life is beautiful

 Split, Croatia is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. As soon as we got off the plane it felt like someone just dropped us (Cassie and myself) off in the middle of nowhere in a random, unknown country...which is exactly what had happened. There are 4 million people in the entire country and it is comprised of 1,300 islands all of which are accessible even though only 47 of them are inhabited. The language, outside of Chinese, is one of the most difficult wars. There is still much political unrest in the country because it is an old Yugoslavian country that has a bloody, war-filled past because so many countries have fought for Croatia but it's on the way to becoming The Republic of Croatia as well as a member of the EU. That being said their language has a Latin base, but has much Russian and Italian influence = years to learn. The country is also almost 80% Roman Catholic and the average wage is about $700 a month. It is a very poor country rich in tradition with some of the most beautiful people, men and women, that I have ever seen in my life. I felt like a midget because everyone was so tall, but most people spoke broken English so we were fine, and they were unbelievably hospitable.

Furthermore, the entire country lives for the summertime when the tourists come in. We learned that <0.5% of their tourists are American and >50% of them are Germans. Most Americans just don't know about this European gem which has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. The majority of the beaches are pebbles and not sand, hence why the water and beaches are so clean and gorgeous. The country is also a huge fishing port. They are famous for their fish markets, fish soup, and fresh fish dishes and they are delicious! They broil or grill a small white fish and literally serve the entire fish head and all which is absolutely delicious!

Our hotel was located in the center of the city only steps from the famous Diocletian's palace where the ruins are over 1,800 years old and some of the most beautiful I've seen. We also rubbed the toe of their famous guru for good luck and climbed the highest mountain in the city, called Marjan, where the views are indescribable. Split is also the second largest city in Croatia, but we walked the entire place in less than a day - it is verrrrrry small. It's about the size of Edisto, but knowing it's the 2nd largest city just shows you how little the country is. We also saw Sigmund Freud's home, went to the famous art gallery, and walked around the main square of town.
For our last day in Croatia we took a day trip to the famous Krka National Park. Croatia has soooo many UNESCO World Heritage sites, a famous one being the Plitvice Lakes, but they were too far from us to make in just one day. Therefore, we settled for the next famous site which was no disappointment which was the beautiful lakes and wildlife of Krka.
Overall a highly successful, fun, and gorgeous getaway. Everything we did and saw seems like a dream and I am so so proud, as an American, to say that I have seen the oh so gorgeous little country of Croatia.