PLITVICKA JEZERA

As I start writing this post, I can once again feel the pristine magic of this location...driven by a temptation to call this place a paradise. The two hours road drive from Zagreb into the Croatian country side is remarkably beautiful. The small villages, the rivers on the way and their cascading waterfalls are so successful in hiding the brutality that ravaged this place just a couple of decades back. With as many as three roads on the way pointing towards Bosnia Herzegovina, my memory took me back to the news channels  of the nineties, when Bosnia was one of the most ruthless centers of the Yugoslavian era clashes. Thankfully, things are so good now...and the beauty of the Balkans are open for the world again.  
Soon, we reached the destination of the day...Plitvicka Jezera...as it is known in Croatian or the Plitvice Lakes National Park. Located at the Croatian border with Bosnia Herzegovina, between the Mala Kapela and Pljesevica mountains of the Dinaric Alps, the National Park is an immaculate representation of sixteen crystal clear, turquoise colored cascading lakes, formed as result of confluence of several small rivers, including the White River and the Black River. While the lakes are all interconnected, they are demarcated by natural limestone barriers formed over the centuries.  Yet, the lakes are not separate and are considered as one composed  system of water. The water masses which enter the upper lakes finally exit the lower lakes forming the river Korana.

Though this complex of lakes and waterfalls is believed to be in existence since the last 15000 years ago, yet, it's present shape as a tourist destination evolved towards the mid twentieth century. Nevertheless, the lakes have hosted mankind since time immemorial. The Illyrians of the ancient world were the early occupants of the region. During the era of Julius Caesar, the region was absorbed into the Roman empire as the province of Illyricum. Generations moved ahead and the region witnessed new occupants. Came the Slavs and also the Croats and then the Turks. The Mongols too wanted to occupy this place. After all the dynamics of control, the lakes became a part of the Croatian kingdom which later unified with the Hungarian empire. After a few centuries, a new power struggle between the Ottoman and the Habsburg empires defined the ownership tussle of the region. And then following a brief French occupation during the Napoleon era, during the early nineteenth century, the region came under the Habsburg rule. Post the World War II, once peace returned, the beauty of the region was universally acknowledged and the national park was declared open for visitors.  For the next few decades, in the erstwhile Yugoslavia, the national park ,with its lakes, was among the most attractive destinations to visit.  But destiny had other plans. The first half of the last decade of the twentieth century witnessed ruthless brutality in the region with wars and clashes of the Yugoslavian era between the Serbs and the Croats. Finally, peace returned when Croatian army took over after declaration of independence of Croatia. 

Coming back to the lakes, out of sixteen, twelve are located at a higher altitude and are called the upper lakes (Gornza Zejera), and four are lower lakes (Donja Zezera). Almost eighty percent of the volume is occupied by two upper lakes - the Proscansco and the Kozjak. The striking feature of the location, apart from the magnificent array of lakes are the hundreds of rushing waterfalls all around. The highest waterfall, named the Large Waterfall is located at the end of the Lower Lakes where Plistvica  river falls. With incredible turquoise color, these lakes have human like names and interestingly, some of these names are based on the names of the people who have drowned in these lakes. 

There are entry tickets to the park which varies between 12 euros to 35 euros per person depending on the season. Any boat or bus ride within the park is covered within this price. It is also noteworthy that visit to the upper lakes is only possible during the non winter months and swimming is prohibited in these lakes. Very few places in this world can match the uniqueness of the Plitvice lakes. Its indeed a paradise. UNESCO knows it too and have granted the world heritage status long back.

A map of the lakes with all the names from the Park map -

A video around the lower lakes -

This post is for alphabet ‘P' of the #BlogchatterA2Z 2020 challenge:

P for Plitvicka Jezera