croatia you have really hit the jackpot with your incredibly long coastline. it stretches for 6000 km with over 1000 islands.
the times when you were an insider’s tip have long since passed. countless discoverers now head southeast to explore you. unfortunately you have lost a bit of your naturalness and charm.
armed with a fantastic ice-cream we stroll through poreč and rovinj. as beautiful and picturesque as your cities may be, we give up on istria. too expensive, too much going on, not the way we like to travel. shortly before we leave the peninsula we come across grandiose scenery around opatjia. old manorial villas line the rough steep coast. you can imagine how elegant it used to be when relaxing here.
hidden in a bay beyond senj we come across camp ujča. the place is run by a local family who knows how to create a relaxed atmosphere. paul enjoys snorkeling and discovers the species-rich colourful fish world. promptly he is given a neoprene suit as a present. luk loves to ride a rubber dinghy and lea enjoys the beach, sun and crystal clear water. we celebrate her birthday with a delicious meal in the restaurant kod veska in senj.
not far inland we visit the national park of the plitvice lakes. on a huge area you can explore the 16 lakes, which are connected above ground and underground, over several varied hiking trails. a magnificent show for big and small. you can see royal blue dragonflies and small watersnakes in turquoise water, torrential meter-high waterfalls and much more. the lakescape is in a state of constant change due to the high lime content.
impressive what mother nature has created.
attention it ranks as one of the most visited national parks in europe.
after dubrovnik it becomes quieter, what remains wild is the traffic. the croat rushes and roars as if there were no tomorrow, which is reflected in the dented crash barriers and the many memorial crosses on the roadside.

having reached the south, we bathe one last time in this unbelievable sea and the journey continues.