Out of the Heat & Into the Darkness

The day I arrived I went and explored the city. It is very small so it is easy to see most of the city on foot. The water is a beautiful shade of dark blue and the water is calm because several islands protect Split from storms in the Adriatic Sea. There is a large sector of the city with these huge apartment complexes that were old communist housing blocks. Each building is the same and each room is exactly the same size. From the beach you can see the old ruins of the city that Diocletian was born in. During his reign he had a massive palace constructed in Split that still remains to this day. Over time a city grew around it and now people have built houses using the palace’s existing walls. Shops are on streets that used to be hallways and corridors. There are stairways that lead to nothing and numerous sphinx’s that were imported from Egypt two thousand years ago.

All around split there are ancient Roman and Greek structures that are still standing. They’re all in ruins of course, usually just bits of old stonewalls that don’t really amount to much. Glynn, the owner of the hostel I was staying at, told me that it isn’t uncommon for people to pick their potatoes and an old Roman gold coin pop out of the ground. Apparently Split (and I’m guessing most of Croatia) is a land developer’s worst nightmare. People will buy a piece of land and decide to build on it and it’s a 50% chance that they will discover an old Roman ruin beneath their land. When this happens an archaeologist has to come in, uncover the rest of the structure, map it out, make a plastic mold of it, then seal it with concrete. All this takes a very long time. So nine times out of ten when people find a structure they just build over it really quick, which is illegal and a shame.

While walking around the city I came across an interesting series of stairs and I wanted to see where they would lead me too. Eventually after what seemed like a thousand steps I was on top of a mountain that overlooked the harbor and bay outside of Split. My first reaction was to take a picture, but the pictures just don’t do it justice. Well I was pretty high up so naturally, being a male, my first reaction was to pee off it, then take the picture.

The next day Glynn and some of the other guests and I woke up early and drove about an hour and a half to Krka national park to go swim in the river, the views at the park were one of a kind. We went for a swim, played some Frisbee and worked on our tan, and/or sunburn. From the bridge I could see sail boats below making their way down the winding river below to the Adriatic Sea for a sail. Once we started walking through the park there were huge waterfalls that spilled into a dark blue and green river.

I took the ferry to Hvar with Rob and Sinead, an English couple I met back in Split. Hvar was nice but it got old really fast. I was unable to book a hostel, but when I got off the ferry these groups of women were renting out rooms in their apartments and I was able to get a room with them. The water is crystal clear and the port is filled with sailboats. The island reeks of wealthy people. They all cruise up to the docks in their huge $33 million yachts, step off and have a couple drinks and down a kilo of lobster and then disappear into the darkness. I can hear their snooty little laughs half a mile away. Hvar is the most expensive place in Croatia, followed by Dubrovnik. The best way to determine if the place is expensive or not is to check the price of ice cream, beer and a coke.

While waiting for the ferry to Korcula I met Abby and Hannah from Wales and Dean from Melbourne, Australia (which is better than Sydney). We became pretty good friends and managed to split the cost of a room in Korcula. Korcula was considerably cheaper and Hvar and much more laid back.

We were planning on leaving at 11:00am but we managed to catch a later ferry, so Dean, the girls and I went straight to the beach, forgetting our swim suits of course. Dean caught me in mid action pose…

Dubrovnik was okay but I wasn’t the biggest fan. It reeked of tourism so I bought a ticket to Bosnia the very next day. Don’t get me wrong, Dubrovnik was beautiful, but Croatia is expensive and hot. I’m glad that I got to see it before it joins the E.U. It will be a completely different country in the next five years. I figured out what has been making me sick here. It's a small shrub that is common throughout Croatia and many people get hay fever from it. Here's your fun Croatian fact too: Croatia does not allow Polish people to enter the country with food because the Poles flock to the beaches by the thousands, fill up miles of coastline and never spend a dime (or Kuna) because they bring enough food to feed their family for a week.

I arrived in Mostar, Bosnia today. It’s a very interesting city. Half of the buildings are in ruins and bombed out pieces of historical crap filled with memories and bullet holes. I grabbed a handful of dirt earlier and pulled out several machine gun rounds. The shops around the city even sell old combat knives that once belonged to fallen soldiers. There are cemeteries all over the city that are separated by the various religions. They all share one thing in common though, 1993. There isn’t a single gravestone that doesn’t say 1993. It’s an eerie feeling knowing that all these people died the same year. They were all innocent civilians too.

I saw a diving competition today as well. Every Sunday there is a large televised diving competition off the 25 meter high Stari Most bridge. I went down to the bridge and witnessed some gruesome belly flops.

I also saw my first gypsies too! They’re awful, lazy, dirty and disgusting; Everything I expected. They all drag their little kids around with them to help gain sympathy while they try to hustle everyone. Families will be sitting outside eating at a restaurant and the gypsies will come and beg them for money and just make a scene. They can be seen just about everywhere begging. They teach their kids to pick pocket and steal so when they come close I clench my pockets.

I apologize but as I've been moving farther east wi-fi and kebab stands are becoming more and more scarce. The only things found in abundance are gypsies, ice cream vendors, and cigarettes. I believe I am the ONLY person in Europe who doesn't smoke. I’ve decided not to visit Greece. They say that it’s the most expensive European Union country so I guess I’ll save it for another day. Tomorrow I’m going to buy a train ticket to Sarajevo and then possibly go to Montenegro after that. I'm just happy to finally be somewhere cheap.

Peace, love & positive vibes,
Patrick

written by  pathaley on July 27, 2008 from Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
from the travel blog: Eurotrip
tagged Croatia, Mostar, Bosnia, EasternEurope, Hvar, Split, Korcula, Dubrovnik, Gypsies and NoodleyPoodelyGreatGoodness
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