My babymoon last year

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in Mrkopalj

My baby boy V. is 9 months old. Whaaaat? Yes, I can’t believe it too. The pregnancy seemed to drag on forever but these past 9 months have gone by so fast. A blink of an eye and he has changed from a sleepy newborn to active and strong baby. This made me think of my babymoon last August. I didn’t travel internationally during my pregnancy apart from a day trip to Italy with my best friend. Instead my husband and I made lots of day trips locally and we also took several weekend trips.

I really wanted to go away somewhere by the end of my pregnancy so after some serious thinking and some luck I found a great deal for a lovely apartment in Gorski kotar region of Croatia. Now, Gorski kotar is fondly nicknamed little Switzerland because it’s an area full of forests and mountains and it’s rich in wildlife. Gorski kotar is totally off the beaten path destination in Croatia unlike its coast.

Gorski kotar

We spent the babymoon weekend in Mrkopalj, a town in Gorski kotar only an hour away from the seaside (Kvarner region) and an hour and a half from Croatia’s capital Zagreb. It’s a sleepy little town that has a small ski lift. Actually, Mrkopalj is the place where the first ski lessons were held back in 1913. It’s surrounded by forest and yet it was quite hot there last August. There are many outstanding natural attractions from national parks, caves, rivers and protected landscapes around Mrkopalj. Of course, we couldn’t have an active holiday so we didn’t do any rock climbing or cycling or rafting. After all, I was 30 weeks pregnant. So, what did we do? We took long walks, played board games, watched a bit of telly too and enjoyed the local cuisine. We also drove to several neighboring villages. We visited Begovo Razdolje just because it’s the highest inhabited place in Croatia. We had excellent lunch in Ravna Gora, another beautiful village. I can still remember the taste of a delectable wild berries strudel that I had as a dessert. Other local specialties of this area are game dishes, mushrooms, frogs and many more.

We left our lovely apartment on Sunday morning and drove to Ogulin which is a town in another Croatian region. Ogulin is famous for several attractions: the Frankopan castle, Đula’s abyss and as the birth place of the best Croatian writer for children Ivana Brlić Mažuranić. We wandered around the town and saw the major sights. We visited the Frankopan castle together and I visited Ivana’s House of Fairy Tales in the castle’s courtyard on my own.

Ogulin castle

Frankopan Castle was built around 1500 by Bernardin Frankopan. It’s a rather beautiful renaissance castle. There’s a small entrance fee and you get to see several different exhibitions: archaeological exhibition, ethnographic exhibition, exhibition about Croatian fairy-tale writer Ivana Brlić Mažuranić and a mountaineering exhibition.

Ivana’s House of Fairy Tales is a rather interesting multimedia and interactive center focusing not just on Ivana B.Mažuranić’s work but also on fairy tales in general. It’s quite a fun experience for children and all young at heart. I loved it!

After our short sightseeing of Ogulin we had yet another delicious meal. All in all, it was a rather relaxing and enjoyable babymoon weekend. And now a year later I’ve got an adorable baby boy!:)

 

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41 thoughts on “My babymoon last year”

  10. How did we not think of a babymoon – what a wonderful idea! We fell in love with Croatia when we visited and I am desperate to go back. Gorski kotar region certainly looks picturesque and the perfect setting for a babymoon! Thanks for linking up to MondayEscapes.

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  11. What a lovely thing to do before the whirlwind of newborn baby life starts! I wish I had done something similar. I’d never heard of the Gorski kotar region before reading this, and Mrkopalj certainly looks super picturesque! Ivana’s House of Fairy Tales also looks fab for kids.
    Thanks for linking up to #MondayEscapes

    Liked by 1 person

  16. The Frankopan Castle looks awesome! And your baby is almost a year old! Blink again and he will be in high school! At least that’s how it seemed to me. My adult kids are close, so life is still so enjoyable!

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  18. Sounds like fabulous baby moon. We took a baby/familymoon to Ireland this time around. It was awesome. And you’re right, babies grow so fast. I just had my third a few weeks ago and I still can’t believe how fast the time has gone since I had my first. I feel like my oldest should still be a baby. #farawayfiles

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  20. Glad you had a nice babymoon! Gorski Kotar looks lovely. The castle is beautiful and the exhibits sound interesting too. Thanks for sharing on #TheWeeklyPostcard.

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  21. Gorski kotar looks like such a serene place! My daughter is 1 y.o and I did travel internationally during my second trimester – I felt like I needed it so much! But we didn´t go anywhere by the end of my pregnancy, so should do it next time! #TheWeeklyPostcard

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  23. Now, what a great place! So quaint, very very beautiful. My little one turns 3 months next week (what, when did that happen??) and we took our babymoon to La Gomera when I was 21 weeks along and Athens when I was 29 weeks along. I highly recommend that.
    #TheWeeklyPostcard

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