Istria's a nice place for a short stay :) I went there once on a school trip and the only thing I remember is the amphitheatre haha

Most of the abandoned buildings are from the time of the war of independence and there's a lot of them in some smaller areas that aren't that populated- a lot of people moved out of the country and left their properties so the state can't do much about it because it's still owned by someone. As for the unfriendly elderly Croatians, I apologize on their behalf haha but in general people here are really nice and friendly towards tourists and Croatia's usually pretty popular in terms of hospitality so it was probably just bad luck that you ran into them :) Also, I'm curious, which parts of the country did you visit?

Speaking from my own experience here (I have scoliosis), have you tried going to a chiropractor? There's an unecesarry stigma around them but what they can do for you is life-changing

It goes something like that it's a good thing because when you're ugly, you know people love you for who you are

Stracciatella, rum raisin and yogurt (with berry jam)