Day 97 Pleasantly Surprised By Zagreb

Hey again! Wow, I keep falling wildly behind here, but I promise to get this sucker up to date again!

So I left Dubrovnik and made my way to Zagreb on another overnight winner. The bus rides are getting easier, but honestly after about 20 over-nighters, they should be! I arrived pretty early and luckily just as the hostel was opening. Valentina, a friend I had met in Barcelona, has recommended the sHappy Hostel, right in the centre of things and reasonably priced. Also, it's nice and new, so everything looks hip and modern. When I checked into my room later, I was happy to see the bed made with a fluffy duvet and cozy fleece blankets. I was able to dump my gear and use the Internet before heading back to the bus station to sit my ass down again.

I had heard amazing things about Plitvice Lakes, another UNESCO site that is about 2.5 hours away from Zagreb. In the summer the water is an incredible shade of blue, and in fall the foliage more than makes up for the change in hue. I paid my student fare and set off along one of the marked paths. Being off-season, aside from a few massive groups of Asians I was surrounded by silence and nature. The boardwalk, made all in planks taken from the forest, winds through the site, taking hikers past waterfalls, wide lakes, and serene landscapes. I did take an abundance of photos, and some cheeky selfies too.

On the way home 3 hours later, I caught a minibus and sat next to Hannah, a new friend from where else - Australia. She's on a high-school gap year and staying with relatives in the city, and we talked the whole way back. I told her about the Museum of Broken Relationships, and she decided to accompany me! Our driver was not so pleased to wind around the twisty streets of old Zagreb, but I convinced him to drop us there and we went inside. For about $4 we saw one of the most unique collections in the world, aside from the traveling component that is. I think it's somewhere in Brazil, but how cool would it be if it came to Montreal?

The museum isn't big. Only about 5 rooms, but each is themes and relates to various causes for breakups. The toughest to go through was the one relating to death, where people just genuinely wanted to share their experience with the world. Many people send items in out of exhibitionism, out of curiosity, out of a need for closure or from not knowing what to do with reminders of the past. The receptionist explained that the museum evolved from a lack of any such thing: people have ways to commemorate births, deaths, and other major events, but how do you officially mourn a relationship?

Some of the items are funny, some are cautionary tales, and some are sad. It was hilarious to see the sex toys and rubber boobs on the wall, as well as an axe used by a jilted lesbian to break her partner's furniture up into kindling. I almost cried at the toy key donated by a woman whose love was never consummated, much to her frustration, until she discovered he had AIDS, which he died from. I saw many stuffed animals, a wedding album, and a few letters. It's funny what people associate with events, and what some cannot bear to part with at the end of it all. That's honestly one of the main reasons people send things in, because they can't see if thrown out and can't stand to keep it. The museum provides people with a place to give these up and move on. I thought it was pretty cool.

I left and went back to the hostel, saying goodbye to Hannah and receiving an invitation to come stay in Adelaide if I ever get to Oz. Seriously, I'm never going to stay in any hostels at this rate, Aussies are just too nice! I messaged Valentina, and threw my stuff into the room. This other blonde was my only roommate, and she was already in bed owing to a 3 am flight. I was surprised the next morning though to see her still asleep... see, that's why you don't go to bed in these situations! It never works I swear!

Can you believe the guy that got his ex-wife to wear this???

I met up with my girl and we went on a tour of the city at night. I saw the theatre, the old town, a gorgeous view of the city, as well as the streets that house all the cool terraces in the summer. It was awesome to hang out with a local, and she showed me an awesome view of the lit-up city. Sadly, as usual, it's impossible to capture it on camera, so you'll all just have to imagine it. Unlike most cities, the downtown area of Zagreb is subjected to a building height restriction, so it's all fairly uniform until you turn your attention to the outskirts. We ended up at a cool little spot and ordered a platter of Croatian specialties, which like much of the rest of the Balkans, consisted of a lot of grilled meat and veggies, which I paired with a shot of Rakija.

Valentina and I caught up, and she picked up the tab as well. On top of being my personal tour guide and treating me to dinner, she organized that I should ride with her boss to Ljubljana the next morning, saving me bus fare! I was really grateful, and honestly would love to host someone in my own beautiful city so I can return the favour. So nice of her. I was a little nervous about this whole ride with strangers thing, mainly just because of the potential for awkwardness, but in the end Valentina had to come along and attend the meeting too, so it all worked out!

So I was off to the European Union again, and Slovenia ended up being pretty awesome!

Love From Abroad!