Šibenik and More Waterfalls

My next stop was Krka National Park en route to Split. Krka is another popular park with waterfalls, but you can swim at Krka unlike Plitvice. To get to Krka, I had to stop in a town called Šibenik for a few hours to catch another bus.

The garden of St. Lawrence Monastery in Šibenik.

 I was pleasantly surprised by Šibenik. It had a charming old town and I was able to easily navigate without a map. There were signs everywhere directing you to the next sights. And it was pretty small. The waterfront was full of yachts heading to nearby islands. Yachting is a big deal in Croatia.

I'm not sick of waterfalls yet!

 Krka is cool because you can swim in a designated area. The current is quite strong in the river. I saw one man using the river as a lap pool (the tiny ones where you can swim in one spot against the current without moving). In some ways, I preferred Krka to Plitvice becasue the waterfalls had a lot more water going over them, but that might have to do with the lack of rain recently. Krka is a river and I think less sensitive to rainfall. There were a ton of people though and the boardwalk path that takes you through the main area of the park was packed with people!

The main waterfall at Krka park.

But don't you go thinking that's the last of the waterfalls! There's more to come in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Zadar and Waterfalls

Along the coast between Pula and Zadar.

Aftera long but scenic bus ride from Pula, I arrived in Zadar. The bus ride itself is worth mentioning. For what seemed like a majority of the ride, the road was clinging to the side of mountains that drop off into the sea. I had amazing views of the islands and coastline. Any accessible rocky outcropping along the water had people sunbathing and swimming. It was a lovely Sunday afterall and it seemed like all the locals were out. Unless all the tourists rented boats and found all the secret coves. Photos really don't capture it (but then, do they ever?).

From Zadar, I did a day trip to Plitviče Lakes with a girl I met at my hostel the night before. We had a great time walking around, looking at the beautiful waterfalls and lakes. Apparently, it is even more spectacular after rain. It was supposed to rain, and did drizzle a bit in the morning, but we ended up with lovely weather for most of the day. I highly recommend Plitviče. But then, it is one of Croatia's must-see sights for a reason. There were some crowds, but it wasn't too bad, maybe becuase of the bad forecast. We got back to Zadar in time to watch a lovely sunset from the beach. She left the next morning but our intended routes are similar, so we will cross paths again!

Plitvice Lakes.

Zadar itself has a small old town, which was nice for wandering. I spent an afternoon on the beach and walked back to my hostel along the coast. The coast of Croatia tends to be quite rocky and that held true here as well. I watched another sunset with a few people from the hostel at the Sea Organ and Sun Salutation. The Sun Salutation is an installation that collects solar energy during the day and then creates a light display at night that reflects the sunset. Unfortunately, it was cloudy so the sunset and light show were a bit lackluster. But the Sea Organ was really cool. We sat for a long time just enjoying the atmosphere. A few times, people did close passes with their boats to get the organ going. The organ creates sound from water moving through it.

Sunset over Zadar. Zadar is known for sunsets.

The Sun Salutation in Zadar.

Hope you aren9t sick of waterfalls yet... there are more to come!

Hello, Croatia!

A lovely bus ride along the Istrian coast (a part of Croatia) took me from Trieste, Italy to Pula. Istria is a gorgeous area with a rocky coast, and truffles, wine and olive oil. Yum!

My first evening in Pula I me up with a couple I know from home. They are on a whirlwind Euro trip and somehow we managed to find out we would be in the same place at the same time! We did some evening sightseeing and had dinner. I had a delicious cheese and TRUFFLE (!!) pizza for about $9 Canadian! And they didn't skimp on the truffles. I've never had truffles before, and I highly recommend them now! I should have taken a picture to prove how truffley it was. 

The amphitheatre at night.

Pula has a very well preserved Roman amphitheatre and a number of other Roman ruins. They are beautifully lit at night. Apparently, the amphitheatre is the 6th largest currently in existence and the best preserved. There was one part that was such a stark white it looked like a poor replica of the original, but turns out, it was original and had just been meticulously cleaned. One interesting thing I learned at the amphitheatre is that the stairs were made to slow crowds by having very high steps.

The white section is original, just cleaner than the rest.

Pula is also known for it's beaches. I went to the Verudela area with a few British girls from my hostel. The beaches are rocky, but stunning. I didn't take my camera so I only have a few photos from my phone that don't do it justice. I'm not used to swimming in such crystal clear water! But it was good because it made it easy to avoid the jellyfish and sea urchins.

One of the beaches at Verudela.

My next stop is Zadar and a few parks nearby... Hopefully the weather forecast is wrong and the sun keeps shining! They're calling for rain but I want to be outside!

Venice: Round 1

After a really long day and very little sleep, arriving in Venice was not the greatest. The airport had a dingy feel to it and no one seemed interested in being friendly or helpful. I almost missed the bus stop for my campsite and when I did get there, the staff weren't very friendly either, but maybe they had just had a long day at work... One of the people who was working when I arrived was also working the next morning before 8am. I stayed at a campsite in the suburbs that rented tents instead of at a hostel or hotel in Venice because it was easy to get to from the airport and much less expensive than staying in Venice proper. It was kind of fun, too. And I was only a short bus ride from the city.

The Rialto Bridge.

The morning and my trip into the actual city of Venice made me forget the inconveniences of the previous night. Venice is packed full of tourists, but for good reason. It's a very enchanting place. The canals were pretty cool. I arrived at St. Mark's Square early in the day so it was only starting to fill up, but the museums around the square already had line ups! I skipped them this time (maybe when I come back I'll brave the crowds). I spent most of the day wandering and getting lost, and it was great. I ended up in really pretty residential areas devoid of other tourists a few times. I had pizza for lunch in a little cafe near the Grand Canal, but at the residential end so it was nice and calm. I think it's the only place I saw all day that had more locals than tourists. Or maybe they were Italian speaking tourists...

Venetians have IKEA bedding too!

I stopped in at a free exhibit about Vivaldi and violin making in Italy. The whole day reminded me of the Vivaldi's Ring of Mystery cassette we used to listen to when I was little.

The one museum I made it to (this time, I fly home from Venice too) was the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. I wasn't a huge fan of the Kandinsky pieces on display, but the Calder, Miro, Magritte and others were great. The gallery was much more intimate than the New York Guggenheim, and is housed in Peggy Guggenheim's former home. An intern did a talk about her life... She was an interesting lady! I sure have been getting my fill of 20th century art so far on this trip.

The Grand Canal.

From Venice, I went to Trieste, Italy for a brief stop before catching a bus to Croatia. The old part of Trieste seemed better maintained than Venice. But the bus station was awful. The train station next door was nice and modern. The toilets in the bus station were free (unlike everywhere else) but there were no seats, no toilet paper, no soap and the stall doors didn't close. I was surprised the toilets flushed. Anyway, back to the actual town... I didn't have a map because the tourist info points tend to be far from the transportation hubs in every city I've been to. Luckily, it was easy to orient myself as long as I knew where the water was.

A facade in the main square in Trieste.

In Trieste.

First Stop: Zürich

Here we go again! This time I'm off to Venice, Croatia, Slovenia, and likely Montenegro, Serbia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina (that's the plan at least). But first I had a 10 hour layover in Zürich. Unfortunately, I forgot the usb cord for my camera so my posts are a bit delayed because I didn't want to post without pictures!

The first place I stopped was Zurich, for a 10 hour layover. My flight was overnight but unfortunately I didn't sleep that well so I was exhausted during the day and didn't see that much, but I got a taste for the city.

View from Üetilberg.

 The airport in Zurich was nice, but the woman at the info point was not helpful. Luckily, I had done a bit of research before. I headed into the city and took a tram up to Üetilberg to get a view of the city and the lake. It was quite peaceful. There is an extensive network of hiking and biking trails that seemed well used, so I decided to walk back down instead of taking the tram down the way I came.

After that, I wandered around the city for a while, checking out the sights. Before I got so tired I couldn't walk, I headed to the Zurich Kunsthaus. And what a nice surprise, it was free because I went on Wednesday! (Everything else in Zurich is absurdly expensive.)

I was in Switzerland once before briefly and had rösti  for lunch. I was looking for it with no luck (well, not for less than 20 euros!!), but I did find rösti sticks(?) that were kind of like tater tots at the deli in the grocery store. And Orangina was less expensive than Coke! So that was my fancy Swiss meal. I did buy some Swiss chocolates :)

Flying to Venice.

Next stop: Venice.

Iceland, the short version

I haven't had much time to write anything so it is already our last night here in Iceland. It has been an amazing week. So here's the quick and dirty version. One piece of advice for anyone thinking of going to Iceland (even in July!): pack a hat, gloves and warm layers! It is cold and damp!

Day 1:

Arrival in Reykjavik. Our first stop was the Blue Lagoon, where we lazed around in the hot springs for a bit. Then we headed into town, wandered around and settled in at our guesthouse. Reykjavik is a small city and not super interesting, but easy to walk around. There are lot's of felted handicrafts available for sale everywhere.

Day 2:

We caught the early morning bus to Landmannalaugar. Despite the rain, wind and low temperatures (so glad I packed my hat), we did a little hike to see the rhyolite mountains and lava formations in the area. It was pretty cool, although not as colourful as in the postcards because of the weather.

From Landmannalaugar, we headed to Skaftafell via Eldgja, a volcanic canyon. It was quite the bus ride... really, it was more like a rickety, old carnival rollercoaster. We crossed dozens of rivers, hung off the edges of cliffs and wished we hadn't chosen the only seats without seatbelts. (We passed a Jeep or SUV of some type stuck in a river, which we crossed.)

Day 3:

View from the breakfast table in Skaftafell.

In Skaftafell, part of Vatnajökull National Park, we did a short walk from our guesthouse to Svartifoss, a waterfall frequently featured on postcards. From there, we headed across a plateau to Sjónarnípa, a veiwpoint that looks out over Skaftafellsjökull, which is part of Vatnajökull, the largest glacier in Europe. From our guesthouse, we had a view of the sand flats in front of another part of the glacier which flooded in the 90's after a volcanic eruption under the glacier.


In the afternoon, we caught a bus to Vik, a town on the south coast known for black sand beaches and birds. We took it easy and got some groceries (it was 3 times as expensive in Reykjavik!!).



Day 4:
After a night in a guesthouse that smelled like horses, we headed along the coast to Seljalandsfoss, another waterfall, where we had to switch buses. After a much calmer AWD ride than our last one (but with just as many river crossings), we reached Þórsmörk. The area is known for hiking, so that's what we did. After buying the worst (i.e., least accurate) hiking map I've ever seen, we went for a walk that took us to the top of a small mountain. We had great views of the surrounding valleys and glaciers, specifically Eyjafjallajökull (yes, the location of the 2010 eruption) and Mýrdalsjökull. Apparently, Husadalur, where we stayed, is home to a small herd(?) of Icelandic horses. (There was a riding tour of some sort going on while we were there.)

At the top of the mountain we accidentally climbed.

New friends.

Day 5:
We did a little more exploring of the Þórsmörk area before heading back to Reykjavik for the evening. Good thing  we bought some food at a small grocery store at a pit stop because the grocery store was closed by the time we got back to the city. It really wasn't that late!


Day 6:
Another early morning bus trip and we found ourselves on our way to the Golden Circle (Þingvellir, Geysir and Gullfoss). Þingvellir, the original home of Icelandic parliament (established in 930), is on the edge of the Eurasian and American plates. Geysir is a geothermic area, home to Geysir, the geyser that all other geysers are named after. Geysir no longer erupts regularly, but Strokkur, only a few steps away, erupts about every 7 minutes. This area reminded me a lot of the geothermal areas in New Zealand. Gullfoss, a waterfall, was cool, but not mind blowing. There were no fences along many of the edges, so you could have touched the water in some places, if you really felt the need...

Surprise! It's a geyser!

At Gullfoss.

Day 7:
We started off our last day in Iceland by visiting the National Museum in Reykjavik. A tour bus arrived shortly after we did, which we both found intrusive since the museum is quite small. A lot of the information in the museum focused on the influence of Christianity in Iceland, which was interesting, but we both agreed we would have liked to have known more about the vikings! We also kept hearing about how Icelanders generally have many superstitious beliefs and many believe in "hidden people" (sort of like elves), trolls and the like. I would have liked to have seen more in the museum about how those beliefs fit in with Christianity, which was widely adopted in the year 1000.


We spent the afternoon wandering around the city and finished off the day with Icelandic salmon for a second night in a row. It was that good. And one of the only things we could buy in small quantities.

In the morning, we're off to Sweden to check out Stockholm, Uppsala and Norrköping, to see the sights and visit some of our friends. All in all, Iceland was amazing and I can't wait to visit again. There is so much to see and the landscapes are just magnificent. My recommendation is that you go, too!

** Note: I didn't actually post this in a timely manner, but it was all written on our last night in Iceland. I just never got around to adding photos and posting it until now...**

Leaving on a jet plane

I found a draft "Travel Wishlist" I started last year. Near the top of that list was Iceland. And guess where I'm flying to tomorrow?! I'm so excited. After a week in Iceland, a week in Sweden is next on the itinerary, followed by 2 weeks in Estonia. But I shouldn't get ahead of myself... I still have to finish packing!

Getting in a little culture before leaving

Tuesday morning we packed up, checked out, and headed to Museum Mile.

"Our" subway stop

Over the course of the day, between the two museums we visited, I saw works by almost every well-known artist from the couple of centuries. Miro, Rodin, Chagall, Klimt, Kadinsky, Picasso, Degas, Georgia O’Keefe, Cezanne, Matisse, Tanguy, Manet, Monet, Van Gogh, Seurat… I could go on… Seeing all these famous pieces up close, seeing the cracking paint and brush strokes, was absolutely amazing. Next time I have to make it to MoMA and all those other museums we missed.

Hendrik in front of the Guggenheim.

We got to the Guggenheim for opening. It is such a cool building! Love Frank Lloyd Wright! Unfortunately, it was one of the loudest museums I have ever visited. It was so bad I put on my iPod to drown out the crowd. Ignoring the noise, it was a great experience overall. There was a really interesting photo exhibition and the permanent collection is also spectacular. It’s a relatively small museum and it took us about 2 hours to get through, although if we had more time I could definitely have been there longer.

We grabbed lunch from some food carts. I decided to try a New York pretzel. Bad idea. Probably one of the worst things I have ever eaten. It was dry and salty. So, so salty. Unfortunately, it was also the only vegetarian option.

My pretzel after I had already shaken off some of the salt. You can still see it.

Jazz band in Central Park behind the Met.

After eating, we went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Wow. It’s huge. Absolutely massive. A gallery I wanted to see was closed, but there was still so much to see, even skipping almost all of the ancient and medieval galleries. The gallery that was closed had some Dadaist works and other pieces I wanted to see. Next time…

Interesting map of modern Europe in the Met. Only missing a few countries...

One exhibit that stood out for me at the Met was Leon Levinstein’s Hipsters, Hustlers, and Handball Players. It was a collection of photographs of New Yorkers from 1950 to 1980. But not clean, upper-crust New Yorkers. The pictures captured normal (somewhat quirky) people doing everyday things.

In the Van Gogh gallery. There were so many people every where! At least the Met was quiet(ish).

There was a bamboo installation on the roof of the Met. They're working on building a huge wave. You could go up into the structure, but you had to book ahead of time.

Bamboo on the roof.

The roof had a great view of Central Park and the city, too.

One disappointing thing at the Met was getting herded out 15 minutes before closing time. I was worried about finding Hendrik because I wasn't sure if we could get to our meeting place. Luckily we did and I didn't lose my cousin right before leaving!

The steps of the Met at closing time.

The ride back was uneventful. I wasn't sure if the border guard would believe I was only bringing back $2 worth of goods, but it went smoothly. (I only bought 2 postcards in New York.) I guess I'll just have to go back!

Public Spaces – From relaxing to hectic

After parting with Peter in the Meatpacking District, Hendrik and I walked along the Highline park for a little bit. It’s an old railway track that has been turned into a really interesting raised park/walkway. I had read about it a while ago as a potential model for what could be done with the Gardiner in Toronto. It was very cool!

Highline Park

 From there we headed to Central Park. Hendrik and I both like wandering around and exploring, so that’s what we did. Lots of neat things to see, so I’m just going to post some pictures.

Central Park

Alice in Wonderland statue.

On a rocky hill with a nice view of the city.

Massive globe in Columbus Circle.

 From Central Park, we headed to Times Square, passing through Columbus Circle first. Here are the requisite nighttime Times Square shots.

Times Square tourist shots!

Monday was definitely a long day. But there is just so much to see in New York!

Hope you brought your walking shoes

Early morning above NYC.

Me partially blocking the view from the Empire State Building.

We woke up early on Monday morning to get to the Empire State Building before the notorious line ups. We were lucky… It took about 10 minutes to get from the entrance to the top without any line. I can’t imagine how long it would take in the middle of the day. We had a good overview of the city from the top and it wasn’t too crowded. A NYPD helicopter did a low sweep of the viewing deck which was pretty neat. I also noticed there were far fewer cars on the street than I would have thought, despite being there during morning rush hour. Lots of taxis and buses though.

Excitement at the Empire State Building.

After that, we had breakfast at a mediocre diner before meeting up with Christina’s friend Peter. Peter is extremely knowledgeable about New York and might just be the leading expert on the history of the New York subway system. Needless to say, he gave us a very informative tour.

We started off at the World Trade Center site. He took us through St. Paul’s Chapel across the street from the site. It is the oldest building in continuous use in New York and a place that people took refuge in in the aftermath of 9/11. To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much, but being there and seeing all the cards and police badges and other memorabilia was very moving. You can see the impact of 9/11 all over the city. One prime example is the New York Stock Exchange, where we went next. You can’t get a car near the building and you need to pass through a metal detector before entering the building. Interestingly, there is a building across the street from the NYSE that has pockmarks in the walls from an attempted drive-up bombing a long time ago (I believe Peter said it was a carriage, not even a car).

St. Paul's Chapel, across the street from the World Trade Center site.

 From Wall St., we went to the South St. Seaport, which is unfortunately like so many other historical tourist districts. It reminded me of Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco. But there’s a deck with a nice view and it was a good place for a short break.

Our next stop was the Lower East Side, where we’d spent a bit of time the night before. We walked through SoHo and the NYU campus. I’ve looked at grad programs at NYU a bit, but housing is obscenely expensive. Peter told us a bit about the history of the tenement housing that is common in the area. It’s interesting how areas that used to be crowded, low-income, working immigrant neighbourhoods are now super expensive and trendy. Also, full of high-end stores that try to look exclusive, but that we have in Toronto. Okay, maybe I’m just saying that because I did no shopping whatsoever in New York and I’m trying to console myself.

Entertainer in Washington Square.

 We stopped by Washington Square Park near NYU, a great place for people watching. The square was full of all kinds of people doing all kinds of things. It’s always nice to see well-used, well-loved public spaces. We continued on through to Greenwich Village, where we stopped at Magnolia Bakery for delicious cupcakes. And then on to the historical White Horse Tavern, once frequented by people like Dylan Thomas, Bob Dylan, Jane Jacobs and Jack Kerouac.

Washington Square Park.

 We then walked to the Meatpacking District where we ended our lovely tour.

Note: These posts are from August, but I gave up posting for a bit because I was playing around with Wordpress. I decided to stay on Blogger for now because importing to Wordpress changes a lot of my formatting.