevapi then crashed at a hostel.

Saturday

The perfect day started with a 5:30 AM hike up Marjan Hill. I was the only person on the trail but surround by about 100 stray cats. The cats and I sat there absorbing the sun as it rose over the entire city. Once again, another moment of simple happiness and this moment alone made the entire trip worthwhile.

It was a beautiful day with weather in the 60s, which felt like 80 to me after living a Scandinavian winter for the past couple months. I laid out tanning at the pier as the locals walked by in their coats.

The rest of my day was spent exploring trails, crystal clear beaches, Diocletian’s Palace (used to film Game of Thrones), street markets, and just coddiwompling about.

My appreciation that day was amplified after my struggles to start the trip. Saturday was the perfect reminder that things always work themselves out.

Advice to my future self: As the situation gets worse, the story gets better.