5 Passports: FULL!

We left Rovinj with 5 open days before our reservation in Split. Having had reservations most of the trip, we thought this would be a good spot to be spontaneous as we headed south. After driving for a few hours we were getting fairly close to Split and decided to find a place in Trogir (Troe-gear), a quaint walled town connected to the mainland by a bridge. It didn’t take long to figure out that this was not going to be as easy as we thought. Almost all the accommodations in Croatia (outside the major cities), are private apartments in buildings with around 4 units plus the owner. We made the mistake of taking high season in Croatia for granted and quickly found one full complex after another. After more than a dozen stops, the kids (and adults) were getting restless. Then we found a little German man (his units were full) who vowed to find us a place. He spoke no English but had a friend who helped translate. He told us to sit tight and relax while he worked the phones. He brought us complimentary beer and soda, and showed the kids his swing set. After at least an hour he said he found a place. He hopped in our car and said he would lead us there. We were hoping he would just give us directions so we could drive by before committing, but he wouldn’t have it. Luckily we pulled up to a brand new building right on the water, and quickly secured 2 nights with the owner (a German “comrade” as they called each other). I was anxious to relax for the night, but the two men basically required my presence for a beer. Neither spoke any English, but they tried there hardest to communicate with me, making sure all the while that my glass was filled to the top. I had to bite my tongue to keep from laughing, as I replayed the afternoon’s events in my head.
Still needing to fill three nights, we decided to continue further south along the coast. What we found was full little village after full little village. The door-to-door stuff was getting really old. Almost ready to discuss sleeping in the car, we decided to regroup over some pizza. The meal was good but the service was better. The waiter really took to the kids, bringing out all kinds of treats throughout the dinner. The kids were thrilled just to be out of the car, so I decided to search out the town on foot. I found a lady who knew of a place that was available for two nights, so we ended up in a little town, built on the side of a cliff, called Stanici. The owners, a nice Croatian couple, met us at the main road and led us down a series of steep alleys to a spot we could park. (It was so steep and narrow, that with my manual transmission rental car, we made no plans to drive anywhere until it was time to check out.) After helping me bring in the luggage and showing us around the apartment, they invited us over for drinks and treats. Angie and I were treated to some homemade moonshine (The waiter at lunch gave us Schnapps. This town is trying to get us drunk.), while the kids got juice and cookies. The apartment was large with incredible views, so we tried to block out the thought of having to find yet another apartment in a couple days.
After some fun on the beach we found ourselves packing again, ready to get an early start on our next hunt. After a couple hours of searching, we found a vacant hotel room and quickly snatched it up. It was time to celebrate Ella’s 4th birthday, in of all places Krilo, Croatia. After a little swim in the sea, we opened up some presents and had ice cream sundaes. We could now sleep easy because tomorrow we would be in Split with our reservation waiting. So in conclusion, if you want to visit the Dalmatia Coast in Croatia during high season, make a reservation!