Following my friend Becky’s unexpected deportation from the UK, the pair of us were making an unscheduled return to Croatia just three days after returning from our trip to the countries beautiful Istrian Peninsula. Under angry black clouds and bombarded by high winds and heavy rain we found ourselves in the city of Zadar

Zadar, Croatia

Almost anywhere can look good under clear blue skies, but only truly beautiful places remain so in any weather.

Simon Jones is dead!Rain can quickly wash away the appeal of a city as stone buildings transform into ominous tomb stone colored giants with people pushing their way past one another like Orwellian drones.

Perhaps in brighter weather Zadar might have been a more alluring location, but under slate colored skies the city had the charm of a disgruntled traffic warden and as much beauty as nuclear power station.

Old town Zadar is, according to one travel website, “enchantingly Romanesque.” However, if the cities beauty was measured on a scale of pop stars then Zadar would be somewhere in the region of Tina Turner and Keith Richards.

The city is by the Adriactic Sea and while that helps its mixture of old and new architecture is more of a catastrophic collision than a cultural cocktail. In British terms Zadar is Croatia’s Dagenham or Coventry.

Zadar, Croatia

However, despite the dismal weather Becky and I were determined to make the most of this unscheduled return to Croatia, and under the circumstances I think we did just that. It wasn’t the relaxing indulgence that Rovinj was, but nonetheless we did get to have a few laughs along the way. In the end though, even with a promise of better weather, I can’t see Zadar appearing on our future travel itineraries anytime soon.

Lonely Planet on Zadar
Farewell to Montalbano
The Yarls Wood redemption
Visiting Croatia
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