Saying Goodbye to Zadar

Zadar and I broke up today. It was a whirlwind 5-week romance that unfortunately ended just as abruptly as it started. We said our goodbyes at the same place where we first met: the airport.

I spent most of the day moping about the fact that we were leaving Croatia. I really loved living here and wasn't ready to leave yet. It was crushing to think of all the newly-established rituals that were coming to an end: walking along the Riva, eating fresh pastries on the steps of the pekarna (bakery), even toting our groceries back from the supermarket. They were all done. Chances are, I didn't even realize that it was the last time I was going to do these things while they were happening.

View from the Old Town Hostel. This was our very first day in Zadar!

Jim and I had quickly acclimated to life in Zadar. Now, as we packed up our belongings, we were amazed at how much our apartment had started to feel like home. We had been there long enough to get used to having our own place to cook, watch TV, do laundry, and work. Even though we left Croatia with the same amount of stuff that we brought, packing it all up sure didn't seem any easier this go round. It still took us several hours to load everything into our backpacks.

We thought that a fitting way to end our adventure in Croatia would be to share a few highlights of our trip. Enjoy!

Favorite Neighborhood: Puntamika
Puntamika is a leafy residential neighborhood in Zadar. It's known by the locals as the "tourist area," since every house on the block has an apartman (apartment) or sobe (room) to rent.

Put Dikla, the main street in Puntamika

Favorite Beer: Ožujsko
This is one of the most popular brands of Croatian pivo. The only problem? It's really hard to order when you can't pronounce its name!

This photo is brought to you by the makers of Ožujsko!

Favorite Fast Food: Pizza cut
Slices of pizza are cheap and plentiful here. I've sampled them all, and this one's the best! Mushrooms, olives, and pršut (prosciutto) for only 5 kuna ($0.84).

Pandas bake the best pizza!

Best What-the-What? Moment: Metalfest invades Borik
One long weekend in May, the sleepy, family-friendly Borik campground was overrun with long hair, black t-shirts, and Doc Martens. They were all here for Metalfest, a super rockin' music festival on the beach, headlined by none other than Megadeth.

Symphony of destruction at camp.

Cutest Warning Sign: Britva!!!
I'm pretty sure this sign says, "Warning! Killer dog lives here."

According to Google translate, "Britva" means "razor." Huh?

Favorite Im Promptu Photo: How much is that doggy in the window?
I captured this shot while we were dining at Bruschetta in Old Town. I think he was eyeing my pizza!

Best Boat Trip: Riding in the bridge with Darko
Our landlord Darko is a Captain on the local ferry. Here's a picture of the Capt'n in action on our way to Sali on Dugi Otok.

Favorite Way to Spend the Day: Wandering around an island.
Our MO is to find something that looks like a trail and go exploring... in flip flops.

Top 3 Reasons Why I Love Zadar : Mountains, islands, and old towns.
Even better when you can get all three in the same photo!

Our time in Zadar is done for now, but we plan to come back someday. Next time, we'll be sure to stay for more than 5 weeks!

Old School Zadar

We are very, very bad bloggers... We've been in Zadar for more than a month and still haven't shown you any pictures of Old Town! It's one of our favorite places to visit. Best of all, it's only a 30 minute walk from our apartment in Borik.

Zadar's city center is over 2,700 years old. These days it is a walled, pedestrian-only zone:

The walls of Old Town.

There are four main gates. The most impressive is the Land Gate, constructed by the Venetians in 1543:

Can you see the winged lion of Venice over the main opening?

Here's an inner view of the Harbor Gate:

Notice the cars on the walls? Traffic is allowed up there!

Old Town's stone-lined streets are great for wandering:

Bird's eye view of Old Town Zadar.

Inside the Bridge Gate.

There's many great cafes and restaurants, too:

Dining al fresco at Stomorica restaurant.

Grabbing a gelato to go in Old Town.

Like any proper historical center, Zadar has several notable churches and towers. My favorite is the rotund Church of St. Donat, which I've affectionately dubbed St. Doughnut's Church. It was constructed in the 9th century by a Zadar bishop. Nowadays, it's used for musical performances.

St. Doughnut's Church and the Bell Tower of St. Anastasia.

St. Doughnut's and ruins of the Roman forum (1st to 3rd century).

Church of St. Mary (11th century).

Church spire at the Franciscan monastery.

Inside the Franciscan monastery.

Another sight is the Square of Five Wells (Trg Pet Bunara). The wells were Zadar's only water source until the late 19th century:

Square of the Five Wells

There's also a daily fruit and veggie market. While we've never seen it in action (it takes place during the early morning while we're still asleep!), we have seen the stands:

The daily farmers market.

Along the western side of Old Town there's a beautiful seaside promenade called the Riva. We love chilaxing on the waterfront. It's a great place for people watching:

The locals, sunning and swimming off a pier at the Riva.

And for happy-houring:

You don't need to work a 9-to-5 to appreciate a good happy hour.

And watching the sunset:

Another Hitchcock sunset in Zadar

One of the newest and coolest attractions along the Riva is the Sea Organ. It's a set of stairs along the waterfront that plays musical notes based on the waves. In my humble opinion, this is pure magic and completely fascinating to listen to. (If you would like a more technical description of how it works, please ask Jim.)

Listening to the Sea Organ.

The other "new" addition to the Riva is called Salutation to the Sun. It's a solar-powered LED display that puts on a dazzling light show at night. The display consists of a series of circular solar panels, representing the sun and planets, sized and spaced to scale. We borrowed a fellow tourist's video so that you can see it in action:

Mesmerizing, me thinks.

Wouldn't this be a great place for a Saturday Night Fever dance party?

If you're in Zadar after dark, a great place for a night cap is Garden. It's an open-air bar on top of the city walls. Word on the street is that this place is owned by the drummer from the band UB40 (remember them?) It was really challenging to get a good picture of this place at night since it only has ambient lighting. But, we did capture its best feature:

A bar with beds! Brilliant!