Man VS nature

Some days we wonder why we are so tired, but then we look back and realize that we have managed to cram two or three activities into each day, and often we are walking more than we realize. I continue to be grateful for knees that have carried me so far, and up and down so many paths and steps over the course of our travels. 

 Sometimes the steps are worth going up( and back down) and other times I just have to take a pass...

We did feel that we should stop to view the very famous church of St James in Sibenik. 

Though it was beautiful, it was not among our favorite churches of the trip. Rather dark inside.

It is unique in the barrel vaulting, which was not seen anyplace else in Croatia. 

Close up of the facade

It was this statue that was my favorite, though. She was very human but had a golden glow that was like nothing I have seen before. 

It's hard to imagine, but this notable church was actually bombed during the war of 1991, and suffered considerable damage to the dome, which is now being restored under the protection of UNESCO. 

I'm sure the rest of the town would have been wonderful to explore, but we were both beginning to run out of steam.

Awnings, especially red striped ones, make anyplace look festive and attractive, and I really would have liked to linger in this little piazza. 

We had mikes to go before we found a place to lay our heads, though.

We went from man made wonders to natural wonders in the course of a few hours when we decided to stop to see the waterfalls at Krka. 

It was my ideal nature area, because we could park our car, and for the price of park admission, hop on a bus that would take us down to the river. From there it was a ten minute walk to view the falls. Of course you could also spend an entire day there hiking along various paths for different views. 

One look at that green water and I was hooked! 

And it just got better the further we walked.

It was amazing to be able to see all these fish so clearly.

First view of the falls

We just stood and watched them from different vantage points until we got our fill, then we walked back to the bus stop which took us to our car. Very simple, very easy. Very beautiful. 

But we still had to find an apartman and I was, as always, hoping for a view. 

We pulled off the road at a tiny dot on the map and followed our nose to the harbor. We stopped at the first place that looked good, and they had a room for one night with a beautiful balcony, so we took it, and could finally relax in the last bit of afternoon sun. 

In looking at these photos together, I am struck by how similar the water looks, from river to sea.

Cheers to a full Croatian day!