Croatia

Bol

Jadrolinija's 16:30 boat from Split brought us into Bol at 17:40 on the 23rd. The town sits on the south side of Brač, at the foot of a long green slope, and we stayed two nights at Villa Rajski Dvor.

Late in the afternoon of the 24th we walked the seafront promenade, between palm trees and a long wall of white stone blocks at the water's edge. A sailing boat crossed the channel, with the long ridge of Hvar beyond. Meenu sat on the sea wall, and we took turns posing by the water.

Then we went round to the harbour. Big motor yachts lay along the quay in front of the old stone houses, the cafés had their umbrellas out by the water, and the green slope rose behind it all.

Dubrovnik

We reached Dubrovnik on the 25th, Meenu's birthday, and by mid-afternoon we were out on our apartment's terrace. It sat high above the sea under a roof, with palms and a vine around it. Across the water stood the old town on its rock, ringed by its walls, with the island of Lokrum off to the left.

As the sun went down there was a chocolate cake with a candle on the terrace table. Meenu leaned over it with the sky turning pink behind her, and Praddy fed her a piece. The old town became a dark outline across the bay, and soon after eight its lights were on.

We stayed two nights. In the small hours of the second, the moon lit a path across the sea below the terrace.

Dubrovnik from the sea

The morning after the birthday we went out on a speedboat. We passed below Lovrijenac, the fortress on its sheer rock outside the western walls, then ran along the foot of the walls to St John's Fortress at the mouth of the old harbour. Two old-style wooden sailing ships were out on the water in front of it.

From there the boat followed the coast east, past a white villa with a blue dome, hotels built into the cliffs and a sea cave. Then we sped back west past the old town and its cliffs, and on past a pair of rocky islets to the port, where a cruise ship lay near the Franjo Tuđman Bridge.

Meenu sat at the back with the white wake streaming out behind her. By the end of the ride the water under the boat was so clear we could see the seabed.

Plitvice Lakes

On the 28th we were up early for a group tour to the Plitvice Lakes. It left Split at 7:45, and the coach took us north past bare grey mountains.

We spent the afternoon in the park. Its lakes are a clear turquoise, waterfalls pour into them over mossy rock, and wooden boardwalks run along the water's edge. We took our photo by the water. Late in the day we looked down into the wooded canyon from above, with a thin waterfall dropping down its far wall.

Split

Split is where the trip began. Before our boat to Bol on the 23rd we were down at the harbour. A cruise ship lay at the long pier, and across the water the waterfront ran along under the green hill of Marjan, with the cathedral's bell tower rising over the old town.

We came back on the 27th for the rest of the trip, and on the 29th we stayed in town. That morning we looked down over the harbour, crowded with boats below the old town and Marjan.

After dark we joined the crowds on the Riva, the broad promenade along the waterfront, under a full moon. Then we walked into the old town, where the stone streets were still busy and lit up.

Krka and Visovac

On the 30th, our last full day, a second group tour took us to the Krka National Park. It left from Split's old town at 8:30.

At the falls the river spills over long runs of cascades into turquoise pools, between wooded slopes. We followed shady paths beside the rushing water, and Meenu posed above a pool with a broad waterfall behind her.

Then we stood at a viewpoint high above the river. The Krka wound away between the hills, and below us lay Visovac, a tiny island with a monastery among its trees. We took our photo with it behind us.