After months living in Europe and soliciting people's suggestions for vacation trips to bring into consideration with our own, one destination that kept getting repeated was Croatia. Croatia??? Are you sure? My only knowledge of the country was its involvement in the Bosnian war for the better part of my high school career. Really? As it turns out, Croatia is no longer a war-torn country, but a huge European vacation draw, quickly becoming a worldwide vacation destination as well.
After much research we decided to stay on the island of Hvar for our final "holiday" of our European lives. We rented a 2-bedroom apartment in a little town of Milna that was known for its quiet surroundings, "sand" beaches, and fresh fish.
Will, as always, was a super traveler because getting to Hvar Island from Munich involved a train, airplane, bus, and boat (in that order!). Upon arrival we immediately hit the "beach". As you can see it was mainly rocks -- typical for Croatia, but there was a 6 foot stretch of sand along the water, always occupied by kiddos.
William loved the tide pools.
Add another body of water to this toddler's list: the Adriatic Sea!
Being the early morning risers we've been forced to become, we had fun hanging out in the morning watching the fisherman arrive with the day's catch. We couldn't get over Croatia's crystal clear water.
There was a larger market in Hvar town than our snack shack in Milna, so every once in awhile we'd take a taxi into town to shop, explore, or eat at another restaurant.
The harbor of Hvar town was filled with picturesque white-washed buildings, humble little sailing boats, and easily the largest yachts we'd ever seen. Some of these yahcts were even bigger than Jeff's or my childhood home -- complete with their own matching-wardrobed staff. Wow. That's the life.
Europeans have parks everywhere. Here is one we found while strolling around. I just love this picture!
Another discovery while strolling around? This resort hotel that cost 300 Euros a night, but allowed anyone to pay 10 Euros a day to use the pool. After 3 days wincing while walking over rocks at our Milna beach, we were sold. We showed up when the pool opened, paid, and stayed all day! It was an embarrassingly easy highlight of our trip.
It only reinforced a traveling philosophy Jeff and I share about vacations: It's all about the pool. :)
Aside from the fun children's pool, we spent over an hour taking turns riding the waterslide with William.
Every time he came splashing in the water, he was pulling himself up the side, saying only one word, "AGAIN!" while either Jeff or I scrambled to catch up to him as he was already halfway up the stairs to the top of the slide to start all over again!
A slide AND water? What's not to love?
En route back to Munich (after the ferry back to mainland, but before our bus to the airport) we had a fun time roaming the narrow streets of Split. It sure had some pretty, unique architecture.
While our week in Croatia was just what we needed . . . a lazy, fun week before our storm of moving day to-do lists . . . we were underwhelmed overall by the country and the people. We found Greece and its Grecians more friendly and affordable than Croatia touted itself to be. Don't get us wrong, we loved our time in Croatia, experiencing a country we never thought we'd visit. We completely understand why Europeans travel there, but wouldn't really recommend it to the band of Americans we hear are starting to trek here for vacations as well.
We were tan. We were rested. We were ready to face Munich and our inevitable goodbyes.
(Sniff, sniff)
