Spectacular Croatia

Greetings from the Adriatic Sea off the Dalmation Coast.

I am blown away the beauty that this country possesses. Dubrovnik is one of the most beautiful coastal cities I have ever seen. Yesterday (Thursday July 5^th) it was time to meet the boat and my family and head out on the Adriatic Sea for a week.  Kalli and I woke up early and went in search for breakfast outside of the old town. We were able to find a small bakery with the local pastries – Kalli and Isabel got out of the box with dough filled with Jelly and covered in powdered sugar and Eli stuck with a chocolate croissant. Kalli and I decided to figure out transportation to the harbor, which is about 5 kilometers from our apartment. I decided we would take a bus since there are no taxis that can accommodate 5 of us.  I am a little nervous taking two taxis in case we are separated and a bus trip is good for the kids. When I backpacked taxis were not even a consideration.

One note, in Milan we consolidated bags, got rid of a bag, and left 2 bags in Milan. So, the 5 of us are using two of the kid’s bags for the next 9 days. It is so much more efficient and pleasurable to travel with two small bags.

Kalli and I figured out the bus schedule, bought tickets, and headed home to deliver breakfast. After breakfast we caught the 1a bus to the harbor (Cruz) – the bus was hot and sweaty but all of Croatia is at the moment.  We were early so Carrie and I had our much-needed café Americano and waited for the family to arrive.

We saw the boat – The Vila Vgrade - enter the Dubrovnik harbor with my family on board. It was great to see everyone. We headed out for a long lunch and caught up on our travels as the boat crew cleaned the boat and re-supplied it. My sister and her family had been traveling in Europe for a month and were leaving the boat and heading to Italy. We said goodbye to everyone (we were going to see them again in Tuscany in 9 days) and boarded the boat with my mom, Alain, Dean (captain), and Igor (first mate and Dean’s brother). The boat is a Turkish Gullet with 5 bedrooms. It is beautiful and very spacious. Our fist destination was Prozura   and it was about a two hour boat ride. The Prozura cove was beautiful with very few boats , clear warm water, and a sweet little cove with about 6 houses. The minute the motor stopped we were in the water and swam for about an hour. After our swim we cleaned up and headed to the only restaurant in town for a feast of baby goat, and Rose wine. The food was amazing and the setting was beautiful.

Carrie, the kids, and I slept on deck and woke up about 7 with the sun. The kids and I put on our suits and went for a long swim. I have been working on increasing my swim distance. It is going slow but the workouts are great. After breakfast we pulled out of the harbor and motored for about 90 minutes to a cove where we snorkeled, swam, and jumped off the boat until lunch was ready. Lunch consisted of fish (freshly caught and served with the heads on), grilled vegetables, red pepper salad, watermelon and a Rose.

We moored in a cove outside of Korcula and spent an hour and a half walking around the town. We visited Marco Polo’s house, which was interesting to see and learn the history of  it. The town was similar to other towns with the Stone Street and buildings. It was very pretty, especially with the backdrop of the Adriatic Sea. After our stroll around town we headed back to the boat for a swim and then dinner around 9:30. By the time dinner was over it was time for a Grappa and then we went to sleep on the deck

I can’t put in to words how beautiful this place is and how special this experience is for all of us.  We are waited on and want for nothing. I told Carrie that I am glad we put this trip and the Villa in Tuscany with my Dad at the end of this trip. Our children have become accustomed to this type of traveling and comfort very quickly.