After 2 days longer in Split than planned, today we're heading north again and finally to the Plitvice Lakes. I found a travel buddy, Sunil, who has the same planned route as me. We leave Split at exactly the right moment, just as we're sitting on the bus, it starts raining and storming.
The bus ride is not so pleasant, there is no toilet, and of course, you only realize that when you need it. But in Zadar, we have a stopover. We have to spontaneously switch to another bus, which we only find out at the last moment because the bus driver doesn't speak English. From Zadar, we have to take a different route because of the storm, which takes almost 3 hours longer. When we take a short break and get off the bus, we are hit by the temperature shock. It is sunny, but about 15 degrees colder than in Split.
Fortunately, we told the bus driver where we need to get off, because the "Jezerce" stop, 10 minutes from Plitvice National Park, feels like nowhere. Our host Leo picks us up luckily, drops me off at the hostel, and takes Sunil to the supermarket, because there is no other way to get anywhere on foot. Meanwhile, it has become even colder, the temperatures and the landscape remind me of Scandinavia. In that moment, I can't believe that yesterday I was still lying on the beach in a bikini!
In the hostel, a cozy atmosphere emerges. It is a big house and you are warmly welcomed by the other guests. I'm glad to have my thick merino socks and my merino top, which are being used for the first time - unfortunately, they are almost the only pieces of clothing that are still freshly washed. For dinner, we have pasta with ajvar, which Sunil accidentally bought as tomato sauce. But it tastes good :)
