Korcula to Mjet

After a slow morning, we began the 5 hour sail to Korcula.  There was not much wind so we went under motor, and got to enjoy stunning views along hhe way.  The landscape remained very beautiful, and I am still amazed at how sparsely populated the land is considering its location in Europe.  We arrived in Korcula Town in the afternoon, and had enough time for a swim in the shadow of the old walls, and then a nice hot shower at the Marina, before we started a walking tour led by Teo.  He took us away away from the marina, and after one small turn, we were immediately wrapped up in the lovely narrow streets fo the city.  He pointed out a good coffee shop, and also a nice place to buy wine and jewelery.  He then led us to the Massimo cocktail bar at the top of the medieval tower on the eastern wall.  Massimo can only be accessed by steep ladder, and the top was packed with happy internationals drinking cocktails.  My Massimo signature cocktail was better than I expected, and I was very, very happy when we came down and walked through more of the old town.  There are many narrow streets that run east west, and they are designed that way so that a breeze can be channeled through the city on hot days.  I thought that was so clever.

We caught a taxi cab up the mountain to have dinner at a local farmstead.  The wine was so so and I am fairly certain that it was watered, and the food arrived so slowly that we didn't leave until almost 11 pm!  But in my opinion, the real winners of the night was the smoked ham appetizer, the gorgeous fresh grilled sardines of which I ate at least 5, and the frisky cats that were very, very keen on those sardines.

The next morning, we had coffee at that coffee shop, and then had a whirlwind trip through the city in search of wines and gifts.  We were sorry to not have more money to buy all of the jewelery in that store (red coral, lapis lazuli, onyx and gorgeous silver).  But we were also sorry to not have more time to shop for a shirt for Alex.  Luckily, Teo tells us that we can find that more easily, and of better quality, in Dubrovnik.

We then departed again, and Teo prepared a real Croatian goulash for lunch which we ate, with red wine from the winery the first night, in a secluded bay that we had all to ourselves.  Well actually, there was an italian family who left almost immediately after we arrived.  I guess they didn't want to share the bay.   :)  We spent the afternoon swimming and diving off the anchored boat, enjoyed a snack of proscuito and cheese, and then made our way to the small village on the island of Mijet.  We bypassed the main marina, and instead drove right up to the private restaurant.  We were the only sailboat there, and we joked about the commute into shore.  The island of Mijet is covered with trees and is like a jungle.  The national parks were created to protect two species of tree, and the lusy green colour was nice to see since so many of the islands to the south were more barren and rock.

That night we enjoyed an excellent meal that started with oysters.  Fresh squid, and plenty of wine later, we were in a perfect position to the enjoy the local hooch of fermented honey and lemon, or herbed grappa.  As the level of drink in the bottle of grappa became lower and lower, the carob in the bottle announced itself (shall we say) more and more prominently.  There a lot of laughing last night, and somehow we all made it safely across the narrow gangplank that we use to get to the boat.  

This morning, we had a very nice coffee after I took a short dip in the ocean, and then Teo led us up the mountain along a 200-year old path of stone built by the villagers.  At the top was the village of Prodzura.  This village now only as a few families, and the community is quite isolated when it is not tourist season.  Teo pointed out various wild herbs, and we tried wild blackberries, grapes, and figs off of the trees.  At the top of the mountain, there is an old cemetary with beautiful views.

We are now floating in another small bay enjoying an afternoon of swimming and relaxing after a lunch of arugula salad with fresh cheese.  The water is so clean, safe, and deep, and it is just the right temperature.  Soon we will sail a short 15 minutes to the village, and enjoy what I am sure will be another lovely dinner with local cats begging for fish.  Speaking of fish, I have learned a lot of about different types of fish on this trip.  One of the passengers, an Italian woman named Michaela, knows a lot about art, and FISH.  Every evening, she says "I would like a fish" and I think that will be the moto of the trip.  Michaela prefers  fish that live deep and among the rocks  Tonight, I plan to have one of these rock-fish, and will enjoy every bite, because they cannot be found in Canada, and are difficult to find even here.  Divers have to go down in scuba suits with oxygen tanks and fish for them with live squid.

As always, thanks for reading!  

Leslie

To Middle Dalmatia

We drove from Dubrovnik to Split making four stops on the way.  We first took a dip in the sea just a few kilometers from Dubrovnik.  The beach was rocky and full of families.  We did not stay long because it was very sunny and we were not allowed to stay in the shade unless we paid for the full-day rental of a lounge chair.  It felt good to swim in the water.  The tempeature is warm but not soupy like it is in East Asia, and it is so clear that you can easily see the tocks at the bottom and the small fish without goggles.

We then began an unplanned driving adventure.  We thought that it would be a simple thing to find a restaurant for lunch but as it turns out, this is not the case.  There is a long stretch that includes a 5 km stretch through Bosnia where there is very little in terms of tourism, and we could not find a place to stop.  We even tried stopping at a tourist bureau to ask for directions to a winery.  We did eventually find it but not before driving about 20 minutes out of our way.  When we arrived there, my concerns were confirmed because the restaurant only prepared food when there is a recommendation.  We did eventually find a wonderful pizzeria in a beach town about 45 minutes further along the way.  Olive trees grow everywhere in this region, and we saw several roadside stands selling it.  Tired but no longer hungry, we decided to make one more beach stop before arriving in Split.  This turned out to e an excellent decision because the rocks were smaller, and large pine trees arched over the beach providing plenty of free and comfortable shade.

We arrived in Split at around 8 pm and had no trouble finding our Airbnb.  Our hostess' partner Ivano met us and helped us carry our bags upstairs to the lovely little apartment with a fully-stocked kitchen, laundry, and even a common area.  Ivano then gave us fresh peaches from his garden, and then showed us where we were locatd on the map, as well as directions to the old city, and other major tourist destinations.  Alex and Ivano enjoyed swapping stories about living under a communist regime, and thenhe left us to explore.

Dioclesian's Palace, which is perhaps one of the most important destinations in Split, was only a short walk away, and it was easy for us to find our way there and explore the lovely small alleyways.  The old city of Dubrovnik was Medieval, but this palace was built during the Roman Empire, and is in excellent condition.  There is clean and crisp drinking water flowing from fountains all over the place, and live music in every corner.  We enjoyed a beer in a lively square, and then Alex and I shared an octopus soup in a secluded courtyard that was gracious enough to stay open until 1 am.

The next day, we walked through the Palace again until we got to the base of the park area at the top of the city.  This is not a natural park as one would expect but has manicured pathways going through the trees with the biggest aloe plants that I have ever seen.  Some people even carved their names into the leaves of these big plants.  We were very hot by the time we got to the top of the hill and we were very pleased to find a restaurant up there with cold beer and lemonade.  After cooling down a bit, we then walked down again and had lunch near the marina.  That night we went out for dinner at a very nice place tucked away in another secret courtyard.  I admit that I find food expensive here, but it is hard to argue with fresh fish that is unlike any fish you can find in Toronto.

Vali and Alice left to begin their ride home, and Alex and I made our way to the ACI Marina to meet up with our G Adventures group.  Eventually, our skipper Teo found us, and led us along to the 52-foot sailboat that at this moment, is still our home.  Teo is a native Croatian who grew up on the Island of Vis.  After our orientation meeting, we were off to the island of Sorta (pronounced Sholta).  This is the closest island to Split, and is smaller than its big brother Brac.  Teo brought us to an Agri-farm, which in this place is like a homestead where they prepare all of the food and wine themselves.  We had the most wonderful lamb that was prepared under a bell called a peka.  The bell is buried in ash and the meat was so soft and delicious, and was washed down with as much rose and red wine that we could drink.  There were also fresh olives, homemade bread and tapenade.  We were very happy upon our return that evening.

The next morning, it was very rainy and we had to make our way to the island of Vis through a heavy downpour with winds and big waves when we were in the open sea.  We all got a memorable introduction to the powers of the sea, and I was very glad for the ginger tablets that I bought as an afterthought.  We were under motor most of the time because it was too windy to sail, and we were at the mercy of the waves and heavy rain.  Teo did put up the sail at one point, and he navigated us calmly and expertly.  Once the sails caught the wind, the boat then flew towards Vis and we were at a pitch of 45 degrees!  All of the cabinets in the cabins have latches, and we had to put everything away securly to avoid things flying all over the floor.

Sometimes it was a little bit scary to consider how steeply we were pitched, and still rising and falling on the waves, with the rain pouring down and seeing lightning in the distance, but Teo has been sailing for his whole life and he was never concerned for our safety with the exception of asking all of us how we were feeling and whether we were feeling seasick.

After about 4 hours, we finally pulled into the Vis harbour.  After hardly sleeping the night before because it had been hugely hot with noisy fans, and then surviving the crossing from Solta to Vis, we all fell asleep in our cabins for a couple of hours.  It was a very, very sweet nap.

Vis is Teo's hometown, and he was able to secure a mooring for us in a semi-legal spot because he knows absolutely everybody in town.  Actually, everywhere we have been so far, Teo's friends have saved us parking spots.  After my nap, I went for a swim and then had a lovely hot shower.  That evening, the group went out for dinner at a restaurant in the harbour.  I had a lovely fish soup on Teo's recommendation that went a long way to settle that feeling of gentle swaying feeling that I seem to have all the time.  After our dinner, we spent some time debating where to go next, and a teenager ran out of the nearby ice cream shop and tried his absolute best to convince the group (of mostly women) to come into his establishment.  He even went as far as bringing out a cup of the delicious stuff that was flavoured with nutella.  In the end, we went to the only bar in town for a drink and a gander at the local colour.  The Bejbe Bar (prouounced baby) played some solid 80s music and served questionable cocktails, and was full of people.  Alex was happy because it brought him back to his youth in Romania.  We ended the night by walking along the shore to take a look at the Franciscan Monastery that is featured in many photos of this island.

In the morning, we woke up to fresh croissants from the bakery that had been picked up fresh by Teo along with fresh fruit.  In fact, There is always fresh fruit and crusty bread and coffee to be had, and in the mornings there is cereal and yogourt.  Teo takes excellent care of us and even prepared us an exquisite lunch on the boat as we traveled from Vis to Hvar.  Rather than docking in the marina, we dropped anchor in a secluded bay near the village of Milna.  We had a relaxing afternoon of jumping off the boat and swimming, and just generally lounging around.  I have a feeling that this bay will turn out to be one of those secret and special places that G Adventures always seems to bring you too.
For dinner that night we went to an outstanding restaurant and four of us shared a very special fish.  Apparently this fish is only found at certain depths and at certain distances from the shore.  This fish has a big mouth with pointy teeth and eats whatever it can scrape off of rocks.  I think that it is safe to say that I will probably never find this fish in Toronto.

After dinner, we explored the Medieval town of Hvar.  Or, I should say, we took a taxi to the town and were blown away by how absolutely stunning it was.  There is Renaissance architecture mixed with Venetian buildings, all looking down on a stunning bay.  The problem is that it is overun by drunken young Europeans every single night.  There was hardly any room to move around the throngs of nubile twenty-somethings getting more drunk by the second.  It is too bad in a way because it is not an easy thing to find a nice place for a coffee and to enjoy the scenery.  We made our way to a 'Jazz Bar' which really just turned out to be a windowless club with loud hip hop music.  Ho hum I thought to myself.  After a while we caught a taxi back to Milna, and then Sophie texted Teo that were were nearby.  Teo is so lovely that he had borrowed the restaurant's boat to be able to shuttle us back to the boat after our foray into Hvar (it is no surprise that he did not want to come with us...).  When he pulled up to the shore, a group of drunk girls charged past us and begged him to take them to their catamaran.  He only agreed to do it after they told him the name of their skipper.  It was a good thing that he did that because they had no idea which boat in the bay belonged to them!  It was actually a bit tricky to figure out our boat as well...

This morning I went for a morning swim, and then we had a leisurely morning enjoying our breakfast.  Teo returned from town with another batch of fresh pastries, and we then began the longest journey of the trip from Hvar to Korcula.  Teo made us another delicious lunch on the boat, and we are now approaching the town.  I am looking forward to this town because it has such an excellent reputation for food, beaches, architecture, and art.  Teo also tells me that this is where people can buy good souvenirs, and wine to bring home.  I think that I will sign off now and bring in my laundry, and prepare for our walking tour that will precede what I am sure will be another excellent meal at a family homestead.

As always, there is so much more that I am sure I have forgotten to mention.  And Croatia is the perfect mix of old and new.  I am enjoying this holiday very much, and I am also particularly happy to see how much Alex is enjoying it too.

Thanks for reading!

Leslie

From Beantown to Dalmatia

It may be a strange thing to combine Boston with Croatia, but that is exactly what I seemed to do this time.  A few months ago, Alex and I booked a weekend in Boston, and we then promptly forgot all about that when we booked our sailing trip from Split to Dubrovnik.

So last Friday,  I brought our luggage to the airport, and locked it in storage.  And there it stayed until we picked it up on Monday evening.

Boston was wonderful.  We began by flying with Porter Airlines, and we not only go to enjoy the new tunnel that runs from the mainland to the terminal, but also the complimentary coffee and shortbread cookies in the lounge.  After a short flight, we were in Logan International Airport and enjoying a lovely reunion with John and Kathleen Lamb.  It was such a delight to return to their beautiful home after almost 16 years.  The photos of their beautiful children, including the incomparable Sarah Lamb, have now expanded to include beautiful grandchildren and wedding photos.  Alex and I were grateful to enjoy coffee in their lovely garden, and we took full advantage of their Museum of Fine Arts memberships.

On Saturday we took the T to the museum, and got to see the Hukosai exhibit.  There were many people there enjoying the lovely landscapes and animals painted by this Japanese master.  Following this, we walked to Quincy Market and enjoyed fresh oysters on the half shell in North America's oldest restaurant.

On Sunday, we were picked up by Alex's friend Mircea and his wife Deyra, and we drove to the coastal town of Gloucester for lunch.  After the most delicious mussels I have ever had in my life, we then walked along the shoreline and passed an American flag every 10 feet.  God forbid you forget where you are for even a minute.  But I have to admit that the red, white, and blue is a beautiful flag and it had a nice visual impact.

After the town of Gloucester, we drove to the smaller coastal village of Rockport.  Rockport is a darling little town full of artist shops, bakeries, and places to get an espresso or saltwater taffy.  We enjoyed a strudel on the waterfront, and then walked through some nearby trails to view a lovely little quarry with water like glass.  Rockport was such an unexpected treat and I am really glad that we got to spend our last day in Boston enjoying the coast.

We flew back to Toronto, and had time for a quick visit home before returning to the airport to catch our flight to Rome.  Terminal 3 was an absolute zoo because a severe storm had wreaked havoc with flights, and our departure was delayed by 3 hours as the plane waited for its co-pilot to arrive.  Eventually however, we did get off the ground, so to speak, and then had a nice flight to Rome.

The airport in Rome was a total fiasco.  There had been a fire at FCO a couple of weeks earlier, and that, combined with another storm that caused various delays, led to a rather disorganized and annoying experience.  We landed in terminal 2, and then had to walk to terminal 3 to check in to easyjet.  Ok no problem.  The line at easyjet was crazy so that we got ushered up to the front in order to drop off our luggage an hour before the flight's departure.  From there, we were told to go back to terminal 2, and make our way to gate H.  As we were speedwalking towards the security are, we were stopped by airport security who, after finding out when our departure was, gave up on asking us for documents and ushered us along.  We got through passport checks, and security, and were then on our way to find gate H.  We did find gate H (the furthest gate of course), but from there could not see any evidence of our flight, or find any people to ask.  Eventually, one of the display screens showed the departure list and we saw that our flight had been changed from gate H to G03.  No problem we thought; G ought to be right next to H....we then had to ask someone to learn that to get to G03, you have to go to H10, and then catch a shuttle bus to G03.  We made our way to H10, where we just missed the bus and had to wait another 10 minutes.  To make a long story short, we did make it to gate G03 to find a long line of people waiting to be checked through manually by a single, sweet-natured attendant.  On the plane at last, we finally relaxed.  Our first glimpse of Dubrovnik was of hills of scrub and trees, and lots and lots of ocean.

Alex's sister Alice and her husband Vali picked us up from the airport, and we then drove to a supermarket to buy some groceries to prepare at our B&B.  Our rooms are in the home of a local family, and is in the hills directly above the Old City.  It is very unique and interesting how the homes are built up the hillside, and there are terraces with trees all the way up!  We all found ourselves wondering how they got the dirt up here, or whether they simply carved the living quarters out of the hill itself.  We cooked up sausages and pork chops, and added a tossed salad and some crusty bread.  We stayed up chatting well into the night enjoying the cool breeze and lovely night view of the old city.

This morning, we made a simple breakfast, and then walked down into the stunning labyrinth that is the old town.   Dubrovnik's old city is walled complete with a moat and drawbridge, and is so picturesque that it is the filming location for some of Game of Thrones.  We walked up and down stone steps, and strolled through the plazas with flagstones so buffed by centuries of feet that it shines.  As you walk through the old city, you see succulent plants growing in cracks in the stone walls, and hear scratchy clarinet scaled being played from behind barred windows.  The residents who live here keep their entire lives within their doors in order to maintain the austere and Medieval appearance of the UNESCO World Heritage Site that is the walled city.  We stopped for beer and lemonade, and then walked on to enjoy a seafood lunch with wine and espresso.

I am now sitting back on the terrace of Biba's guesthouse, and looking over the red ceramic roofs of Dubrovnik.  There seems to be a storm rolling in.

Tomorrow, we hope to leave early for Split.  I know that Alex and I will be back here for one more night at the end of sailing trip with G Adventures, and I look forward to seeing this city again.

As always, thank you for reading!

Leslie