A Day Trip to Zadar

In Tourist Life, Zadar by VirginieLeave a Comment

Living in Šibenik is great, but there is so much more to Croatia than the city we are in right now. That’s why we decided to visit Zadar. We heard it had a super cool organ in the sea that made music with the waves, so we absolutely had to check it out. The other awesome thing? Zadar is only an hour and a half away. It was perfect for a day trip to get away from our computers and to explore Croatia!

When we arrived at the bus station in the morning, we quickly noticed that Zadar is a LOT bigger than Šibenik. It’s also a lot more busy and loud, but still nothing compared to Mexico (thank god!).

It took us around twenty minutes to walk from the bus station to the city center, where we could finally enjoy Zadar! We noticed that even though the buildings are old, they are not as pretty as Šibenik. There’s also a lot more stores, which is great if you want to go shopping! (We’re not big shoppers since we don’t have much space for clothes in our backpacks).

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After eating a quick lunch, the first thing we did was find the organ! After all, it was the main reason we were in Zadar. The easiest way to get there was by following the water, so that’s what we did. It was a hot day and the breeze from the sea was really nice. Walking next to the water, I started hearing the beautiful sound. Of course, I couldn’t see anything, but I could already hear it. The closer we got to the stairs, the louder the sound was.

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You see those holes on the ground? The sound came from there and from below the steps.

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I’m pretty sure you’re dying to know what it sounds like by now! Don’t worry, I’ve got you covered! I made sure to take a video 🙂 Of course, you won’t see much, but there’s plenty to hear.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8femMPIU5Qg]

Liked what you heard? We did too! That’s why we sat there for a while, our feet in the water, regretting not bringing our bathing suit. It was a hot day, so that was our biggest mistake! People were diving off the sidewalk and we really wished we could have joined them. It looked really fun!

But after a while, we kept walking. In the same area where the organ is, you can find a big blue circle. What is it? To understand, you either have to read about it or be really smart! It actually represents the sun. And the tiny circles not too far? Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars. Don’t worry, the other planets are there too, they’re just a lot further away!

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In the afternoon, we kept walking, wondering what to do next. It was getting quite warm, so we decided that stopping in the museum (where they have AC, you know) would be a good idea. It was nice to read a bit about Croatia since we haven’t visited any other museum yet. Did you know that the Roman Empire covered Croatia too? That’s something I should have known, but I haven’t looked at a map of the Roman Empire in a long time… So we got to see a lot of pieces of that period (that’s actually most of what we saw!).

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When we exited the museum, that’s when we realized that the tower in the center of the ruins was actually open to tourists and that we could climb it! Even if it was hot outside, we were cooled down by the museum, so we decided to do it. I wasn’t very hard, actually. There were three floors in the tower, where we could stop and appreciate the view. We also had the chance to see the bells, even though we couldn’t go close to them. At the top, we were able to go outside and take stunning pictures of the city. It looks good, doesn’t it? I love the orange clay tiles on all the roof!

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For the rest of the day, we decided to relax and appreciate Zadar. We walked into a park and found an outdoor bar full of comfortable chairs, so that’s where we stayed for a couple hour, sipping pear cider and enjoying ourselves. We aren’t very tough anymore when it comes to walking and full day exploring, so we needed that refreshment and sitting down.

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We finished our day by eating dinner in Zadar and going back to the bus station. On our way though, we had the chance to see this amazing kitty who doesn’t give a dam about anything and just sleeps wherever he wants. I wish I could be a cat too, sometimes…

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What did you think of the organ? Would you like to visit Zadar?