Friendly encounter in Split

There are beautiful moments during a trip that become tomorrow’s wonderful memories.

Before rejoining my tour group in Split, Croatia, in June 2014, I was having lunch while wearing my safari hat. I noticed that a man at the next table kept looking at me. Finally, he leaned toward me and asked, “Where are you from?”

I answered, “The United States.”

He smiled and said, “Welcome to Croatia.”

He asked about my hat and I said it was from Africa, used on safari. I also told him I had been to Croatia before and that the highlight, so far, was Plitvice Lakes National Park. He was delighted that I had decided to revisit his country. 

I learned that his name was Mario. He introduced his wife and then his father, who was visiting from Germany. I said that I had visited Germany several times and mentioned the various areas and cities. He translated this to his father, who laughed and replied (through Mario), “You have seen more of Germany than I have.”

I do cartooning, and while we talked I had an idea for a drawing. I asked Mario how to spell a word in Croatian, then I drew a picture of a woman holding a menu and saying, “I’ll have the Dobrodošli.” Beside her was a waiter, wrapped in ivy and cobwebs, saying, “I’m sorry, Madam, but that’s Croatian for ‘Welcome’.”

I gave it to Mario, who laughed and translated it to the others.

As we all got ready to leave, Mario wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it to me. It said, “It was a sunny day in Split. I saw a stranger with an unusual hat. We talked for over an hour. I now feel like I have a new friend. — Mario & family”

It is encounters like these that make a trip. They last long after you forget the information the guides give you. These precious moments remain forever.

PHILIP A. SHART

Tamarac, FL