Croatia

never knew how luxurious spaghetti with red sauce could be until I enjoyed a bowl on the Croatian coast over looking the Adriatic Sea.  My fiancé and I have just returned from a unique four day vacation where we experienced the small city, local feel of Pula, combined with the apparent nationwide expansion of Croatian tourism. We spent the majority of our time relaxing on the rocky coasts and lazing by the pool at a peculiar, slightly outdated, resort in Istria.  Despite the faint eerie feeling, created by the abundance of empty hotel rooms, our time in Croatia was nonetheless, beautifully tranquil. 

Our 7km trip to the Pula city center on our second day of vacation was equally as breathtaking as the jagged coastline and aquamarine seas which encompassed our hotel.  Filled with historic architecture and an amphitheater dating back to first century B.C., the narrow streets and cobble stoned alleyways were inundated with culture.  The native pedestrians -as opposed to guidebook following tourists, particularly Americans- who cruised the city streets were refreshing, as were the nonexistent tour groups, the less than crowded sidewalks and the lack of English spoken conversations.

Beyond the language, the architecture and the overall city feel, there was one particular moment in which I understood how different small cities new to the tourism scene are from those which are already commercialized.  During our bus trip from the resort to the city center, a mother traveling alone with her small child in a carriage boarded the bus on the hot sunny day.  Sweaty and tired, she entered through the back door and situated her carriage in the appropriate area.  Then, by accepting an unspoken offer from a stranger, she demonstrated one of the vast differences between a place like Pula, Croatia and that of London or New York. 

An older woman, already anchored in one of the sticky, leather bus seats, reached a hand out to hold the carriage in place while the mother worked her way up to the front to pay her bus fare.  In this brief thirty second scene, I marveled.  The understanding bus driver allowing the woman to settle on the bus before she paid, the helpful and selfless stranger who lent a hand to a mother in need, and the trusting mother who felt comfortable leaving her child in the eyes of a stranger were all highly improbable scenarios in most cities I’ve visited – big or small.  I watched this moment with awe and wonderment, as I realized that it may be a long time before I’d again witness anything as simple, yet extraordinary, as this. 

Simple, yet extraordinary- that perhaps is the best way to explain our holiday to Croatia.  The hotel itself was average, but the view from our room made it one of the nicest places I’ve ever stayed.  The city was small, yet the ancient ruins made it feel grand.  And the people - between the friendly taxi driver who was proud of Croatia’s expanding tourism, to the non-English speaking waiter who wished us ‘Good Appetite!” before serving our dinner to the kind woman I witnessed on the bus- the people were simply extraordinary;  The combination of all these things resulted in a memorable, enjoyable and enlightening vacation.  I’ve returned back to my flat in London with fantastic pictures, tanned skin and a relaxed body and an opened mind.  What more could I ask for?