Day 5
First night in Croatia.
More impressions about Croatia.
We stopped in a small town, close to a church, away from the main road, once again after dark and under the rain.
I slept like a log. The other captain didn't feel as safe as I felt.
To me, dark + rain + church is a safe combo. The night was otherwise uneventful.
We woke up with the alarm set on 6am. as to avoid bothering the potential Mass goers. Soon after the alarm, the bells of the church chimed full on, calling for Sunday morning Mass.
Sunrise followed, and we departed after checking the signs around the church.
In many respects, Croatia makes me think of my beloved grand-parents' village – 50 years ago, when I was a kid.
Indeed Croatia is a country where war stopped 30 years ago, and France had seen the end of the war just 24 years before I was born.
What I see today in rural Croatia is an echo of what I did see in my teens in rural France. Broken villages where time has stopped, with old people meeting together for a Sunday morning coffee at the local joint, with bricks and mortar exposed everywhere to everyone like open wounds that heal slowly.
It makes me understand my grand-parents in a way I had never glimpsed.
And then Croatia was hit with a devastating earthquake in 2020. And that shows in some cities.
Simple. No red tape. Back to basics.