Croatia
Croatia: Old Town, Waterfalls, and Burgers in the Rain
Getting to Split required a little logistics—a private transfer across the border to Zagreb Airport, then a flight to Split. We checked in, got settled, and I took a work call from the hotel room. One of the things I love most about what I do is that I can work from anywhere in the world, even mid-family-vacation in Croatia.
We stayed in the heart of Old Town at Hotel Slajiva Culture, which turned out to be one of the better booking decisions I've made. The hotel sits inside Diocletian's Palace and holds both national cultural heritage protection from the Croatian Ministry of Culture and UNESCO recognition as an international monument. During renovation they preserved the original exterior completely, while the interior blends modern decor with the late antique architecture surrounding it. The kids had recently studied Diocletian's Palace in school, so walking through the hotel and around the property had a different kind of meaning for them.
After the work call we went looking for a late dinner. It was raining, Old Town was mostly closed for the night, and the only place we found was Bosso Steak and Burger House, which had outdoor seating only. The burgers were so good we barely noticed the weather, which was lucky because sitting in the cold rain eating bad food would have been a rough welcome to Croatia.
The next day the hotel helped us arrange transportation to Plitvice Falls, a three hour ride each way. There was a closer national park, but we wanted to avoid the crowds. I've chased waterfalls all over the world and honestly went in with low expectations. I was wrong. Plitvice is amazing. Getting that close to the falls was incredible, and what was less incredible was the narrow wooden boardwalk winding through them. My mama bear instincts were on full alert the entire time. I was mentally calculating rescue routes the whole way through. We got completely soaked and it was freezing cold, and we'd do it again without hesitation.
The following day we walked through Old Town and Diocletian's Palace. The architecture stopped us in our tracks—the scale of it, the detail, the fact that you're moving through something built in the third century that people actually lived and worked inside. We love architecture, and this was the kind of thing you can't fully appreciate from a textbook or a photo. You have to walk through it to understand it.
Two days in Split felt like more than two days. Being right in the center of Old Town meant everything was within walking distance, and we packed a lot into a short amount of time. By the last morning we were satisfied but already mentally preparing for the journey home, which included an overnight layover in Frankfurt—another stop with no itinerary. I actually went ahead and booked us a flight into the city. At this point, that's just how we travel.