Set out at 6am to explore medieval Gradec in upper town (Gornji Grad). It was an uphill walk along Radiceva road. I turned into Opaticka and passed by the Stone Gate before reaching the iconic St Mark Church with tiled roof displaying Croatia coat of arms and emblem. From there, it was a short walk to Jesuit Church of St Catharine at Katarinin Trg. Behind the church is a Strossmayer square which is a perfect place to get sunrise view of Zagreb city. There is a very short funnicular that one can take from Ilica all the way up to the Katarinin Trg. Rushing for time, I walked down the verdant staircase to reach Mesnicka and boarded a tram to the bus station.
The bus to Plitvice departed on time. My experience with Croatian buses were good...no delay at all. The countryside view is beautiful. Arrived at Plitvize Jezeru on time. Besides me, there were 3 more Japanese in the bus that alighted at Plitivice. The bus stopped outside station 2 and continued its journey towards Split. The first building one would see is a post office on the left and a bridge on the right. It is a short walk (about 5 minutes) to reach the P2 station booth. Passed by few hotels on the way. It was off season hence no buses nor ferries. So, the admission was free! In summer, the admission fee is 70 kuna inclusive of bus and ferry rides between P1 to P4. P1 is at the lower lake and P2-P4 stations are for the upper lakes. Even the public toilet was closed...I had to go to the toilet in the hotel. One of the hotel staff advised me to just go around P2 and walk to P1 because the upper lake is too massive to explore on foot. I am glad that I did not follow his advise. With rucksack on my back, I walked toward the ferry stop at Gradinsko Jezero. There is a small waterfall at the turquoise lake. Then I followed the bus road and walked towards P3 station. The view along the way is breathtaking. And the view that appears near P3 is even heart stopping. I felt like I found paradise on earth. There is no words to explain how exhilarated I was when I found the series of waterfall that cascading from Galovac Jezeru. A truly amazing view. The water is crystal clear and of various shades of green and blue. No one is allowed to swim here and the reason for the colour is minerals formation at the bed of the lake. It is a heaven for geologist and naturalist. There is wooden path along Galovac Jezeru and along the waterfalls like Galovacki Buk and Veliki Prstavac. The hike towards P3 from P2 and return took about 2 hours. I had time to walk to P1 and take bus from there but I was worried that I might not be able to find the bus stop at P1 and miss the bus to Split. I was tired too. So I took my time and walked to the bus stop. Ate my packed lunch while waiting for the bus to Split. Two Japanese girls joined me.
Arrived in Split at night. The bus station is located next to the train station and near the ferry port. The Grad is only 5 minute walk away. The Premi guesthouse that I booked online is just outside the grad. The lady who owns the guesthouse is very kind and warm. She even lent me her laptop to use...which was really useful because I managed to book hostels for Greece. I had the room all by myself which is great. The landlady recommended a local restaurant named Fife and luckily, I managed to find it despite it was quite dark and it is located at the corner. Had a sumptuous dinner of traditional Croatian food of dumpling and beef with gravy. Very filling indeed. Slept late...
The bus to Plitvice departed on time. My experience with Croatian buses were good...no delay at all. The countryside view is beautiful. Arrived at Plitvize Jezeru on time. Besides me, there were 3 more Japanese in the bus that alighted at Plitivice. The bus stopped outside station 2 and continued its journey towards Split. The first building one would see is a post office on the left and a bridge on the right. It is a short walk (about 5 minutes) to reach the P2 station booth. Passed by few hotels on the way. It was off season hence no buses nor ferries. So, the admission was free! In summer, the admission fee is 70 kuna inclusive of bus and ferry rides between P1 to P4. P1 is at the lower lake and P2-P4 stations are for the upper lakes. Even the public toilet was closed...I had to go to the toilet in the hotel. One of the hotel staff advised me to just go around P2 and walk to P1 because the upper lake is too massive to explore on foot. I am glad that I did not follow his advise. With rucksack on my back, I walked toward the ferry stop at Gradinsko Jezero. There is a small waterfall at the turquoise lake. Then I followed the bus road and walked towards P3 station. The view along the way is breathtaking. And the view that appears near P3 is even heart stopping. I felt like I found paradise on earth. There is no words to explain how exhilarated I was when I found the series of waterfall that cascading from Galovac Jezeru. A truly amazing view. The water is crystal clear and of various shades of green and blue. No one is allowed to swim here and the reason for the colour is minerals formation at the bed of the lake. It is a heaven for geologist and naturalist. There is wooden path along Galovac Jezeru and along the waterfalls like Galovacki Buk and Veliki Prstavac. The hike towards P3 from P2 and return took about 2 hours. I had time to walk to P1 and take bus from there but I was worried that I might not be able to find the bus stop at P1 and miss the bus to Split. I was tired too. So I took my time and walked to the bus stop. Ate my packed lunch while waiting for the bus to Split. Two Japanese girls joined me.
Arrived in Split at night. The bus station is located next to the train station and near the ferry port. The Grad is only 5 minute walk away. The Premi guesthouse that I booked online is just outside the grad. The lady who owns the guesthouse is very kind and warm. She even lent me her laptop to use...which was really useful because I managed to book hostels for Greece. I had the room all by myself which is great. The landlady recommended a local restaurant named Fife and luckily, I managed to find it despite it was quite dark and it is located at the corner. Had a sumptuous dinner of traditional Croatian food of dumpling and beef with gravy. Very filling indeed. Slept late...
Plitvice National Park
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