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I rolled out of bed fully charged and ready to explore the next city. The islands are said to be the best part of Croatia. Hvar island is where I would spend the next two nights. Matt and I checked out of Hostel Emanuel and walked through the run down alley ways to buy ferry tickets. We stood in the long line of travelers with their packs as the sun began to grow stronger by the minute. The temperature rises early in the morning in Croatia. At only 8am, we were already sweating in the heat. After an hour wait, The clerk finally waved us next to the counter. I asked the clerk how much a direct ticket was to Hvar. A girl in my hostel in Dubrovnik told me to make sure I bought the direct and not a ferry with a stop over in Stari Grad. That's what I loved about traveling on my own and winging it. Everyone shares tips and is eager to help make your trip easier on you.The clerk shook her head no and pointed to the harbor. She explained we must wait in another long line with a different ferry company if we wanted the one hour direct to Hvar.
We picked up our packs and stood in another line wrapped along the front of a ferry. We bought our tickets for 60 Kuna and walked across the street to have a cappuccino until it was time to board. Matt talked to me about his traveling. He was on the go for a total of five months and was only on month three. I couldn't imagine meeting new people on my own for that long. I was already sad to leave Michele, Mike and Andras after a few days. To grow close to new friends in every single city for five months would be difficult for me. Maybe at some point you just stop becoming as friendly knowing that in two days you will be moving on to a new city with new people. Either way, two weeks packing and unpacking, climbing up and down bunks and moving city to city was plenty of adventure for me. While it was going to be hard to go back to reality, I would be ready to be in my own bed after the two weeks. I was loving every second of this trip but preferred breaking up adventures yearly and not for months at a time.
We boarded the ferry and headed across the sea to Hvar Island. The Adriatic Sea is so calm with beautiful shades of blue that you don't even want to close your eyes. I looked out the window and felt so lucky. Croatia is like a book, you turn the next page and are surprised by the what unfolds. I had no idea what to expect on this trip and now as we pulled up to the harbor of Hvar, my jaw dropped. The island was completely different than Split. I felt like I had stepped into the streets of Paris. The light stone streets along the harbor were lined with patios of restaurants and bars with big umbrellas. Huge yachts bordered the docks along with small boats for hire to take you to the little islands surrounding Hvar.
Matt pulled out the screen shot of our next hostel, Dink's Place. They hadn't had availability on Hostelworld but I emailed the host to ask if he might be able to squeeze me in. People had booked Hvar a month in advance and there were no hostels with space left. Hvar was one if the most desirable islands in Croatia so I was hoping I would get a chance to see it on my trip. I received a response a few minutes later that they would be able to accommodate me however, it would require a room transfer the second night. I had moved around so much on this trip, I didn't mind packing up and moving if it meant I got to see Hvar. I emailed back and told the host I would take the room.
Following Matt along the stone streets of Hvar, I was learning a lot from traveling with him. I learned that all Aussies shorten their words. He calls his sunglasses sunnies. He explained that we spend too much time sounded every word out and that sunnies eliminates an extra syllable. He told me when you added all the syllables you saved over the course of a year just from shortened one word, think of all the time you will have to do other things. I didn't necessarily agree with Matt but was having fun listening to the list if words they butcher as we walked along the stone path winding along the water.
Everyone in Hvar either walked or drove scooters everywhere.That was the next item on my Croatia bucket list. I wanted to rent a scooter and explore the island. A girl in Dubrovnik told me several spots on Hvar that I must see and should be done by cruising around the island on a bike.
As we made our way up the zig zagged streets leading to Dink's Place, I wondered what was in store for us. Dink's didn't sound as elegant as Villa Divine. We reached a rickety sign hanging over a house on a hilly street that read Dink's Place. Climbing the stairs, we followed the reception sign to the third level. Passing the second level, I dropped my bag as I now saw the hill we climbed led us to a beautiful view overlooking the sea and the other islands near by.
We heard a voice from the third level call down to us so took the remaining stairs to the next level. A shirtless old man greeted us with a big grin and a beer. In his heavy Croatian accent he asked if we were checking in. I asked if he was Dink and he said "No, I'm not Dink. I'm Papa Dink." He asked for our passports and sang a little bit as he checked us in. He was a cheery old man and spoke slow trying to pronounce every word he could correctly. "Sorry, not good English." A younger version of him walked up the stairs from the lower level and introduced himself as Dink. Papa Dink, slapped his son proudly on the back and said "See! This Dink."
Dink finished checking us in and told me that my Irish friends emailed in to see if they had availability but unfortunately they are fully booked. I looked over on the wall and a read the flyer pinned on a board. In black font it simply read BBQ Tonight: A Lot of Meat. 80 Kuna for women 100 Kuna for men.
Papa Dink took my pack and guided us to our room on the fourth level. This hostel was very old. It was their home that they shared with all the backpackers. The tile on the floors were a lime green, and orange blankets on the bunks. I opened the drawer beneath my bed and threw my pack in. Papa Dink clapped his hands together and asked if we would be joining for the house BBQ tonight. Matt and I exchanged glances and shrugged yes. It would be a good opportunity to meet the other travelers in our house. I told him to count me in.
I quickly changed into my swim suit and packed a beach bag. A girl from Sweden checked into my room and told me her and her friend were going to the beach as well. I told Matt and our new roommates I was going to run to the super market and grab a sandwich before we headed to the beach. A guest on the patio gave me directions to the market. "150 meters and you will see a sign that says Super Market. Take the stairs to the right and it will be on the right." I always felt so dumb in Europe because they use the metric system. I knew 150 meters wasn't far but still managed to get lost. After walking around the narrow curvy streets, the road winding all the way down until I arrived to the beach. At this point, I was so hot and sweaty that I decided to just hit up the beach on my own. I didn't have the energy to retrace my steps back to the hostel, besides it would be nice to have a little beach time alone today. There were several beaches by our hostel and this was different than the one Dink mapped out for us, but I would just meet up with Matt and our new roommates for dinner.
I walked down the pebble beach and lay my towel on a white beach chair steps from the water. A woman came up, tapped me on the shoulder and held out her hand as she said "30 Kuna." I reached in my bag, paid and then relaxed by the bright blue water. Every twenty minutes or so I would take a dip into the cool sea. Climbing out of the water, I heard someone call my name. My face lit up as I discovered it was the English girls from Villa Divine. Emily and Ffiona walked up and greeted me with a hug. I told them it was such a small world to meet them at Villa and then again at the bus station in Dubrovnik and now on this random beach in Hvar. They told me about a pub crawl on the harbor tonight so we made plans to meet up at the first stop Kiva Bar.
While walking back to my chair, I heard my name called again and it was Matt. Hot and sweaty, he laid across a chair next to me. He asked if I made it to the market and I told him that I got lost. "How could you get lost? It was only 150 meters to the right??" I laughed and noted that I really needed to stop being lazy and learn the metric system already.
We laid out for a few hours and then I headed back to the hostel for a nap before dinner. When I woke, Matt came upstairs and told me dinner was about to be served and they were waiting for me. I quickly head downstairs to the third level. Two long wooden tables stretched across the narrow hallway separating an open kitchen and the stairwell to the second level. The entire wall and ceiling lined with green ivy. This hostel may have been old but had character. Papa Dink rubbed his hands together and instructed the housekeeper to bring out the food. The entire dinner party consisted of men only. I now understood what the flyer on the wall referred to and made a joke. I introduced myself to the table of men and Dink walked over to ask if I wanted beer or wine with dinner. My room mate walked in and joined us so no longer the only girl. We all raised our glass for a toast and then began passing around the big bowls of food. This trip just got more interesting by the minute. Yesterday I was showering and talking to a Guatemalan professor through the stalls, today I was eating strange chewy meat while getting to know a Scottish guy beside me at dinner. David had a strong Scottish accent and I felt like I was on the set of Braveheart. Some words he said were so hard to comprehend because of his heavy accent but we managed to have a great conversation about Dubrovnik.
After dinner we all mingled around the table, pouring more wine and discovering what countries we were all from. I still was the only American. I met a guy Luke from England and we talked about his favorite American TV shows. It was so crazy to me to be present at a dinner party in Croatia where every person at the table had completely different accents. From Scotland, to The UK, Romania, Sweden and Argentina. Their favorite accent to mimic of course, was American. They all would quote, "Oh My God, that is like so awesome!" They think we all sound like that. It was a trip to hear their accents drop as they did their best impression of Dumb and Dumber, Wedding Crashers and all their favorite American Movies. I got a lot of heat again for being American but laughed it off. After our dinner party concluded, Dink led us to the Pub Crawl into town.
We now walked down the dark alley ways in big group of fifteen people. Walking along the stone walls curving around the harbor at night was a sight to see. The moon glistened down on the water and the yachts lined along the docks lit up creating a glow along the harbor. Hvar during the day was stunning and at night, I felt like I was dreaming as we made our way down the harbor passing palm trees, yachts, patios and night clubs.
Dink took us down one final alley stairwell that was lined with bars and clubs to our left and right. Walking up to the service window, he ordered a big tray of shots and handed them out to everyone. We all clinked our shooters together and took back our drinks. The entire alleyway was full of people holding big glass water goblets topped with mojitos and served with several long multi-colored straws sticking out. Everyone walks around taking big sips off of each others Mojitos. In Croatia this is a very popular drink you share. You basically just bounce around and sample everyone different flavored Mojitos in the alleys.
All the bars and clubs in Hvar look like little castles. They are made of stone and have really old wooden doors and low ceilings. We danced away and I found it so funny that no matter how far away from home you are, they still play American music. I looked around the club and everyone was singing along to Kid Cudi, "Pursuit of Happiness." Hands in the air and emphasizing every word, they were on such a high dancing around to our music. They may make fun of us but the entire trip, every where we went- they were quoting our movies, our songs- so maybe they don't think we're so bad after all. We danced the night away, ran into Ffiona and Emily and got late night Margarita Pizza.
My first day in Hvar proved to me that just when you are sad to leave a city, you are pleasantly surprised with a new adventure. I thought it was going to be hard to meet a group again like we had in Dubrovnik but the dinner with the boys, the pub crawl and meeting Dink and Papa Dink added a new twist to my trip. You don't have to stay in a fancy Villa to enjoy Croatia. Dink's Place may have been a little run down compared to other places. However, Papa Dink took so much pride in his guest having a good time, organizing our BBQ feast and would bend over backwards to accommodate us. It's going to be hard to top today but I'm excited to explore more of Hvar tomorrow.
- comments
'Wayne "Shorten my name, but I'm still tall" Ham Oh Julie..... So, if I think I may join in the fun on this post. Ju, you got lost going to the Sup Mark? Tough to find a 'wich with bad 'rections. 'Pressions are hilari. Us 'Mericans are fun to 'personate. We are good peeps. 'Rep us well. Good 'tory... Cant wait for the nex' one.