Pag Island, Croatia: Dancing in Zrće

We met up with some old friends and headed off to Pag Island where all the crazy Summer festivals happen. To get to the island, we hopped on a ferry - and our car came with us! It was pretty sweet and simple and probably saved us a bunch of time on the road (the alternative was to drive further down to road to the bridge). From the boat we admired the dry, almost Mars-like island we were approaching and wondered if we made sure to book an airbnb with A/C.. we did! Our airbnb was actually amazing and the host was so great that he even offered to drive us around like a taxi, if we ever needed a lift.

We weren’t exactly in Novalja’s town center but in my opinion, where we were was even better! Our apartment was right next to a beautiful beach where we could spend the day relaxing, and right in the other direction, just a few minutes away by foot, was the infamous Zrce Beach (where the festivals take place). Lucky for us, first night we were there, the festival was completely FREE! I guess it must have been a pre-festival party because there weren’t any big headliners, but who cares! A free party is a free party! That night we had our first taste of the crowds of people dancing, the crazy light shows, and the amazing stage performers in the Croatia Rocks festival! Every day and night, each of the FIVE stages showcased some sort of crazy-over-the-top spectacle. There were fire breathers, dancers dressed like jellyfish, barely dressed bald ladies (what?!) with shimmering nipple tassels on their silicone boobs, and endless more. There were also bouncy trampoline nets that catapulted people to the water and some strange crane attraction that would dangle drunk people in ways that seemed extremely unsafe… but hey, it was a sight to see for sure! The crowd was young and the music was mainstream, but fully equipped with our bikinis, face paint, and water guns, we danced the nights away to the beats of a few amazing DJs and some really talented performers... including my personal favorite, Jungle.