Probably the best start to a morning, before breakfast we got changed into our swimmers and walked down to the waterfalls.
The sun hadn't really had time to heat us up yet so it was freezing getting into the lake but after a short while it felt fine and really refreshing. With the sea the kids have been fine diving about and jumping in but they were both a bit too cold so we didn't stay there too long. Back at the van we just dried off in the sunshine whilst eating the huge watermelon for breakfast that we'd bought the day before. We are getting on a boat from Split in Croatia to Ancona in Italy overnight so we've not planned anything today and take the time to have a relaxing morning and getting the van sorted out again. It's a 2hr drive to Split plus any border crossing time. The drive is very easy and on actual main roads, it's very mountainous and we lose phone signal for a while so we weren't sure if we were following the correct road but soon we reach a completely empty border crossing so we think we've done well. We drive up to the Bosnian police check which is just a man in a hut. He takes a quick look at us and tells us to turn around, this border crossing is only for locals! Not quite sure how that can be possible but luckily we gain signal again and find another border crossing just 10 minutes away. It was a bit busier but probably took only 15 minutes to get across and as much as I do like Bosnia there was a small sense of relief at being back in the EU where you'd hope there was less corruption and chance of being pulled over by the police for fake charges!
When researching the trip there were a few boat crossings we could take but many were to the south of Italy and as much as I tried to get Pompeii and the Italian coast into the itinerary it was just too much driving so we'll have to plan that in for another time.
It did mean we had a few hours to spend in Split and even though its the second largest city in Croatia after the capital other than wander the old town I couldn't find much to do.
The heat is relentless and we're really keen to just find something to do indoors with air conditioning. Soon enough our prayers are answered as we walk past froggyland. A taxidermy museum dedicated to stuffed frogs in specific poses. Sadly we weren't allowed to take pictures but it's the most random museum I've possibly ever visited. Frogs of various shapes and sizes manipulated into scenes such as the circus or a frog who had just given birth. I would highly recommend it to anyone who is here just for the randomness of it all.
Along with a bit of clothes shopping and ice cream eating we did walk around the old streets which were nice enough but unless you're passing through Split for another reason I wouldn't say there's anything to explicitly come here for.
We were parked in an underground car park so unable to cook in the van but didn't fancy spending a fortune in a restaurant so we popped into a couple of takeaways, I even found a take away cocktail bar (served in an incognito glass since drinking in the street is prohibited), took our food to the seafront and watch the boats coming and going.
Our boat tickets said we could arrive from 8pm for a 10pm crossing so thought we'd get there nice and early so we could get into the cabin and get the kids to sleep. How wrong that plan turned out! There was no real queuing system for the cars and no sign of any boat so we just turned off the engine and entertained the kids with some top trumps and quiz game we'd packed. All of a sudden we were being moved to what turned out to be another holding area but people had deserted their cars so again it was a free for all as people tried to push their way through. At least we managed to get near the front for when the boat did eventually turn up, or so we thought.
When it was our turn to move forward we got to the front and were stopped, we were sent into another waiting area for tall vehicles and just sat there watching everyone else drive on. Thank goodness our cabin was prebooked as I know there will be people running around looking for a quiet corner to sit and try sleep. We even saw foot passengers just walk on through the car entrance and that's when I had a brain wave. I'll just leave Al to drive on and I'll go ahead with the kids. Sure enough they were happy to let us through, if only I had thought about this 45 minutes ago.
We've done P&O and Brittany ferries overnight to France before so we sort of had an expectation of what the boat would be like, practical and very basic and yes that's exactly what we got. It's an old boat though and the carpets look like they need a desperate clean but at least we've got a private space. I was worried we might be cold and have air conditioning in the cabin, nope it's like a sauna, at least with the van we can open the vents or even sleep with the door open!
Once Al finally joined us I took the opportunity to explore the ship. As a kid travelling to France we didn't usually have a cabin and instead had reclining seats so I was used to seeing people sleeping on the decks but this is another level. People have brought blow up air beds and making camps anywhere there is a free space. I even saw someone erecting a hammock outside!
The bar, if you could call it that, was a counter selling overpriced drinks with a floor speaker so I decided to retreat to the somewhat luxury of our cabin.
So much for the kids having an early night and not having to share a bed, 11pm and they still can't sleep. Let's hope the wake up call is not like the channel crossing where they start getting you up an hour before you dock by blasting music into the cabins. We only need 5 minutes, I really don't fancy a super early start!