CROATIA TRIP - DAY 27 - TRAVEL

Today we fly Vienna to San Francisco, retracing our tracks but this time following the sun. We leave Vienna at 7 a.m. and fly about 16 hours to arrive in San Francisco at 1:30 p.m. I'm not ready to come home, but that's ok. My life is so rich and full of sensations and experiences from this trip that I can carry with me all my life, and share on this blog, that it is just ok to be back home.

In fact, when I arrive, I drop everything to spend a few hours puttering in my garden.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 26 - VIENNA

Today is our last day in Europe. How can I best savor it? Jonathan is still under the weather so I set out on my own. I try to touch bases with all the landmarks that have guided me here. I walk past the Swiss clock near our hotel, then over to St Stephensplatz for an espresso. Then behind the cathedral to Mozart's home to pay homage one more time. Now down the Kartnerstrasse to the Graben, Newmarkt, and over to our first hotel near the Staatsoper. I think about the night we arrived almost 4 weeks ago, google-eyed and jet lagged. We set out for a late dinner and got lost going only one block away! Now I feel so comfortable moving through Vienna.

Later in the day Jonathan and I set out in a different direction, wandering somewhat aimlessly. And surprise! we come to an entirely unknown part of town, just steps away from our hotel. It's the oldest part of town, near the Danube, and to a church that was first constructed in the 1100s. This is also an area for young and hip Viennese, with jazz clubs and bars.

I'm happy to know that there is yet much to learn and do and experience in Vienna, and plenty of reason to return. But for now, it's home and packing for a 3:45 a.m. wake up call.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 25 - VIENNA

Vienna. Jonathan stays in our hotel to nurse a respiratory infection while I head out to explore Vienna on my own.

Time for early 20th century art. I trace the path of Gustav Klimt, my favorite Viennese artist. First I find a shop on the Kartnerstrasse which sells reproductions of his works on cloth, posters, coffee cups and the like. Don't know how they skirt the copyright. Then on the the Museum of Modern Art, and finally to the Belvedere Palace, where the largest collection of his works lives. Funny, when I see Klimt's works for real, I'm less impressed instead of more. I was actually more impressed with the works of his student, Egon Scheile, who created enormously powerful works before he died at the age of 28.

I walk home through the city streets thinking about how rich and wonderful this travel experience is -- how much we've seen and done and thought about and shared. I hope I can carry this feeling with me for a very long time. Two more days before we return to San Francisco.

CROATIA TRIP - Day 24 - TRAVEL

We arrive in Rijeka promptly at 7 a.m., before even the industrious Croatians are up and about. With 4 hours before our train to Vienna leaves, we check our baggage and search for the interesting part of town. Finally we find the central part of town which has been redesigned as a pedestrian mall.

But Rijeka is an industrial port city of about 150,000, not a quaint tourist city. It's right on the border of Austria and Italy, so very closely connected to northern Europe, and it was hardly affected by the Yugoslav war.

I enjoyed our stroll and our time in the cafe, but was not disappointed when it was time to get on the train. I love train travel, and was quite happy to spend the next 10 hours traveling to Vienna.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 23 - TRAVEL

Today is travel day. Janja makes us a special breakfast, we take photographs, zip up our suitcases, and sadly leave our sweet Dubrovnik home.

We booked passage on the Jadrolinja ferry from Dubrovnik all the way up the Dalmatian Coast to Rijeka, a 21 hour trip.

The Jadrolinja is very nice, and entirely different from any of our other nautical experiences. We have a cabin to sleep in, but spend all our time on the deck as we cruise up the coast. We stop in Hvar, Korcula and Split, destinations of our Arburat trip, but this time we arrive as a big cruise liner. Almost everyone spends time on deck (and those who don't have cabins must stay on the deck), so there is plenty of time for people watching, chatting with strangers and taking photos.

I can't help thinking about the last time I took this trip on the Jadrolinja, in 1990, and we hit a tropical storm in the middle of the night, that rocked our boat despite its size, so that water was splashing all over the deck, people and furniture were thrown from one side to another, all the while the rain was drenching us all. On this trip I was a deck passenger, so I managed by finding bench that was built into the ship and holding on for dear life.

Then, as quickly as the storm came it passed. And by the time we arrived in Rijeka the sun was shining and the water was still.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 22 - CAVTAT

Today is our last full day in Dubrovnik and Jonathan says it's up to me how we spend it. I chose another trip to Cavtat. That will entail a) two more boat rides (to and from), b) a stroll through the old town to the old harbor, c) leisure time in Cavtat away from the crowds to explore the Roman ruin, relax in a cafe at the Cavtat harbor, and enjoy a leisurely afternoon meal at a fish restaurant we discovered on our last trip.

So off we go. We walk to the south this time, and discover a hotel nestled away from the main city. Evidently there is a peace conference meeting there now, and we meet folks on the trail who have come all the way to Cavtat to work for peace. What an appropriate setting!

The photo is of Jonathan at the fish restaurant (outdoors, of course, I forgot to mention that all our meals were outdoors!) with the Dalmatian coast looking north in the background.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 21 - DUBROVNIK

Another relaxing day close to home. Jonathan sleeps while I explore the hills behind our house and do some errands. As I return, Janja, stops me to invite us for lunch. We've become friendly with Janja living under the same roof for 6 days, but this is our first formal invitation. Our common language is German, but for all of us it is a classroom version, and about 40 years ago. We communicate well enough, with language and body language.

Janja prepares the most delicious little fish, lightly fried; with beans, potatoes and bread. Very simple, but exquisitely prepared. This is my favorite meal in Dubrovnik.

In the evening we go to a performance of Lindjo, the Dubrovnik folk ensemble. I'm especially interested because I've danced and performed and made costumes for these same Croatian dances and Jonathan has played music for them. The dancers, the musicians, the costumes and the choreography were superb. Here are some more photos.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 20 - MOSTAR

Today we take a tour to Mostar, a city in Bosnia (the Hercegovina part) famous for its Stari Most (old bridge), and for the war that destroyed it. The bridge was built by the Turkish occupiers of Mostar in the 1500s, and has since then has been a magnet for tourists and photographers.

More recently its existence, destruction, and restoration symbolizes to the world that, literally and symbolically, bridges can be repaired. I learned later, that when war broke out in Mostar, the river literally divided the two sides -- the Bosnians stayed on the left band of the Neretva River, and the Croats on the right. If you were living on the wrong side of the river when the war broke out, your life was absolutely in danger.

I had imagined Mostar as a quaint mountain village with this bridge and not much else. But not so. This is, -- rather was and soon will be again -- a thriving industrial city of over 100,000. The war has taken a terrible toll on the city, and completely changed the demographics. It will take a long time to recover.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 19 - DUBROVNIK

This is our day of rest. We stayed in our room most of the day reading on the patio, napping and taking short walks.

Here is a photo of our room with Jonathan learning how to use his new cell phone. He got a new phone especially for this trip, and was able to call England or the US or anywhere in the world except Croatia! Finally he got it working.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 18 - DUBROVNIK

Today we stay close to home, and explore the old town. In the morning we join a walking tour , which led us through the city from the lens of its war torn recent history. It's hard to believe that only 15 years ago Dubrovnik was held siege for over a year by Montenegran and Serbian militias, but indeed evidence was only slightly beneath the the happy tourist facade -- in buildings unrepaired AND too many buildings with new roofs; as well as in the hearts of the people. It was fascinating and sobering.

After relaxing in a cafe, a long lunch and a nap, we decided to circumvent the city wall, a must for every tourist to Dubrovnik. This photo is taken from a battlement in the wall, looking south towards the old harbor

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 16 - DUBROVNIK

Today is Sunday, a good day for taking it easy and getting to know the area we will be staying for the next week. Of course we head for the Dubrovnik's old town, the Stari Grad, which is just a few minutes down the hill from our room. It is, indeed, the jewel of the Adriatic, with its own long and complicated history, including the siege in 1991-1992, within easy memory of everyone we see on the streets. If you are at all interested, follow the links or read some of the many books and articles on the subject.

But today the city is restored, and looking like a jewel. We walk down the stradum, through the narrow side streets, and over the the old harbor, the stari luka, to catch a ferry to Cavtat, a 45 minute ride south. As I write, there isn't enough content on the Internet to do this village justice -- the culture, the modern and ancient history, the geography, and the proximity to Montenegro -- hopefully that will change soon.

Here is a photo of Jonathan in a cafe in Cavtat.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 15 - DUBROVNIK

We land in Dubrovnik shortly after breakfast. After a week together on the boat, the 10 of us will go our separate ways. Stipo and Daniela will take the boat back to Split to pick up another party of tourists. Matthew will return to Omas, to his young family and fishing business. Our Australian friends have booked an apartment in Dubrovnik and soon they will go their own separate ways -- Steve for another week of travel in Croatia, Katrina and Sean immediately back to London and to work, Brett and Ailsa a few days in Dubrovnik and then back to London and to work.

Jonathan and I have booked a room in a private house near the old town -- we know nothing more about it. When the taxi drops us off at the appointed location, Janja Katic, our new landlady is there to greet us with a smile. She takes my suitcase and guides us up the path to her lovely and clean home, and to our room on the second floor. We couldn't ask for a better situation. The room is clean and spacious enough for us with a modern private bath, separate enough from the family, and with a deck and a view of the Dubrovnik Stari Grad to die for.

The room was 50 Euros a night, and can be booked through Janja's English speaking daughter, Goldi Nodilo, gnolidilo@hotmail.com.

This photo is of Janja and Jonathan on the deck.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 14 - ELAPHITE ISLANDS

Today is our last full day on the Arburat as we approach Dubrovnik. Now we are traveling closer to the coast through the Elaphite Islands -- now land, now sea, such an interesting coastline. The weather has improved and we spend our time out on the deck. Sometimes I fell like I am in paradise. We read and talk quietly. Now we are old hands at cruising the Adriatic.

We dock on the island on Sipan, the largest of the populated Elaphite Islands. It's late in the day and a perfect time to walk around this little settlement. We walk above the town and watch folks puttering in the garden or on small building projects. We suspect this is an island of second homes for Dubrovnik residents. It is also an island of olive groves -- some active by many abandoned. We meet a fellow who tells us in sign language about the importance of olive trees here throughout history. He directs us to the local market to sample and buy some of the local oil, which we do.

This is our last meal together and the seven of us cabinmates meet at an outdoor restaurant for a yummy fish dinner and the best Croatian wine I've ever had, Dingac, grown from grapes on the Peljesac Peninsula. The photo shows us at dinner.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 13 - MLJET

Today we travel to the island of Mljet. We're all delighted that Matthew wants to take us there directly, so we'll have the whole day to explore. (Usually we arrive at our destination towards the end of the day.) Mljet is a small island (population about 1000) with a long history, which you can read about in the Wikipedia article in the link above. We docked in the village of Pomena, which abuts the Mljet National Park.

Jonathan and I walk through the park and take the ferry to the Benedictine Monastery, while our cabinmates go swimming and rent motor scooters.

Our full day on the island is punctuated by a midday break on the Arburat for lunch, so this is a good time to talk about food. Our passage included breakfast and lunch, and I expected coffee and bread in the morning and ham and cheese in the afternoon. But nothing could be further from the truth.

In the morning we have coffee (brewed or espresso) or tea and fruit juice; fresh bread from the market; a main dish which includes eggs, meat and/or pancakes; fresh fruit and sometimes an extra special goodie. Lunch usually consists of a pasta dish, a salad usually fresh tomatoes and cucumbers, a cooked vegetable, fresh bread, a main dish of fresh fish and as much wine as we can drink. We had a different main dish every day, for example, octopus, squid, shrimp or flat fish.

This is prepared in the tiny ship's kitchen and served to us on ceramic dishware, up a steep flight of stairs from the kitchen. I have no idea where the fresh fish, vegetables and bread came from, it just seemed to appear. The food was always served with grace and good cheer.

The little critter in the photo was our lunch one day

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 11- HVAR

Today we travel around the island of Hvar, to Hvar City. The sea is choppy, and we are not permitted to dock at the city harbor because of the weather, so we must dock at a private harbor nearby and take a water taxi to town. All part of the adventure.

Our third day at sea, and I start to pay attention to the yachting culture that surrounds us. The water taxi is filled with yachtspeople. Many Brits, a good number of Germans, and a lesser but significant number of Scandinavians. Since the weather is bad I notice a lot of sitting around, a lot of drinking and a lot of eating. I suspect that within this culture, there are groups and subgroups, little caravans of yachts that form and make their way from one port to another.

Yet another subculture I know nothing about.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 10 - HVAR

By this morning the wind has calmed down enough to travel, but barely. Matthew tells us we need to skip the island of Vis, and will go directly to Hvar. I remember Hvar from my 1990 trip to Croatia, when I saw entire side of the island covered with lavender (I came home and covered my garden with lavender plants). More recently, I hear about Hvar as the new Italian Riviera and the place-to-be-seen if you are a movie star or a wannabe.

We didn't experience any of this.

Our first stop is Jelsa, another charming village, but much more "lived in" than Milna, that is, we saw ugly new apartment buildings, busy roads, and a subdivision of tourist homes, as well as walking paths in among vineyards and along the beach.

We experienced a sudden storm (thank goodness we were safely in the harbor and under cover). The skies just let loose and dumped everything they had into this little village. We were sitting in the patio of a pizza house under the cover of an umbrella, but the rain was so strong it bounced off the pavement and got us and our food all wet. As a result, all of us outdoors folks had to double up at tables with the indoors customers, and shared a table with a very interesting Swiss couple who organized ski trips in the winter and mountain climbing and sailing trips in the summer.

This photo shows Jelsa right before the storm.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 9 - BRAC

Milna, Brac: An interesting turn of events: this morning Matthew announces it is too windy to travel. We must alter our itinerary and spend the day docked in Milna. Since none of us know the least thing about the islands we would travel to, or at this point could possibly tell one island from another, we were quite satisfied to stay safe and sound in this charming village.

As for me, I fell in love with this village, and, first impressions notwithstanding, no other village except Cavtat, captured my heart so much. We spend a lazy day walking through the village, and up behind it into the agricultural area, imagining what it must be like for folks to live here .... and what it would be like for US to live here...

Something about the weather: We experienced less than perfect sailing weather throughout the trip. Matthew said he has never seen so much rain at this time of the year. We also had some extremely windy times. We spent more time than we wanted inside the cabin of the boat, and had to certain adjustments in our itinerary because of the weather. Most disappointing to Jonathan is that we never -- not even once -- go to raise the sails and go sailing.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 8 - ARBURAT BOAT

This evening we leave on our 7 day cruise, but we still have a day in Split to explore. We spend some time doing laundry, picking up some seasickness medicine (which we didn't need), and going to the bank -- always an adventure in a foreign country. Then we hang out near the harbor, checking out the boats and wondering when ours will pull up.

Finally it does, and we meet all the folks who will be our companions for the next 7 days. Stipo is the boat owner, and the guy generally in charge. Originally from Bosnia, he's a teacher turned boat owner, a lover of Dalmatian folk music, and most important he is a chef to match all chefs. More about the food in following entries, but suffice it to say here that I've never had such consistently marvelous food and he made this magic in a boat kitchen about 4 x 6 feet.

Matthew is our skipper. He is young, handsome, smart and 100% Croatian. Matthew lived many years in the US, where many members of his family have emigrated, but by choice has returned to his family village of Omas, Croatia. When he not skippering tourist boats, he owns are operates a fishing trawler.

Daniela is the third member of our crew. She is quiet, competent, and very sweet. She also is in charge of the wine, which just kept flowing.

Our passenger companions are a group of 5 Australians. Sean and Katrina currently live in London where Sean has a job in IT. They spent a year at UC Santa Cruz so know all about the SF Bay Area. Brett and Ailsa are also currently living in London and working in IT. Steve is the only one in the group who is actually living in Australia. These thirty something folks were the best of companions -- intelligent, lively, interesting and respectful of our older folks' needs.

Our 1st destination: Milna on the island of Brac - -about two hours from Split, so we arrived by sunset. Read on to see how lucky we were to have made this short trip the first night.

The first photo is the Rivas in Split; the 2nd photo is our group as we set out on our trip. You can click on the photos to blow them up to full size.

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 7 - SPLIT

Today is our layover day in Split, famous for Diocletian's Palace.

Diocletian was born nearby and built this as a retirement place after he abdicated from the Roman throne in 305. The area called the palace is really constitutes the old town, or Stari Grad. The interesting thing about the Diocletian Palace area is that it is not architecturally or culturally intact. It has been used, misused, abandoned, and restored by whomever came along in the past two milennia. Which is what makes it so alive and interesting. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Monument.

We spent most of our time in the Palace area or on the Riva (walkway along the harbor.)

CROATIA TRIP - DAY 5 - VIENNA

Today we visited the Schonbrunn Palace. I had visited many years ago, but wanted Jonathan to see this example of conspicuous consumption, and to experience it myself through older and more cynical eyes.

The Schonbrunn site and some form of this "summer cottage" was in the Hapsburg family since the 1600s, but Empress Maria Theresa gets credit for its current look and feel. Maria Theresa was really something else -- not only a great head of state, but also a kind and generous person, a lover of art and culture, a loving wife, and the mother of 16 children. If you are interested, be sure to read the article in the link above.

Since photos of the Schonbrunn and Maria Theresa are all over the Internet, I'll post a photo of Jonathan eating torte mit schlagg at the Schonbrunn Kaffee. We had a lot of fun sitting in the cafe people watching and tempting the birds to come eat off our plates.