Croatia continued...

Hello again, we're back! Sorry for the delay between posts, but we knew we would be average bloggers at best, and there has been a lot going on!

We will pick up from where we left off, in the playground island of Hvar...

Endless alleyways

Our days passed much the same, with beach and food playing starring roles. We gradually perfected the art of harvesting lunch from the breakfast buffet, in true student style.

 Favourite diving spot

Toy boats in Hvar Harbour

From Hvar we caught a short ferry to Korcula, our second island stop. Korcula was much smaller and less touristy than Hvar, but with the same delightful alleyways and old stone buildings. We continued our old routine of exploring the town, swimming at the beach, and enjoying local cuisine. 

 Korcula Town

From Korcula we moved on to Dubrovnik. Unfortunately the ferry was not running, so we had to endure a 6am bus ride through the winding hills of southern Croatia. Needless to say we weren't in the best frame of mind when arriving in Dubrovnik, exacerbated by finding ourselves in amongst literally thousands of cruise ship passengers partaking in guided tours around the city. 

Dubrovnik old town

We barged our way through the crowds using our finely tuned pack walking skills, and were relieved to find our own apartment - a beautiful oasis away from the tourist area, where we promptly indulged in our first proper siesta. 

 More cliff diving

 Tripod comes in handy..

We were told that we only needed a day or so in Dubrovnik, but ended up happy to have two full days here. A walk around the city walls provided amazing views, while also enabling us to spy fun bars and restaurants to later frequent.

View from City walls

Umbrellas from cliff-top bar, perfect for sunset beers

After our few days in Dubrovnik, our time in  Croatia came to a close. It is a destination we will definitely return to, and will miss the amazing sea, delicious food, and friendly people. 

 

Bisou Ciao - see you in 3 months!

This is our first attempt at a blog, and we are not promising its going to last, but we will give it a good shot!


The aim is to provide a mostly pictorial glimpse into our travels, both for our memories and for our family and friends.


And so it begins..

Our trip started in Rome, after a mammoth 30 hour journey. Particular highlights included a 50 year-old Australian woman, sitting next to Sarah. She was the last person on the plane because she had been drinking in the bar to calm her pre-flight nerves. She promptly opened her bottle of duty free Bombay Saffire and began to chug it down. She fluctuated between crying quietly, staring directly at Sarah and clutching her arm, and apologising profusely for being drunk and annoying. Apparently her mother was the  chief translator for General Patton in the Second World War (?) but this was all she was going to say about the matter (followed by another slug of gin)
We thought we had seen the last of her in Singapore, but were pleasantly surprised to see her in the same seat for our connecting flight to London! Luckily she remained mostly comatose for the next segment of the trip.
Sarah remained convivial and polite throughout, informing her she was allowed one bathroom break, before we settled down to sleep....

The rest of our trip was mostly uneventful, aside from a 5 hour wait on the tarmac at Heathrow, before being disembarked and boarded on a new plane - a problem the engineers had 'never seen before'.


Arrived in Rome for our one night, tired but excited to explore the places that we had visited 4 years ago. Had a delicious dinner at the Pantheon and enjoyed our Pizza and massive beers. Sarah tried to order a glass of red wine, but the waiter politely informed her that she would be requiring a bottle. She happily acquiesced. 

Our organised selves had arranged a train to Ancona the next morning, to meet a ferry for Split, Croatia. Ancona turned out to be a pleasant surprise. An industrial port town, but with elegant shopping districts and delightful restaurants. Our uncanny ability to spot the Pope continued, as he was due to make an appearance that evening! Whilst aboard our ferry and waiting to depart, we witnessed a re-enactment of Jesus' crucifixion as the town came to a halt, with the mass broadcast on national TV.


Sarah, being such a fan of water travel, decided a cabin was a must and she promptly downed a sleeping tablet and was oblivious to the rest of the overnight journey. 

The Kissing Station, minutes before falling asleep

We arrived in Split, Croatia, in the beautiful early morning and were disappointed to be spending only one night here. Most of our day was spent wandering the endless narrow alleyways, popping out into wonderful fruit and vegetable markets and spying on local people going about their business. 

 Local woman stalked by Sarah

 Alleyways

 Sweaty hill climb, worth the view

 Delicious local berries - breakfast, lunch and dinner

Local beach in Split

Another short ferry trip took us to the nearby island of Hvar, playground of the rich and famous. Our initial impression was of mild dismay as we looked upon the rich sailors and their obnoxious offspring, however this has changed over the ensuing days as we discover the true Hvar (best enjoyed during the hours of 3pm -5pm when Europeans are having their siesta). 

Throughout the rest of the day, we make it our mission to avoid the large groups of boys on tour from Britain and Germany mostly, who seem to inhabit the place. 

 Pondering whether the yacht moored out front of our resort does indeed 

belong to Beyonce and JZ (spotted here today)

 German-owned super yacht Follow Me V - reportedly worth more than 10 million euros

 Hvar alleyways during siesta time

 Hvar town from our daily strenuous activity vantage point (no Germans here)

Our days here are spent lying by the pool, swimming in the beautiful azure sea, eating and drinking beer. We try to manage one mildly strenuous activity per day, but the deck chairs are very inviting. 

Beach in front of our house

We will leave you here, as we mull over the difficult decision of which small restaurant to indulge in tonight, and whether we should have another beer here or wait until dinner.....