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[Plitvice Park, CROATIA] Day 8: The sweet scent of Plitvice




The mist is sweet. The cold air brushes against our skin. As we walk down the muddy trails. the forest dazzles in splashes of cobalt blue and green. 
                                  
The Plitvice Park feels like such a mystic place. It transcends all seasons, capturing  a distinct view at different times of the day.
We can hear the waterfall from far away, and yet we can hardly see our fingers through the mist. 

The raindrops gather on spiderwebs, and along the path we see huge fungus attached firmly on tree trunks and green-head ducks wobbling through the meadow grass.
They took no attention of us, and we are more like intruders to this wonderfuland. 


[Zadar, CROATIA]Day 7: Greek forum, pillar of shame, Museum of Ancient Glass, Sea Organ & Greeting to the Sun, Cafe Bruschetta

The funny thing about Croatia is that all the attractions (including churches) have the weirdest opening hours. They are usually open for a short window of time (i.e 12-1300 and 17-1900) and because it is a small city that every place can be done by foot, we often have to detour and go back to places as when they are open. 

Zadar is very famous for its glasswork, and we decided to stop by the Museum of Ancient Glass. Museum of Ancient Glass, is housed in Cosmacendi Palace, overlooking Jazine habour. The permanent exhibition displays goblets, jars, vassels that are used to store perfume, essentials oils in the Middle Ages. The discovery of blowpipe for glass-making really increased production and it is amazing how glasses made in the 1st or 2nd century in Zadar has such variety in shape.  Many of them comes with Art Nouveau like features, or motifs of fruits and fish. We also got a VIP view of the actual glass making process! 

The St Donatus Church is built on the ruin of an ancient Greek forum, and inside it you can still see inscriptions and altars It is constructed on early Byzantine architectural traditions with a round rotunda, and although no longer used as a church anymore, lots of music concerts are held here due to its marvelous acoustics. 


Pillar of Shame and Greek Forum 
So apparently for any evildoers, they are chained under the pillar of shame for public display, to instill guilt and shame to never do any bad doings again. This actually reminds me of the exhibition we saw at the Fortress in Salzburg, where people have to wear these masks of shame with crazy animal faces or monster faces. 

In 1st BC when the Roman started to settle here, the colony was probably found by Julius Caesar himself at the end of the civil war with Pompeius. The city is constructed according to principles of Roman urban planning. It consists of 5 longitudinal (Decumanus) and 8 transversal (cardo streets), which interesects at 90 degrees. The intersection of 2 main streets, so here you will find the city square (forum) and a piazza. The Zadar city has essentially kept this layout and hence the Greek Forum is right at the intersection of the two main streets: Kalelarga and Simuna K. Benje. 

Sea Organ 
The sea organ is designed with 35 pipes ending with whistles with opening on  quayside floor. Depending on the size and velocity of the wave, the movement of the sea pushes air through the whistles to form a continuous chord. It plays 7 accords of 5 tones.


Next to the Sea Organ is Greeting to the Sun by Nikola Basic, a solar powered floor panel that illuminates at night. The biggest panel represents the sun, and the smaller circles represent the solar systems and is inscribed with names of Zadar's saints. 

This is the perfect place to see the beautiful sunset of  Zadar, and listening to music composed by nature. The melody has such a calming effect that I could take a nap on the sea organ stairs! 

As we walk down the Riva promenade, we notice Cafe Bruchetta, cafe which is famous for local Croatian Cuisine. 

[-------Our Order----] 

- Mixed Salad
- Filet Mignon with mushroom 
- Braised leg of lamb with rosemary and potatoes 
- Meat Lagsagna 

We didn't order any dessert since the menu isn't really attractive, but the braised leg of lamb is very tender and sweet, and the roasted potatoes are one of the best that I've had so far! The potatoes is crisy on the outside, and still moist on the inside, without it being overly oily. 

The view of the seaside, is wonderful, and it is a good place for people watching as many would just sit by the small park right in front of us. 






[Split, CROATIA] Day 6: Marjan Hill, Pizzeria Portas

The Marjan Hill has existed for as long as the city of Split has been around. When the Diocletian Palace was built, the Marjan Hill was reserved to serve as a recreational spot for the Greek colonists. 

When the sky is clear you can see the Pakleni islands, and even Vis Island. 





After coming down hill, we had planned to go to Konoba Matesjuska (which is fairly close by) but it happened to be closed so we decided to go back to the Palace area to try our luck. Sometimes, a little mishap gives one an opportunity to stumble on a gem instead.

So we came across Pizzeria Portas, hidden in one of the narrow pebblestone streets, with a beautiful vineyard garden porch. Since Split was dominated by Venice during the 15th century, there have been a lot of Italian influence and immigrants since then.

What I love about Italian tratterias /pizzerias is that it often have a small window to the kitchen, no just for serving the dishes, but often the chef would peek to see if these food diggers are enjoying the food! It has such a homey atmosphere, and we are instantly attracted by the scent of a rosemary or tomatoes stew.

[-----Our Order -----]
- Mozzarella Cheese and tomatoes platter
- Mushroom, rocket, tomatoes pizza
- Carbonara
- Spaghetti Tomatoes (Pomodoro)

The pizza is very authentic with thin, soft crusts and very fresh mushrooms and tomatoes. People say the best way to test an Italian restaurant, is to see how they cook their Pomodoro sauce. It has to use fresh sage, onions and tomatoes that must be slowly stewed to churn out the natural aroma.

Both the Carbonara and the Tomatoes Spaghetti were heavenly. In particular, the Carbonara is not overtly creamy, but it gives a buttery accent that melts in your mouth with the cheese and smoked ham.

A very satisfying meal after a long day of hiking!










[RECIPE]: Paprenjoki and the Hektorovic family


When we first heard that one of Paprenjck's ingredient is "Papor", we thought maybe it is made of Pepper?  Quite different. 

The Paprenjck, is a traditional cake made from honey, oliver oil, prosek and different spices. The world Papor, is an all-inclusive term for "cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves", 

Each family comes with their own individual recipes, and the taste is something between a gingerbread cookie (without the gingertaste) and an English shortcake. 

The dessert has a rustic charm to it, although the key ingredients are not exactly cheap. 
The earliest memory of this cake is mentioned in Petar Hektorovic's poem, where the fishermen brought him: good wine muškatil, sweet wine (prošek), turta (cake), honeycomb, kaškaval cheese, fruit and paprenakov. 

In his Tvdalj Castle he cultivated his own poultry, silkworms, bees and vegetables. The family also cultivated wheat in the Stari Grad Plain, and made prosek wines in their own tavern inside the Castle. The Hektorovic is pretty much self-sufficient, and althought they don't cultivated exotic herbs like cinnamon and nutmeg, the Stari Grad is is popular transfer point for trading, as it is conveniently located in between ports like Venice and Dubronvik. 


Fascinated by its unique taste and aroma, I searched for it's recipe:

  • The night before, boil a kilogram of honey. When the honey boils and forms froth, remove it with a spoon. Grind the cloves on a board with a wooden hammer and put them into the heated prošek. Fry the saffron, crumble it and put this into the heated prošek as well. 
  • Add a quarter of a litre of olive oil into the honey. Filter the prošek with saffron together with the prošek with cloves. The total amount of prošek added should be a quarter of a litre. 
  • Add a pinch of cinnamon, nutmeg and at the end flour with a bit of baking soda to this paste. The quantity of flour is determined by the softness of the paste. Leave to stand for half an hour. Place part of the paste onto a board and add more flour. Cut it into equal pieces. Knead each piece by hand and form small balls. 
  • Place the paste into a greased baking tray and form the paprenjok by hand. Bake at 200 ̊C until it darkens. 
  • It can be decorated as soon as it is cool. Add 150 g of icing sugar to one egg yolk to create icing and then decorate the paprenjoki. 
The proedure looks very much like how you would bake a cookie, except they've used olive oil instead of beating air into butter for that creamy texture. Saffron isn't exactly an inexpensive ingredient, and I wonder how people could afford it back then? 
Perhaps the value of saffron is very different from now. 

Looking at an age-old recipe is always fascinating to me, and perhaps gives a glimpse to how the maritime trade has larlgely increased the variety in tastes and aroma in daily culinary. 

[Pakleni, CROATIA] Day 5: Sailing & Snorkeling


I have not been on a sail boat since 16, and the memories seem to be framed in time, trying to retrace the key concepts of sailing. 

There is something very surreal about sailing, it is all about controlling the right timing for tacking and jibing, and yet very much of it is controlled by nature. Man can never beat nature, no matter how omnipotent we think we are with our technologies. 






As we sail around the Paleni islands, we stopped by one of the bays for a quick swim and some snorkeling. We are too far from open water to see big flocks of fish, but the water is of an iridiscent blue, which is absolutely gorgeous to swim. 

We are also very luck to see some tiny flying fishes! 






[Bisevo, Vis, CROATIA] Day 4: Green Cave, Blue Cave, Bisevo, Monk SealCave, Secret Undertunnel Cave, Komiza Vis, Stiniva Bay



What do you do if you are at sea diving but there is a tsunami?

"You stay down, it's safe there", says our speedboat guide, Paul, originally from Zagreb, is a professional diver but decided to stay in Hvar because of the sea. "The sea is my little pond", he says, and knows quite a few of the shipwreck and planewreck areas around the Vis island. 

We departed from Hvar town around 10am and our speedboat sped through the open water like a unchained horse, and this isn't metaphorically, because we are going at such high speed that it really does feel like we are galloping across a field of blue and white waves. 

Our first stop is the Green cave, and like its name, the cave baths in an aquamarine light of emerald green, pure and austere. We are free to jump off the boat for a short swim. 

The Blue Cave, is a sister twin to the Blue cave in Capri, Italy, that around noon time the sunlight reflects through the water that illuminates the cave in azure light. 

After the Blue cave, we stopped at Bisevo Island for a lunch break and some swimming by the Porat Beach. The restaurant is the only restaurant open now, and there are rarely any inhabitants on the island. Even the waiter jokes,  "The most dangerous thing on this island ? -- is human". 

The sandbeach is small, but empty, as if we have been dropped at some abandoned island. What's unique about this beach is that it has "seasons". In summer, it is sand beach and because of the tides, this changes around winter, that it bring in the pebbles and it becomes a pebble beach in winter. 

We got the best of worlds, half sand beach and half pebblestone beach. 

We also explored the Monk Seal cave, a cave where Mediterreanean monk seals used to reside, but they are now nearly extinct. Nobody really wants to jump in to swim in this cave because it is dark and eery. 

Two of my favorite exploration sites are the Undertunnel Cave and Natural Jacuzzi. 

"You have to hold your breath for a minute and you will be in an illuminated cave, this is our secret hideout", our guide says. For a minute I was anxious if I could hold my breath long enough to go underneath, but it turns out to be pretty easy. The cave is well-lit with an amazing underwater view. 

Then there is the natural jacuzzi, as I call it, because the water here are at least 2-10 degree higher than other places! 

The Komiza fisherman village, Island Vis, is also a common place for people to stop by for a short afternoon stroll or take a nap under its glittering sun. 

There is also the Stiniva Bay, as if a scene from Pirates of the Carribean, where the water is clear, and view is breathtaking. 






[SPLIT, CROATIA] Day 1: Diocletian Palace, Bell Tower, Paristyle,Jupiter's Temple, Riva Waterfront Promenade, Art Square


9.23 Day 1: Diocletian Palace, Bell Tower, Paristyle, Jupiter's Temple, Riva Waterfront Promenade, Art Square 



Visiting a place is like connecting the dots, and the world is not so far apart, as we find how we are all interlinked to each other in one way or another. 

Took a 9987km flight from Taipei, Taiwan to Split, Croatia, to search for the beauty of the Dalmatia island, the pearl of the Aegean Sea. 

This is the place where the Roman Emperor Diocletian landed his foot and built the palace in 4th century, only to abandon it later. The Diocletian palace, one of UNESCO heritage, is one of the world's oldest and most complete Neoclassical architecture. In the 7th century, civilians took hold of the palace to defend the Turks, and this is how it has developed into an M.C. Escher-like staircases, narrow corridors, of each and every turn into a surprising view of Cafes and piazza. 


The Peristyle, is a Roman court where the commoners prostrates to the Emperor. Like all kings, Diocletian has an infactuation to become god, and to be adorned by the commoners. This is next to the Catherdral of St. Dujam and the Bell Tower. Right in front of it is the Vestibule, an entrance to the Emperor's apartment which is filled with statues and marble slabs during its glorious times. Today, it's a great place for A capella performances. To its right, you will also find the Temple of Jupiter, which is one out of the three temples that remains today. 



You will also pass by the "Let Me Pass" street, one of the narrowest street that women rallied in the old days, as they yearn to exchange glances with male suitors or the hope of meeting one. 

There is also the "Fruit Square", which has he remnant walls built by Venetians in the 15th century. Although there are no long fruit stands, there is a fresh fruit smoothie cafe here to sustain its name. 

The higlight of today's roaming about, would be the Bell Tower. The view is gorgeous and it is no wonder why the Games of Thornes have chosen to shoot their scenes here, but it is also one of the most daunting task (for me) because these staircases are hollow! A misstep and your camera or sunglasses goes down, down and down. Not to mention the psychological impact that just charges an excessive amount of Adrenaline. 

Close to the Golden gate is the 6ft tall statue of Bishop Gregory Nin by the celebrated sculptor Ivan Mestrovic. It is said that touching his toe gives goodluck and happiness. 

As it gets closer to sunset, the cooling breeze makes the Riva waterfront an ideal place for strolling and people watching. There are many foodstands that sell the traditional snack "Fruitule", which is like a chewy deep fried donut ball. 

Because of its close alliance with the Holy Roman Empire, the influence of Italian cuisine is great. Everywhere on the street you will find gelato (but not really worth trying), pizza and bruschetto. There are lots of arts and craftstores, and shops selling Lavender soap and olive oil. I've already heard that Lavender is a big thing on the Hvar Island, and I cannot wait to go there tomorrow! 













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