Falling for Croatia (Saturday, October 8, 2011)
Snow yesterday, sunshine streaming in this morning. After a perfect breakfast--eggs, the European assortment of rolls, ham and cheese, granola, yogurt, mmm mmm, we waddled our way out to the car for the quick drive to Plitvice Lakes National Park. I have to tell you, this is something I've been looking forward to since the day I saw pictures on the park website, and the snow yesterday had me wondering if this was going to be a complete dud stop on our trip. No dud here. This park is gorgeous, and it's perfect for a family who has had a lot of city for a while. Sixteen lakes make their way from a high level of water to a low level of water, cascading and falling through forest and moss covered rocks. So lovely. We spent about 6 hours wandering around lake after lake, following paths constructed of thin wood planks. It felt like a fairyland, or maybe something out of Lord of the Rings . Add to that a boat ride across one of the lakes, numerous opportunities to stop for coffee or...