Buckets in Bangkok to Playing in Pai: Northern Thailand

Cancelled flight. Ten hours in the Cape Town airport. Ten hour flight to Dubai. Missed flight. Twelve hours in the Dubai airport. Meal voucher for McDonald's cheeseburger, fries, and apple pie. Eight hour flight. Hot muggy taxi ride. Finally...Bangkok, Thailand.

Backpackers. Street Food. Ladyboys. Tuk Tuks. Temples. Buckets...Welcome to Koh San Road in Bangkok.

A loud, hectic, exciting place blanketed with the thick heat and smog of the city. A place where backpackers come to enjoy cheap food and drinks, buy knock off ipads and gucci, be culturally immersed by visiting the Buddhist temples, and where creepy businessmen go to watch Thai ping pong shows (you don't want to know).

I just arrived at NapPark Hostel after over 40 hours of traveling when some other backpackers invited me to join them to see the temples. So I grabbed a fresh pineapple on a stick, which cost about five cents off the street, and shoved into a tuk tuk with a few other people and we were off.

After spending the day visiting Wat Arun, The Grand Palace, and Wat Pho (temple with the giant reclining Buddha) we went out for some Pad Thai noodles and the famous buckets that night. A couple days in Bangkok was plenty of time. My stay included a night at the Sky Bar--shown in Hangover 2, and a day at the MBK Center complete with going to see a movie in the nicest theater I have been to and browsing through levels and levels of knock off designers and electronics.

I was soon ready for a break from the hectic city and crowded streets of Bangkok so some fellow backpackers and I took the twelve hour train North to Chiang Mai. Hoping to stay at Julie's Guesthouse we were disappointed when it ended up being full, so we settled for down the road at Mamma's. For only $2 a night it  seemed alright..that is until we found there was a single fan in a sweltering room of 10 people and when I lifted the sheets--bed bugs. We switched to a bug free room which was fine except for the shared shower: a freezing trickle of water with a mysterious furball clogging the moldy drain and a pretty nasty smell that had begun to develop. However, the city of Chiang Mai was amazing.

One day I spent on a full day jungle trek. We hiked to a waterfall where we ate lunch off banana leaves and cooled off in the waterfalls. The trek also included making our way up a hillside through a farm picking oranges (which happen to be green) and crawling down into a bat cave. By the time we returned to the hostel we were sunburnt, covered in filth, and utterly exhausted. I'm just glad I walked away free of any mosquito bites while others were covered head to toe with red itchy bites. 

Another day in Chang Mai I spent at Woody's Elephant Camp. It was really incredible to be able to learn the commands, ride the elephants, bathe them, and even swim with them! Apparently Woody's opium grow operation provides a nurturing home for the elephants.

After a wonderful time in Chiang Mai I took the bus up to Pai.

Pai is a small hippie backpacker town. Friends and I would spend our days meeting up for breakfast sitting in swings as we enjoyed fresh fruit shakes. Then we would ride our motorbikes to one of the nearby waterfalls or swimming pools. At night we would walk around the market looking at trinkets and eating everything on the street. My personal favorites were the banana pancakes, pad thai, green curry, papaya salad, catfish over a spit, and milk tea in a sugar cane cup. I tried many different dishes that were not so delicious including pig's brain and chicken stomachs. Gross. At night in Pai we would go hang out at the Ting Tong bar with a mix of backpackers and locals watching the occasional poi fire spinner.

My friend Emma (South African), and I stayed at Mam's Yoga Retreat our last few days there. We stayed in bungalows overlooking the valley and did two and a half hours of yoga each morning and enjoyed the vegetarian meals prepared for us.

I was originally planning on staying in Pai for a couple days. I ended up staying for almost two weeks. Northern Thailand was really beautiful, friendly, and cheap although I had a bad incident with losing a bunch of my photos when I tried to upload them onto a 90s dial up computer. Will not be doing that again.

After I had a taste of Thailand I knew I would be back to travel the South!

This is Africa

Wow! It has been weeks since I last blogged thanks to the difficulties of trying to blog from an iPad and the ever so reliable wifi service that exists outside the Western world. So once again I need to backtrack...to the beginning of October where my Eurpoean journey ended and the next part of my adventure began.

Welcome to the beautiful continent of Africa! Although my first few hours spent on this continent were not so beautiful...after hearing that my parents flight had been canceled and not knowing when they would arrive, buying what I thought was fish and chips for one and looking ridiculous carrying what ended up being enough for the entire Meek family (all 8 of us), and having to pay off a shady man to get me to the front of the line in order to make my flight it all ended up being alright.

Soon enough I was in a van driving up to Zambezi Sun Resort in Livingstone, Zambia with giraffes and zebras casually standing around grazing on the lawn. After checking in I decided to explore a bit since my parents were still hopping flight to flight country to country to catch up to me. I walked around the property along the electric fence by the river that had signs warning of crocodiles. Then walked through the gate after a nice chat with the security guard, John, and followed the path with the hot beating sun to the grand Victoria Falls.

(Victoria Falls)

My parents still hadn't arrived and as I got into bed that night and as I looked up at the ceiling..right there above me was a gigantic spider! Knowing I wouldn't be able to sleep with this spider in my room (not knowing if it was dangerous or not) I proceeded to attempt to catch the spider with a glass cup and piece of paper which ended with me jumping on the bed and the spider panicking and escaping to hide beneath the bathroom sink. So I stuffed a towel under the bathroom door and hoped that I wouldn't wake up in the night to a spider on my face.

The next day my parents finally made it! We went ahead with our plans enjoying a gorgeous sunset cruise along the Zambezi River where we were able to enjoy drinks while watching hippos in the water. We did an elephant back safari on giant African elephants (tusks and all) where we saw lots of baboons playing and slowly sauntered down to the river.

(Zambezi River Sunset Cruise)

(Baby Elephant that kept grabbing my feet with his trunk as we rode on a larger elephant)

Our next stop was a safari near Kruger National Park in South Africa. After being the only 3 people in the airport and on our 20 passenger plane we were off. We saw water buffalo, hippo, black rhino, bush buck, as well as many other African bush species. It was exciting riding through the bush in our open jeep wrapped up in blankets in the bitter morning with our rugged safari guide.

(Donald, our Safari guide standing on a termite mound)

On the evening safari we passed a herd of elephants. Our guide didn't hesitate to get us as close as possible to them. Our spotter, Difference, who sits in a chair connected to the front of the jeep was charged at by an elephant while an elephant attempted to whack me with its trunk as I sat in the back. 

After the excitement of staying in the lodge and going on safaris we headed to Cape Town. We did a Peninsula tour getting to see the penguin colony, seal island, Cape of Good Hope, and Cape Point (the most Southern point of Africa where the Indian ocean meets thePacific).

One early morning we set off to go shark cage diving! The boat that took us out to sea rocked and swayed deeply in the rough waters with a majority of the boat leaning over the sides emptying their stomachs. We went in four or five people at a time in full wetsuits and they would use bait to draw the shark close to the cage. We saw three great whites and my dad even got hit in the face with a shark's powerful fin. It was an exciting trip!--too bad I only realized after that my camera was not working so I have no way to show that we were there.

After shark cage diving we took the long steep cable car to the top of Table Mountain where we were able to witness some spectacular views of the city and sea from far above.

(Top of Table Mountain)

Cape Town is a beautiful city, very similar to San Francisco in a lot of ways. We went the movies, enjoyed seafood, saw the District 6 museum, visited the old palace, and even experienced a dinner and show complete with drummers and dancers. I can't wait to go back someday and explore more of Africa! Maybe even find a film job in Cape Town??

French Fairytale

It's been awhile since I last posted so I'll need to backtrack a bit...

(Le Tour de Cause B&B)

A spent a couple weeks of September helping out at the Le Tour de Cause Bed and Breakfast along the beautiful Dordogne River in the Perigord region of France. The couple who owns the B&B, Caitlin and Albert, were really great. They fed me delicious food and always had good suggestions of things to do and see. I would help out a couple hours each morning freshening and cleaning the rooms then would have the rest of the day to do as I pleased.

(Caitlin & Albert)

(Hot Air Baloons Over the B&B)

I visited castles in the area including a nice hike along a Randonee "hiking trail" that took me through farms and woods to Chateau de Castelnaud. I enjoyed biking to the nearby villages past sunflower fields and walnut trees and exploring the cute streets and shops.

(View of the Dordorne from Castle)

One afternoon I was able to go canoeing down the Dordogne with an Australian family staying at the B&B. I also got to see one of the caves in the area, Rouffignac Cave, that has 30,000year old ancient cave drawings.

(Chateau de Beynac)

The food was also incredible! The area is known for its walnuts, truffles, and foie gras. Breakfast at the B&B typically consisted of fresh baguettes, croissants, and raisin rolls from the bakery, locally made goat cheese, Albert's fresh squeezed orange juice, and Caitlin's homemade jams. The best meal I had while there was at a restaurant sort of carved into the cliffside. We had a brothy soup with stale bread starters and for the last bit of soup left you pour some red wine into the bowl, swish it around, then drink it up. For the main course it was an absolutely amazing duck confit served with roasted chestnuts. Duck confit is duck that is cooked and preserved in its own fat then jarred up. The duck is then cooked  until its nice and crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside. After the duck it was a bery cobbler with a nice creme sauce to top off this amazing meal.

(Geese near Rouffignac Cave)

My time spent at the B&B was nice and relaxing. Working in the mornings and spending the afternoons biking, hiking, sitting by the pool, and eating made for a great stay with Caitlin and Albert. It really was my own little French Fairytale.

Port in Portugal to Tiramisu in Paris

After a great time at La Tomatina I headed to Lisbon, Portugal.

While in Lisbon I stayed at the Home Lisbon Hostel which was absolutely amazing! The staff there is friendly and personal, it's easy to meet people, there is a huge selection of English movies, and they have Mamma's dinner every night. Each evening for 10€ "Momma" (one of the staff's mom) cooks a full three course dinner. The night I joined the main entree was s steaming helping of the traditional dish of creamy codfish and rice. The meal also includes endless sangria and a glass of port for the toast at the end of dinner. The meal was done family style with long tables set complete with candles and bread. All the guests sit together eating and drinking and at the end Momma chooses someone to make a toast and everyone cheers and drinks their port. Port is a strong sweet fortified red wine that is made only in Portugal. 

After dinner a few of us sat around talking and eventually made our way to the bars. Apparently the bar district of Lisbon has more bars per square meter then anywhere in the world. We went into a small quirky place where some Brazilians soon had all of us dancing to the Portuguese music. 

I did a walking tour one morning in Lisbon. Walking tours are typically free through hostels and are an interesting way to see and get to know a city.

I learned that a massive earthquake hit Lisbon on All Saints Day in 1755. The earthquake was a 9.0 and lasted for about six minutes. (For comparison, the earthquake that hit Japan in 2011 was also a 9.0 and lasted for about a minute). After the earthquake hit the candles lit for the dead for All Saints Day caused massive fires to erupt through the city. The survivors gathered to the edge of the city in the open square. They watched as the large Tagus river receded and disappeared before their eyes. An enormous tsunami then hit wiping out all those seeking refuge in the square. Two more large waves hit the city and fires continued to burn for five days after.

 

The next day a friend and I took the train to a nearby beach town, Cascais. We took a hostel worker's advice and enjoyed a delicious lunch of small grilled squids that were coated in a sauce of olive oil, garlic, and cilantro. So good!

(Sandcastle at Cascais)

Lisbon holds Fiera Da Ladra or "Thieves Market" every Tuesday and Saturday. It was fun to walk around looking at all the goods. There was everything from ancient artifacts and jewelry to knockoff sunglasses to toothbrushes and CDs. It's a giant flea market where you can find just about anything.

Lisbon was a beautiful city and the hostel was the best I've stayed at so far. After a few days there I then took the train to Porto where I stayed at the Poet's Hostel. I didn't spend much time in Porto but it was a lovely city by the sea with plenty of Port wine and delicious pastries flaky and buttery or soft and doughy filled with custards or spices.

One night in Porto I signed up for the hostel's dinner. It was just me, a Finnish girl, a German boy, and the staff. We enjoyed tapenades of cheese and olives, a vegetarian lasagna (filled with a light cheese sauce, zucchini, mushrooms, and peppers), and for dessert, a warm mango crisp with a rich crumbly crust filled with warm mango and drizzled with sweet mango sauce. The staff made jokes all night and everyone spoke English. Whenever there is a group of people who all speak a different language English works as the medium that mostly everyone understands. This works out nicely for me.

(Poet's Hostel)

After Porto I jetted off to Paris since I had to work in France in a couple weeks.

Paris was very nice and very expensive. Hostels and hotels are ridiculously priced for only decent places. I saw all the sights and picnicked outside the Eiffel tower but mostly sat at cafes drinking coffee with a friend people watching.

Paris was lovely although I spent way too much money. I should also note that I had the most delicious tiramisu of my life. It was served cold and the cream was thick and sweet with a perfectly spongey center and a dusting of cofee Now off to work in Western France!

La Tomatina!

(Sunset at Cafe del Mar, Ibiza, Spain)

After a few days spent on the island of Ibiza enjoying the gorgeous beaches and some famous DJs it was finally time for La Tomatina in Bunol, Spain! Over 40,000 people would gather in a small crowded street to chuck tomatoes at each other.

We woke up nice and early to meet up with the tour company [Festivals Around the World] along with hundreds of other people (mostly Australians) that would bus us over to Bunol from Valencia for the festival. When we arrived we bought some 2€ goggles, goggles that would end up breaking five minutes after buying them so were a pointless purchase, then we shoved our way through the crowd to the main street.

My new Aussie friend and I pushed our way through thousands of people until we made it to the front and center of the madness. We were only feet away from the greased up pole with a ham hanging from the top. We watched as men brutally climbed on one another attempting to climb up the greasy pole and pull down the ham marking the beginning of the tomato fight. After only failed attempts leaving men bruised and bloody a cannon boomed marking the beginning of the tomato fight.

Once in the center of the crowd you had no choice but to stay where you were with the small cobblestone street packed with bodies, no alleys leading out, and all doorways blocked by giant tarps. So after I had squeezed my way to the very middle I realized something terrible...I had to pee. I looked for anywhere to go...a tree or dumpster to hide behind, a restaurant, home, anything! I was out of luck. After a half hour or so of trying my hardest to hold it I realized that I couldn't hold it any longer. Right there, in the middle of the street, squished between thousands of people, I peed my pants. Luckily no one seemed to notice.

Trucks slowly pushed through the crowd dumping tomatoes along with people inside the trucks throwing tomatoes. It was chaos! Tomatoes everywhere! People were
 shoving and pushing and cheering and singing. Tomatoes were in my eyes, in my
 hair, and soaked through my clothes. At one point my friend and I were shoved into a mass of people lying in the tomato sauce singing and scooping up thick tomato juice off the street spraying everyone.

The tomato fight lasted one hour with another canon boom signaling the end. The tomato throwing ceased and people above began spraying hoses in the streets to attempt to clean everyone off. We made our way back to the bus. We were bruised, sunburnt, covered in tomato filth, and exhausted as we drove back to Valencia.

I don't think I ever need to go to La Tomatina again but it truly was an amazing once in a lifetime experience

Wiki Facts About La Tomatina:

Description: (Wikipedia)
"At around 10 AM, festivities begin with the first event of the Tomatina. It is the "palo jabón", similar to the greasy pole. The goal is to climb a greased pole with a ham on top. As this happens, the crowd work into a frenzy of singing and dancing while being showered in water from hoses. Once someone is able to drop the ham off the pole, the start signal for the tomato fight is given by firing the water shot in the air and trucks make their entry. The signal for the onset is at about 11 when a loud shot rings out, and the chaos begins.^[1] Several trucks throw tomatoes in abundance in the Plaza del Pueblo. The tomatoes come from Extremadura, where they are less expensive and are grown specifically for the holidays, being of inferior taste.^[2] For the participants the use of goggles and gloves are recommended. The tomatoes must be crushed before being thrown so as to reduce the risk of injury. The estimated number of tomatoes used are around 150,000 i.e. over 40 metric tons.^[3] After exactly one hour, the fight ends with the firing of the second shot, announcing the end. The whole town square is colored red and rivers of tomato juice flow freely. Fire Trucks hose down the streets and participants use hoses that locals provide to remove the tomato paste from their bodies. Some participants go to the pool of “los peñones” to wash. After the cleaning, the village cobblestone streets are pristine due to the acidity of the tomato disinfecting and thoroughly cleaning the surfaces.^[4]"

ORIGIN OF FESTIVAL: (Wikipedia)

In 1945, during a parade of gigantes y cabezudos, young men who wanted to be in the event staged a brawl in town's main square, the Plaza del Pueblo. There was a vegetable stand nearby, so they picked up tomatoes and used them as weapons. The police had to intervene to break up the fight and forced those responsible to pay the damages incurred. This is the most popular of many theories about how the Tomatina started.

The following year the young people repeated the fight on the same Wednesday of August, only this time they brought their own tomatoes from home. They were again dispersed by the police. After repeating this in subsequent years, the party was established. In 1950, the town allowed the tomato hurl to take place, however the next year it was again stopped. A lot of young people were imprisoned but the Buñol residents forced the authorities to let them go. The festival gained popularity with more and more participants getting involved every year. After subsequent years it was banned again with threats of serious penalties. In the year 1957, some young people planned to celebrate "the tomato's funeral", with singers, musicians, and comedies. The main attraction however, was the coffin with a big tomato inside being carried around by youth and a band playing the funeral marches. Considering this popularity of the festival and the alarming demand, 1957 saw the festival becoming official with certain rules and restrictions. These rules have gone through a lot of modifications over the years.

Another important landmark in the history of this festival is the year 1975. From this year onwards, "Los Clavarios de San Luis Bertrán" (San Luis Bertrán is the patron of the town of Buñol ) organised the whole festival and brought in tomatoes which had previously been brought by the local people. Soon after this, in 1980, the town hall took the responsibility of organizing the festival.

Solo in Barcelona

I spent the next 10 days in Barcelona at the HelloBCN Hostel. At first I was a little nervous to be on my own for so long but that didn't long. I met so many people from across the world and surprisingly few Americans. I became good friends with the people I met through hanging out, venturing around the city, getting food, and cooking dinners (well the French cooked, I ate--thanks A-Team). Plus the hostel would take us out every night to the clubs (where we got free entry and skip the line). People would show up at the clubs around 2:00am and go until 6 or 7:00am. So if my sleep cycle wasn't already off then it definitely was after my time in Barcelona.

The best night at the club was when I saw Afrojack at Opium nightclub. Before the show we sat on the beach in a circle of French kids who were playing guitar and singing French songs and attempting American ones too. We all just sat there and pretended to understand. The actual show was packed full and Afrojack poured bottle after bottle of champagne over the crowd.

Food in Barcelona is excellent. I enjoyed tapas, paella, sangria, and delicious beachside cheeseburgers. We went to a restaurant near the hostel where you pick out different tapas on toothpicks (thick cuts of cheeses, fish, and meats all on slices of baguette). You then pay 1€ for each toothpick left on your plate at the end of the meal. My favorite was a cold creamy sweet crab and shrimp salad on top of a soft baguette slice.

One day we ventured outside the city on an hour long metro ride to see Montserrat. It was incredible! It's an old Benedictine abbey that lies on top of a jagged rocky mountain. It is a pilgrimage site for many people who come to see the Black Madonna. You have to take a cable car over the valley and up the mountain to get to the town. From there, we hiked all around the site under the Spanish sun to the top of the windy mountain enjoying every moment. It was one of my favorite places I have seen so far.

(Me Top of the Mountain at Montserrat)

(Black Madonna)

(Cable car up to Montserrat)

Another day a few of us went to visit La Sagrada Familia, the massive cathedral in the center of the city designed by Gaudi, that has taken over 200 years to build and is still not completed. The cathedral, even today, rises above the rest of the city.

(Inside La Sagrada Familia)

Some days in Barcelona were simply spent taking siestas at the crowded beach with friends or wandering around the city by myself stumbling into cute shops and markets and getting very lost.

(Market near Las Ramblas)

One evening a group from the hostel explored the Gracia Festival happening in the streets of Barcelona. Different neighborhoods choose different themes and for several days go crazy elaborately decorating their street. Themes range to just about anything and people crowd together in the streets. We went down a Texas themed district complete with line dancing to American country music and another district that was covered in jellyfish to where you couldn't even see the sky beneath thousands of tentacles.

For my 22nd birthday in Barcelona we went to a Barcelona Futbol game. It was even a major game but the crowd was wild (rowdier then any NFL game) and the stadium was huge.

(Barcelona Futbol Stadium)

Barcelona was a perfect place for a first time solo traveler. I really enjoyed getting to spend more then just a couple days in a city and also by being alone I felt like I really got to know the area and people through having to figure out everything on my own.

Barcelona Tips:
-Bikes are an excellent way to get around Barcelona. It is so hot that the nice breeze of the bike feels lovely and they are faster then walking and cheap (5€/day from the hostel).
-Beware of pick pocketing! I was lucky but many people had stories of someone reaching in their back pocket or being cornered in the street at night. Just be smart.
-If your hostel has a kitchen--use it. You save money and many times people will cook you delicious food.

Croatia--Sea and Sunshine

Zagreb:

We reached Zagreb and met up with Nick then headed into town. Arriving at the hostel we found that we were being put in our own little apartment. The hostel woman led us through winding conblestone streets into a cute building then up another five or so flights of stairs. Buns of steel after carrying 35 pounds wherever you go .The place was adorable with our own little balcony and kitchen furnished with the owner's knickknacks everywhere.

That night we hung out with several locals who worked at our hostel along with a old man with a ponytail named Klaus. They had us try the local drink of choice, Rakia (similar to absinthe and comes in a variety of flavors). We tasted sour cherry, lemon, honey, lavender, and plum. It was disgusting.

(Rakia: sour cherry, lemon, and honey)

The locals told us about life in Zagreb and that all Croatians are lazy and a typical day went something like this...
8am--Start drinking coffee. Drink coffee for 4 hours
12pm--Go to work
4pm--Leave work. Start drinking
Repeat.

(Katie and I at the local hangout)

Our Croatian friends were very entertaining and the most memorable part of Zagreb. We said our goodbyes and went to bed but once again ended with no sleep seeing as we were all sweating profusely with a broken AC. The next morning we loaded onto a bus headed for the Plitvice Lakes.

Plitvice Lakes:

The Plitvice (pronounced pli-vitch-ka) Lakes were incredible. We walked along the rickety board path amongst waterfalls and crystal clear pools of turquoise blue water. One legend refers to the lakes as "The Devils's Garden" for it's enchanting beauty.

After spending several hours hiking around the lakes we decided to head onward to Zadar only to find that we missed the last bus and were stuck at a national park in the middle of nowhere. We were desperate and decided to try our luck at hitchhiking which ended unsuccessfully. Proabably because who would think to pick up three strangers on the side of a road, at night, in the countryside of Croata. 

Somehow we eventually managed to find a ride to Zadar. The hotel by the lakes reception woman had a friend who drove taxis and although he was off duty he could pick us up for a decent price.
A black vehicle pulled up and we hopped in the car with the strange man. We had our ride to Zadar.

Zadar:

We arrived at the Drunken Monkey hostel in Zadar. It was the perfect little beach hostel with a very laid back feel and friendly atmosphere.

That evening we explored the beautiful city of Zadar that I can only describe as a mix of Greece and Italy with a dash of Mexico. Walking to the center of town we saw a strange creature strolling down the road. As we got closer we realized it was a little hedgehog just taking an evening stroll down the street. So strange.

Once in the city center we found a swanky lounge club that was out right of top of a hillside amongst the ruins. Here people were dancing and hanging out of top of thousand year old buildings.
The next day we layed out on the beach and walked around the city. We saw the sea organ (holes in the marble steps to the sea that plays music as the waves hit below).

That evening we hopped on yet another bus that would turn out to be the most awful bus ride ever. People kept getting on and off and making us move out of our seats. The driver was crazy swerving down the winding bumpy coastal road making the smelly man next to me head keep landing on my shoulder. I switched seats quickly.

Dubrovnik:

After nine hours of torture we arrived in Dubrovnik and it was all worth it. Dubrovnik is a charming beautiful city. It lies right on the water with cliffs and mountains surrounding it. Again being too early for check in and being exhausted from the bus ride we found a nice corner on the street. Hidden by a couple overturned rowboats, we all fell asleep against our backpacks in the sunshine by the water. 

(Good Morning Dubrovnik)

Later that day we walked around seeing the sights and that night we had the most amazing meal. Oysters, mussels, sardines (which were surprisingly delicious), makeral, swordfish, squid, prawns, and wine. It was enough food to feed a group of people although we didn't struggle with clearing the pot. And it was all under $30. After the fabulous meal we topped it off it off some gelato from a street stand for dessert.

Our last day in Dubrovnik we road a boat over to the island of Lokrum. An old monetary sits on the island along with a dead sea (aka very salty lake). It was a perfect way to end our time in Croatia.

(Abandoned Monastary at Lokrum)

Later that day Katie and Nick left to head back to the states and I was left on my own. Eek.