MichaelB Eurasian Adventure!
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Author	Topic: 12/21/02 - Time to Split
michaelb	Last Replied 2002/12/22 @ 05:04:12 Igor's Antique Bed, Dubrovnik, Croatia 12/21/02 17:50 GMT+1 On the morning of the 17th, we hopped a train to Trieste, Italy, where we later caught a bus to Split, Croatia. We rode the bus until just after midnight and were greeted by a few people with rooms to let. We followed one man named Ivan to his shifty but friendly home about a ten minute walk from the harbour. He was very sweet and made us tea, and told us proudly of his family. The room was nice in theory, but I woke up with frozen toes and the shower was shiftier than its owner. We decided to move on. We found suitable accomodation for marginally more money at a "real" hotel down the way. On our way to check in with our packs on, we were approached by a British man named Kevin who kept asking us, "What the hell are you doing here at this time of the year?" He ended up buying us a drink at his favorite local watering hole where everyone reached a whole new level of shifty-but-friendliness. It was an absolute riot. He introduced us to the local "fish man" who was the guy to see for all our seafood needs, the guy who owned a CD shop down the street, and the man in a suit who slept in the corner of the bar. He checked with his wife if we could stay with his family but neither of us had sleeping bags so the generous housing arrangement couldn't come to pass. We thanked him immensely and asked him to recommend good, cheap food for dinner (as is the custom). He phoned a restaurant nearby and told them he was sending one Canadian and one Australian over to eat and that they should give us the best possible service. We checked in to our hotel and headed over to Konobar Bacvice (pronounced Bats-veets-ay) as recommended by Kevin. The place was empty except for a waiter and two cooks. They were playing cards while they waited for us....literally. One guy's shift had already ended but he waited around to serve us. The meal was incredible; three different pastas with seafood sauces, a carafe of white wine, soups to die for, and a photo of us with the whole crew. A high quality meal for low, low prices. So great in fact, that we returned the following evening for a reprise (only this time Georgina had the chicken in gorgonzola and I had the prociutto and cheese stuffed rumpsteak....mouthwatering). Again, we were the only ones there. I'm not exactly sure how they stay in business. Overall, Split is an exquisite coastal gem. Rustic, friendly, warmer (than North), just beautiful.
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