You're probably wondering what has been up with the last several days (couple weeks as I am finishing this post I started on the bus on Budapest): other than reuniting with part of my family. Well, I'm wondering the same thing for a couple of them. The rest I'd like to tell you about.
In Dubrovnik, it was essentially all family stuff. I didn't even see a beach other than from a car window! One story: I have to talk about the dinner we had on Wednesday night. I had no idea what to expect when I walked over to meet my second cousin once removed Katarina to drive from
Dubrovnik to Mikulići. I used the location sharing on Messenger (thanks, Facebook) to find my third cousin Jakov and then we walked over to meet his mother. When I walked through the front door, she had a huge smile on her face but I could tell she didn't know exactly what to do. So, we shook hands or hugged, something very brief and sat down in the kitchen for some refreshments and chatting. Jakov stayed for his piano gig that night, and Katarina drove me to Mikulići. But first, we needed to pick up Marija (Katarina's sister) and her daughter Ana from their house in Gruda, not too far off our path. I met their adorable black lab puppy and show them the pictures I had printed earlier that day. We talked for quite a while longer than we should have, so as soon as we arrived in Miculići people set the table, organized people, and brought out the food. Sixteen places were laid out across two tables put side-by-side like Thanksgiving at my grandparents' house. The spread was beautiful with sixteen places, and we had some traditional Croatian dishes like ćevapčići (meat nuggets). After hearing more about what everyone was up to, learning about Croatia, talking about family history, and seeing the "national dress" of that region of Croatia, I had to say goodbye to my new family in the south of Croatia. To finish it all off, I met Jakov for his last set at the bar and we walked back towards my apartment together before he split off to go to his place. We all look forward to meeting again soon.
The next morning, I caught the bus to Split, which was surprising scenic almost all the way. Most of the journey was along the coast with perfect views. I quickly met my host in Split, where she introduced me to the apartment where she has lived for her entire life. She even offered me juice and ice cream when I arrived. Over the next few days, I explored the town (mostly the old town that is in the former Diocletian Palace). I tried lots of food places and never found a place I really liked. The highlights of my time in Split were exploring the old basements of the Diocletian Palace (one of the main sources for determining what the upper floor looked like since they had the same floorplan), trying pistachio gelato, and climbing up a tall bell tower with seemingly thrown-together stairs. I also went to the beach on my last day, and when I go to Croatia again, I want to spend at least one full day around and on the beach.
I had a day in Zagreb after my train ride from Split. What I heard about the train not being worth it was definitely true. It was delayed by two hours, but I got a cabin all to myself on the last train. I ate at a fantastic burger place and then visited the Museum of Broken Relationships, a fascinating museum that started as a traveling exhibition and now has permanent locations in Zagreb and L.A. (started in Zagreb). The museum is completely made up of personal stories, and everyone can also read some and add their own on their website (https://brokenships.com/). I'd like to see more experimental museums like this going forward.
The week in Budapest just finished up today when we took the train to Vienna (Wien). I met Elizabeth at the airport last Monday and had the first of our daily sit-down dinners that took about two hours each (as European restaurants do). The big things we did were visiting Parliament, climbing to the top of St. Stephen's Basilica, going to the Gellert baths (with the Turkish thermal baths), walking to the top of Gellert Hill, and a wine festival at the Budapest History Museum at the Buda Castle/Palace. One evening we also went to a Margaret Island concert in the south part of the city on our host's recommendation. We chatted with her and her husband for a bit, and the whole evening was very nice. It was my first time having American fast food during this trip: we ate KFC in the concert venue. The band had great energy, and Elizabeth and I got a chance to get into the crowd towards the front for several songs.
Hope the information vomit was bearable. Now there's pictures!
Clouds on the way to Dubrovnik
How is this the view on the way from the airport?
National Dress in my family's home
Meeting up with Roland again after our encounter in Bremen
Old Town, heading to meet Jakov
New Dubrovnik's marina
One of the views going to Split
Beach time.
Stairs bolted to the side of the bell tower?
Train to Zagreb
from the train
My very small, cozy place
Zagreb!
I found her!
From the top of St. Stephen's
The dome of St. Stephen's
A tower of St. Stephen's with the city
The main entrance to Parliament (coronation symbols such as the crown were behind us)
Wine festival
Me
A lamp post at the Budapest History Museum
From Buda Castle
Margaret Island
Slushies at the top of Gellert Hill
From Gellert Hill
Being tourists and silly
Where eagles belong
Buda and Pest getting together
Gellert Baths
Statue at the pool
Gellert Baths - indoor thermal baths
Saying goodbye to Budapest and the flowers from the first day
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