Tag Archives: Croatia

Posts from Base Camp

Discovering New Music on the Road

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(Kingston, Ontario, Canada)

Today’s blog entry is a little different.   I’ve decided to share some music that I’ve encountered while travelling in Europe.   No photos and no detailed commentary…just some YouTube links that you can check out if you are interested in some fun music from other countries.

While it is tempting to sightsee as much as possible while travelling, some down time is inevitable.  Whether it is on account of bad weather or simply because I need to take a break, I occasionally take it easy by watching the local music video channel.  As a former radio broadcaster, I’m intrigued by seeing how things work in other countries (the cover” photo for this post is from a museum in Rome – it is a recreation of a vintage television studio at RAI, the state broadcaster).   However, watching local music video channels is also a great way to hear music that I haven’t encountered at home.

A couple of years ago, Italy’s RTL station played a soulful and unabashedly retro song called “Moneygrabber”.   I never thought I would discover an American group (“Fitz and the Tantrums”) on Italian television, but that’s exactly what happened.  Here’s the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggbNKKDTBNA

Italy has been a good source of new music for me.  Last year, RTL played a fun Italian-language track by a singer named Max Gazzè.  See if you can figure out what this song is all about by watching this video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ej0ME8xdiF8

An English-language single that I never encountered in Canada is “Jungle Drum” by Emiliana Torrini.  She’s from Iceland but I first saw the quirky video when a Swiss friend shared it on Facebook:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZ9vkd7Rp-g

You may remember that I picked up a Croatian new music compilation when I visited Split.   I wasn’t expecting to find a ska-influenced song that was punctuated with some interesting passing chords.  Here’s “Savršen Film” by the unusually-named “Justin’s Johnson”:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLJPJ7uhv7w

Reggae seemed to be lurking in the background of a few Croatian songs this year.  Is Dalmatian Reggae the next big thing?   Perhaps in anticipation of such a craze, here’s a baffling (a donkey and a seagull?) video by Jasmin Stavros called “Reggae Dalmatino”:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysYYrc3mdgk

All of this music flows nicely into the final hints about my next destination.  I will be visiting a very musical island that has produced an impressive number of traditional and popular musicians.  I also have high hopes for music shopping while there.  Find out this weekend when I publish my next post!

Posts from Base Camp

Some Final Words on the Balkans

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(Kingston, Ontario, Canada)

I had originally intended to say goodbye to the Balkans with a lengthy post about food.  However, I’m going to pre-empt that discussion for a moment with some late-breaking news about the region.

"Living Room" of my hotel in Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina
“Living Room” of my hotel in Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina

As you have probably heard by now, torrential flooding has created massive devastation in Serbia, Bosnia and, to a lesser degree, Croatia.  Many people have died and hundreds of thousands have fled their homes.  Landmines are now once again a concern, as they have been disturbed by landslides and flooding.  Reconstruction will be a long and difficult process, once the immediate health and safety threats are overcome.

In my previous blog, I expressed the hope that the upcoming World Cup would be helpful in the Bosnian reconciliation process.  It seems that the flooding and an unexpected gesture from a tennis player may accelerate the process before that (and on an international level).

Novak Djokovic of Serbia is currently ranked as the 2nd best tennis player in the world.   Last weekend, he won the Rome Masters tennis tournament and a $500,000.00 paycheque…and donated all of it to the victims of the floods.   Most notably, the money (along with another $600,000.00 raised through his charitable foundation) was to be shared by the countries affected by the flooding.  This cross-border gesture has in turn prompted the Bosnian national soccer team to support Djokovic on the court and for Djokovic to declare his support for Bosnia & Herzegovina at the upcoming World Cup.  There also has been unprecedented cooperation between Serbia and Bosnia & Herzegovina in dealing with the aftermath of the flood.

I don’t think anybody expected events to unfold this way.  Let’s hope that others show similar leadership so that the old “divisions” may finally be put to rest.

Now, a few words about food…

Meat stuffed with meat (prosciutto) and cheese, with a Shopska Salad, in Žabljak, Montenegro
Meat stuffed with meat (prosciutto) and cheese, with a Shopska Salad, in Žabljak, Montenegro

Any discussion about food in the Balkans needs to begin with the omnipresent ćevapčići – a sausage-shaped minced meat.   I ate this in both Sarajevo (on a platter with other “real” sausages and pickled cabbage) and Split (in a warm pita with raw onions and ajvar sauce).  However, the dish I ate most was Wienerschnitzel…or bečka šnicla, as it usually appeared on menus (see my earlier post on “A Crazy Road Trip” for a photo).   The name bečka šnicla puzzled me at first, until I realized that many of the Slavic languages refer to Wien (Vienna) as “Beč“.   It was always excellent – the Austro-Hungarians certainly left their culinary mark in this part of Europe.  Anyone who has travelled here will not be surprised to read that I also enjoyed burek (filled pastry) and dolma (stuffed vegetables) on more than one occasion.

Dolma with pickled salad and a limunada (Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina)
Dolma with pickled salad and a limunada (Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina)

However, I also enjoyed some interesting beverages in the Balkans, primarily due to lemons!  In Bosnia, I drank limunada on several occasions.  This is roughly equivalent to “lemonade”, but it is so sour that they bring out a jar of sugar for you when serving the drink.  Later, in Croatia, I rediscovered pivo s limunom.  The exact name and formulation changes from country to country, but I had previously enjoyed it in German-speaking countries as Panache or Radler…where it is one-half beer and one-half lemon/lime soda.  It tasted good after a long day of skiing in the Alps and I now discovered that it also fit the bill after a long day of walking under the Adriatic sun. 

View from my dinner table in Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina
View from my dinner table in Mostar, Bosnia & Herzegovina

I think today’s ultimately hopeful post is a nice way to conclude my reporting on the Balkans.  On May 29, I’ll be heading out on another adventure to a place I have never visited before.  It wasn’t one that I had planned well in advance; after returning from Italy in March, I decided to let fate (in the guise of seat sales) dictate where I would visit in the spring.  It all happened very quickly and I am quite happy with how it turned out.  In fact, my next destination is logically connected to both Canada and the Balkans.  It will also be a great place to watch the opening matches of the World Cup.  Stay tuned for details!

Durmitor National Park, northern Montenegro
Durmitor National Park, northern Montenegro

 

   

Posts from the road

Trogir and…Vienna!

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(Split, Croatia and Vienna, Austria)

For my last full day in the former Yugoslavia, I went on an independent day trip from Split to Trogir.  Trogir is a UNESCO World Heritage site (one of several that I have visited on this trip) located about 45 minutes away from downtown Split.  The photo above shows the market along the waterfront in Trogir.

Had I gone nowhere else on this trip, I would have been amazed by Trogir.  However, after recently seeing Kotor and some other ancient towns with narrow, maze-like streets, it didn’t impact me in quite the same way.  It’s beautiful but it probably would have a greater impact on those who aren’t visiting too many different destinations in this fascinating part of Europe.

Yachters taking my advice and visiting Trogir, Croatia
Yachters taking my advice and visiting Trogir, Croatia

I returned to Split and went on an inspiring post-dinner “passeggiata” on the waterfront.  The cover photo for the previous post was taken on that walk.  Once again, it was nice to see so many local residents enjoying the pleasant evening.

Evening at Narodni Trg (Split, Croatia)
Evening at Narodni Trg (Split, Croatia)

Just before checking out of my room in Split this morning, I visited “Croatia Records” in Split.  This is a record label and retail concern that seems to play a very important role in keeping Croatian-language pop music alive, together with something called the “Croatian Music Channel”.  I watched a few videos on it yesterday and rather enjoyed it.  Maybe it’s because there doesn’t seem to be a lot of anger:  the music is fun and harkens back to a more innocent age of pop music.

Anyway, I took a chance at Croatia Records.  I asked the clerk to recommend a compilation CD that would be similar to what I watched on the Croatian Music Channel.  He did so…but I have no idea if his recommendation is a good one.  I’ll find out when I get back home and have access to a CD player!

I wonder if they're on the CD? A vocal group performs on the Riva (Split, Croatia)
I wonder if they’re on the CD? A vocal group performs on the Riva (Split, Croatia)

I flew from Split to Vienna today.  I don’t usually fly much within Europe but this was the best way to round out my itinerary without spending too much time (or money) on land transportation.  My only previous visit to Vienna was in 1991 when I was on my post-university backpacking trip.  That was half a lifetime ago!  I remember thinking then that Vienna was the cleanest and most orderly major European  city that I had visited.  23 years later, how does it compare?

Alas, you’ll have to wait for the next post to find out.  Vienna made a lot of impressions on me and I would like to devote an entire entry to it.  I’ll  post that as soon as I can upon my return to Canada tomorrow – stay tuned!

This mysterious exhibit at the City Museum in Split was not labeled in English, so I am not entirely sure what it is about...
This mysterious exhibit (click to enlarge) at the City Museum in Split (Croatia) was not labeled in English, so I am not entirely sure what it is about…
Posts from the road

Being in a real city

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(Split, Croatia)

Split has a different feel from most of the other places I’ve visited on this trip.  It receives a large number of tourists (primarily day visitors on cruise ships), but the old city is not the exclusive domain of visitors.  The residents of Split still celebrate their downtown and their love for their city is apparent…particularly in the evening, when they completely reclaim it for themselves.

View of the Riva (Split, Croatia)
View of the Riva (Split, Croatia)

It’s fun to be in a real city again.   You can find record stores (always a plus for me!) and other hallmarks of a city that is not entirely given over to tourism.   There are also restaurants in the downtown area that locals can actually recommend.  You’d think this would be true anywhere, but the sobe operator in Dubrovnik had a very hard time coming up with recommendations for me.   Other travellers told the same story:  eating in Dubrovnik is a necessity but not necessarily a pleasure.

The Riva in the evening (Split, Croatia)
The Riva in the evening (Split, Croatia)

Now that I’ve entered the third week of this trip, I find the realness of Split appealing.  In a way, it’s like being back in Sarajevo.  There were some tourists there but at night the streets were filled with Sarajevans.  As I prepare for my return to Canada in a few days, I am craving that reality more than I did at the beginning of this trip.

Part of the "Green Market" in Split, Croatia
Part of the “Green Market” in Split, Croatia

Split does have a “wow” factor to attract all those day tourists, of course.  The core of the old city is the massive Diocletian’s Palace, which the former Roman Emperor had built as his retirement home.   While it used to be a stand-alone structure, it eventually began to crumble and local residents began to build over parts of it.  As a result, parts of the original structure still stand (especially the external walls) but other parts have been creatively adapted into new streetscapes.

IMG_2135
St. Domnius Cathedral, which is built using parts of Diocletian’s Mausoleum (inside Diocletian’s Palace)

My soba is located within Diocletian’s Palace, although the upper floors of the building are obviously from a later era.  However, the foundation (and probably other parts as well) is Roman.  In some places, the city has different tiers:  streets go in different directions, depending on how high above the original palace you are.  It’s fascinating to see how nearly 2,000 years of history can collide in such a small space.

Donwtown Split - my sobe is down the alleyway in the centre left of the picture
In the middle of Diocletian’s Palace – my soba is just down the alleyway in the centre left of the picture (Split, Croatia)

Only two full days remain in this trip.  I hope to see the nearby town of Trogir…and then it’s time for a very quick tour of one of Europe’s great capital cities!

Posts from the road

Taking a vacation…while on vacation?

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(Split, Croatia)

After my far-too-exciting road trip to northern Montenegro, I decided that it was time for an important part of any extended trip:  a vacation from the vacation.  It’s important to recharge every once in a while, even though it is tempting to maximize the sightseeing every day.  With the sun shining in Kotor, I decided to enjoy the nice weather, stay close to my hotel, and take care of some more mundane matters.

My "hotel" in Kotor - my room is on the third floor (with open shutter)
My “hotel” in Kotor – my room is on the third floor (with open shutter)

I had fallen behind in my postcards, so I picked up a few of those and also found the appropriate stamps.  Instead of just asking “Engleski?”, I graduated to asking “Govorite li engleski?”  I probably butchered it quite badly but I still think it is important to make the effort and acknowledge that you are not in an English-speaking country.

Inside the walled town of Kotor, with some of fortifications visible above the city.
Inside the walled town of Kotor, with some of fortifications visible above the city.

One of the challenges with the language here is that the emphasis often falls on the first syllable of a word – it’s completely different from Italian, for example, where the emphasis is usually on the second-last syllable of a word. I also tried to communicate in the Montenegrin language at the bus station, where I figured out the schedule and bought a ticket for today’s bus trip to Dubrovnik and then Split.  The ticket seller appreciated my linguistic effort, but was much less appreciative of my use of a 100-Euro note to pay for a 14-Euro fare.   Unfortunately, bank machines here dispense very large denominations and it’s really overkill for most purchases.

View from my lunch table, overlooking the Bay of Kotor (Dobrota, Montenegro)
View from my lunch table, overlooking the Bay of Kotor (Dobrota, Montenegro)

I then decided to wander around both the old town of Kotor and the newer town of Dobrota.  No shocking discoveries, just a pleasant Mediterranean afternoon.  After catching up on some e-mail, I decided to return to my vacation and stopped by the hostel.  There is usually a special event of some kind at 8:30 each night:  there was a free dinner twice, while the other two nights featured free sangria and cocktails.  It was a chance to say goodbye to my fellow “road trippers” and to swap travel stories with some new hostel residents.  Several were from France, but there was one from Lithuania and one from New Jersey!  You never know who you are going to run into or where they have been.

View of the walls of Kotor and the fortifications above the town
View of the walls of Kotor and the fortifications above the town

I’m pleased to report that my two bus trips today were very much in control and I didn’t have any concerns about my safety.  Sadly, though, we were delayed for nearly two hours just past Dubrovnik because of a serious traffic accident.   We saw the ambulances racing to the scene and then saw them leave about half an hour later.  When they left, the ambulance lights were flashing but there was no siren and they weren’t going too fast.  A traveller on the bus from Colorado thought it meant that there had been fatalities.  Needless to say, I couldn’t help thinking about the dangerous road trip from a couple of days ago.

More than 5 hours after departure (and after passing through Bosnia & Herzegovina’s 10 km strip of Adriatic coastline – see photo of the resort of Neum at the top of this posting), I finally arrived in Split.

Split is a vibrant city with thousands of people on the streets.  You couldn’t move!  I’ve never seen a city with so many people in the downtown core.  After eating at a restaurant near the fringes of the old city, I emerged to fireworks above the waterfront area.    Well, it turns out that today was probably the biggest civic celebration of the year for Split:  the Feast Day of St. Domnius.  While the intense crush of people was kind of intimidating when I first arrived, tomorrow should be much calmer in Split.  I can do some proper sightseeing then.

Posts from the road

Close Encounters of the Bird Kind

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(Dubrovnik, Croatia)

When I went to Lokrum Island, I did not expect to be confronted with the above creature right off the dock.  Thinking that I had stumbled upon the only one, I took lots of pictures.  But there were more:  in the gardens, in the palace, on the rocky beaches, everywhere.  If you want to see peacocks (and peahens), this is your place.  They wander freely and have little fear of humans.  I’m somewhat surprised that neither one of my guidebooks mentioned this; personally, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a peacock wandering around humans like that before.

A peacock, when it is not showing off (Lokrum, Croatia)
A peacock, when it is not showing off (Lokrum, Croatia)

Having already wandered extensively among the walls and the back streets of Dubrovnik, the past two days have been devoted to boat trips…and laundry.  Laundry is one of my favourite travel experiences, because (in addition to refreshing my wardrobe) it often brings me out of the tourist zone and into a truly local environment.  Alas, there aren’t many locals in the old town of Dubrovnik and everybody I met at the laundromat was also a traveller.  That was OK, though, as we all enjoyed swapping travel stories and giving warnings/recommendations as necessary.

Today's Laundromat (Dubrovnik, Croatia)
Today’s Laundromat (Dubrovnik, Croatia)

Yesterday’s boat trip was a true adventure.  I decided to visit the town of Cavtat, which is a much smaller resort to the southeast of Dubrovnik.  Instead of taking a bus, I opted for the boat.  How could I pass up an opportunity to sail the shimmering Adriatic?  I didn’t see the boat before committing, nor did I see the weather outside of Dubrovnik harbour.

Well, it was a very small boat.  Even worse, the winds really whipped up the waves outside of the harbour and we were travelling directly into them.   The next 45 minutes could be best described as “violent turbulence” with additional “violent side-to-side movements”.  I’ve only been on one boat ride like that before, when Louise and I took a three-hour ferry from Iceland’s north coast to the remote island of Grimsey (I shall spare you the details, except to say that even some crew members were ill).

I began to wonder about the etiquette of being seasick in a small space but fortunately it remained a theoretical question for me and the other 6 passengers.   The weather improved marginally while I was in Cavtat and the return trip was also improved (although I was prepared to forego the return ticket and take a boring but safe bus back to Dubrovnik).  As for Cavtat itself, it is a quaint, cobbled town with many cats and is a nice change of pace from Dubrovnik.  Lunch was once again “al fresco” on the waterfront.

One of many cats living on the streets of Cavtat, Croatia
One of many cats living on the streets of Cavtat, Croatia

Today’s trip to Lokrum Island was a last-minute decision but I made a point of checking out the boat first.  I also knew it was a much shorter journey and that the winds were much calmer than yesterday.  In addition to the proliferation of peafowl, the island is a forest preserve and has a vast network of hiking trails through the woods and along the rocky shoreline.  It also has a collection of huge, crumbling buildings in the middle of the forest, including a palace and a fortress.   I wandered happily for a couple of hours and returned to Dubrovnik by a satisfyingly large boat.

The boat I took to Lokrum, as seen from Lokrum
The boat I took to Lokrum, as seen from Lokrum

I forgot to mention that my Dubrovnik soba is located in a 600-year old building.  It was damaged during the siege of Dubrovnik but has been very well restored.  As you can see from the photo below, even the streets are gleaming.

Stradun, the main street of Dubrovnik's old town
Stradun, the main street of Dubrovnik’s old town

Tomorrow I will be on the road again.  I’ll be in another new country, although I will be back in Croatia in a few days.

Finally – a note to the subscribers of this blog.  It seems that the “cover photo” at the top of every posting does not get included in the blog entries that you receive by e-mail.  All the written content is there, however.

Posts from the road

And now I’m in Croatia!

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(Dubrovnik, Croatia)

While I was excited about moving on to Croatia from Bosnia & Herzegovina, I was a little worried about the process.  I had heard some traveller stories about the border formalities, especially as Croatia has recently joined the European Union.  However, I was even more concerned about what kind of bus driver shenanigans I would be subjected to this time, especially once I saw the “well used” vehicle that was taking me to Dubrovnik.  Fortunately, the driver mostly stayed on his side of the road and didn’t try to overtake anybody on blind, downhill, cliff-side hairpin turns. I arrived in Dubrovnik with a great sense of relief.

View of the old town (and Lokrum Island) from the city walls in Dubrovnik, Croatia
View of the old town (and Lokrum Island) from the city walls in Dubrovnik, Croatia

Nothing prepares you for Dubrovnik.  It has the same “wow factor” as Venice, one major difference being that Dubrovnik has hills instead of canals (and apparently it had canals once too).   Dubrovnik also has these incredible walls that completely surround the old city.  You walk on them just like the Great Wall of China.  The Dubrovnik walls are HIGH – I’m usually pretty good with heights, but in some places there were huge drop-offs on either side and not too much in the way of railings or space to manoeuvre.  It was almost like being on top of the Mostar Minaret again.   However, this also means that you can get some pretty sensational photographs.  I must have taken about 200 in the hour or so that I was walking on top of the walls.

Unbelievably, this is one of the "lower" sections of the wall around Dubrovnik's old town.
Unbelievably, this is one of the “lower” sections of the wall around Dubrovnik’s old town.  Not much in the way of guardrails, as you can see.

I could go on and on about the visual impact of Dubrovnik.  The main street in the old town is made of marble.  Most of the side streets are incredibly steep and narrow staircases.  Clearly, this city was once very powerful.  In fact, it was apparently the first nation (called Ragusa at the time) to recognize the independence of the U.S.A.

One of the many side streets, as seen from the Dubrovnik city walls
One of the many side streets, as seen from the Dubrovnik city walls

Dubrovnik also has a tragic recent past.  It was bombarded during the breakup of Yugoslavia and a huge number of buildings were destroyed.  However, it was rebuilt incredibly quickly and there really aren’t any physical signs of the war.  The reminders are much more subtle here than in Bosnia & Herzegovina.

Dubrovnik's Cathedral
Dubrovnik’s Cathedral

I also visited the Fort of St. Lawrence (Tvrdava Lovrijenac) later in the day.  It’s somewhat reminiscent of a smaller, emptier Fort Henry (for those of you from Kingston, Ontario), so it wasn’t too exotic for me on that level.  However, it provides an outstanding location for photographs of the city and the incredibly blue Adriatic Sea.  The photo at the top of this blog posting was taken from the Fort.

Looking toward the Pile district of the "new city" from the Dubrovnik city walls
Looking toward the Pile district of the “new city” from the Dubrovnik city walls (Tvrdava Lovrijenac on left)

I’m staying in a “soba” here – a room in a private house, as opposed to a hotel.  In this case, the owner doesn’t live here but stops by from time to time in order to check people in and out.  I have to share a bathroom with one other person on my floor.  While a private bathroom is a nice luxury to have,  doubling the cost of your stay really can’t be justified for the sake of some convenient plumbing.  (Dubrovnik is a very popular destination; hotel rooms are both scarce and fiendishly expensive in the old town.)  The alternative was to stay in a nearby town and commute into Dubrovnik.  While I would consider that in a more modern city with less character, Dubrovnik’s old town is so unique that I didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to stay in it.  I will not be traumatized by sharing facilities for a couple of days.  My expectations for food are also lower here, as the tourist volume drives up prices…and often puts downward pressure on quality.  I know that I will eat better in other Croatian towns.