Unusual Encounters on the Road

Having totally unrelated people coming into one's life is one of the most interesting things when one travels. It's happened in many of my trips all through the years. But the recent trip to Slovenia and Croatia has left me some extraordinary memories.

First encounter is with Marinella. She is in the travel industry and I met her on the flight from Zurich to Ljubljana. Being half Italian and half Slovenia, she did offer me some tips about Ljubljana. She was so nice as to proposing a ride for me out of the airport. But the hotel she was heading was a bit far from mine. So we just said goodbye at the airport.

On the second day in Bled, I met Kim in the breakfast room. Seeing that her kids have grown up in Seattle, she traveled alone to Slovenia and Croatia. Her visit in Slovenia was even a home-coming trip although she was born in the US. It was fun chatting with her in that early morning hour.

Leaving Kim, I went for hiking. On my way I met Marie who had the same idea as I did. She was originally from Taiwan and so was particularly glad that I could speak with her in Mandarin. After graduating and being married to her husband, she stayed in the US. They came to Bled because her husband had an academic conference there. We finished the hiking trail in about 3 hours' time. She even invited me to have lunch with her and her husband at the expense of the conference organizer! I naturally declined because even the spouses of the participants were charged for the meals.

On the ferry from Rijeka to Split, I finally met my roommate when the ship was about to leave the port. In fact, I met Tatja's parents as well. They were a pair of caring folks because Tatja was leaving home for a 4-month work-study on the island of Hrav, an hour away from Split by ferry. Tatja had one more year left before finishing her degree in hospitality. Learning Italian, German and English, she is well prepared for her future career! I managed to learn a little Croatian from her. It always leaves me with some good feelings after talking to a young heart.

Seeing the first light in Split and bidding farewell to Tatja, I ran into Josip. Or I should say it the other way round because he was the one who went jogging that morning. I was a bit lost finding my hotel. So he lent a helping hand.  The hotel turned out to be quite a mystery because almost nobody had heard about it. Thanks to Josip's persistence and local tongue, we finally got it.

I was missing my wonderful time in Slovenia and Croatia as I was wandering outside the largest cathedral in Zagreb. There was just about 2 hours before I left for the airport when Philip approached me. He was being friendly and courteous right from the start. Trying to have a longer conversation, he invited me for coffee in a nearby cafe.  He was obviously a bit disappointed to know that I was leaving soon. Even if that had been my first day in Croatia, I don't think he would have his wish fulfilled. But I did enjoy his company and the coffee in those 30 minutes.