Saturday, August 27- To Opatia with stop in Plitvice Lakes

 Our guide had the hotel give us wake-up calls at 6 AM- the earliest of our trip.  We were in the bus at 7:30 AM on the road to Opatija.  We stopped en route at Plitvice Lakes National Park.  It was a beautiful area with dolomite hills on one side and limestone on the other.  It was EXTREMELY popular with tourists and we found out why- it was absolutely beautiful.  I took the longer hike with a guide.  This allowed us to see the upper and lower lakes.  Our guide was also a volunteer in a rescue squad for the park since travelers occasionally over-estimated their stamina and their water supply.  On the way out we saw a group in action; a team carrying a stretcher with a conscious but red-faced middle-aged lady out to the entrance.

Our walk eventually took us to the other side of the lake behind me.  If you look closely you can see people walking over on the other side.

Huge waterfalls.

The color of the water is due to the calcium carbonate content;  the appearance can vary depending on time of day, angle of the sun and the temperature of the water. 

One of many giant sinkholes; water dissolves the limestone.

We continued after lunch to completely different surroundings:  Opatija, on the coast.  This area considered itself to be “Little Monaco” and we did see a Rolls-Royce and a Porsche SUV on our walks.  There were a few casinos on the main street and the usual proliferation of jewelry and high-end clothing stores.   Our hotel had originally been a lodge for Austro-Hungarian royalty, then converted to a hotel for workers during the Communist era and, fortunately, modernized since then with the usual conveniences including Wi-Fi and a mini-fridge in each room.

Old ad featuring the hotel when it was an inn for workers during the communist era.