Myra and Gerry Adriatic Coast - 2018

S ome observations about Our trip: Weather We read that the weather would change while we were here and it would be much colder.   However, we just did not believe it because this summer in Croatia was much hotter than it had been in years.   We got as far as Slovenia and Myra gave in and bought a coat - just in time too.   The morning we left Plitvice, it was 32 degrees with frost on our windshield. Luckily the coat was packed away for the remainder of the trip. Once we got to the coast, the weather was beautiful! Wine The wine we have consumed has run the course of not very good to great.   The Plavic Mali grape is the main grape in Croatia.   The Croatian Zinfandels (in our opinion) are just not as bold or spicy as the California Zinfandels we are used to. This is interesting in that DNA studies have shown that the Crejenak Kastelanski grape is actually the same grape used in Italian Primitivo and American Zinfandel wines.  Croatia is where...

The area that is currently the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina has a long and complicated history. Once part of the Roman Empire, the region was taken over by the Ottoman Turks, then it became part of Austria-Hungary, then in 1908 they became their own country, then they became part of Yugoslavia (WWII).  After WWII, Yugoslavia became a communist country led by Josip Broz Tito followed by Slobodan Milosevic in 1986. The Bosnians wanted their own country and declared their independence on April 5, 1992. They were recognized as a country by the United Nations a month later. The country  has  only 12.4 miles of  coastline , around the town of Neum in the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton.  Although surrounded by Croatian peninsulas it is possible to  get to  the middle of the Adriatic from Neum. By United Nations law,  Bosnia has  a right of passage to the outer sea. Mostar, the area we are visiting today, is a city in souther...

Our day began with a fun “Game of Thrones” tour. The guide was able to show us, using pictures from the scenes what were actually real versus computer generated. Dubrovnik feels like a huge place because of all the tourists yet it is a small town. The locals all know each other. When they tried to get some local women to bare their breasts during the filming of the “walk of shame”, they had to get people from England - no one from Dubrovnik would!   We walked all through the old city and then walked the 1.5 miles on the wall that surrounds the city. The height, the thickness, the architecture, the reconstruction after the war - all of it is difficult to comprehend and appreciate unless you see this magnificent place!   We walked from 9:30 am to 4:00 pm then got ready for a wonderful birthday dinner at Nautika overlooking the fortress. Perfect!

Montenegro is an independent nation along the coast of the Adriatic Sea bordered by Croatia to the west, Kosovo to the east, Serbia to the north-east, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, and Albania to the southeast. When Venetian sailors saw Mt. Lovcen in the distance, they named the area “Monte-negro” because it looked like a “black mountain”. Montenegro over the centuries has been independent, conquered by the Romans, Turks from the Ottoman Empire, Venetians, Austria-Hungary and others. They were part of the communist Federation of Yugoslavia but constantly fought for independence.  Our three-hour drive to Kotor, Montenegro was beautiful.   While the actula drive  took about two hours each way crossing t he border between Croatia and Montenegro was a different story.   The boarder crossings took about an hour both coming and going.  Our driver said one time it took 9 hours and 15 minutes for a one-way crossing! ...

T oday we took a three-hour catamaran ferry from Hvar to Dubrovnik.   It was the last day that the ferry ran on a Sunday because it is the end of the summer season for Hvar.   Dubrovnik is a different story.   Their tourist season runs much longer.   We arrived and checked into the Villa Dubrovnik, a hotel directly on the cliff face and a 25 minute walk to the Old Town.  The entrance to the hotel is literally an elevator that takes you down to the floors of the hotel!   What a view!  We have a room with balcony looking over the water with the Old Town in the distance. We walked to the Old Town and experienced a wonderful four-hour food and wine tour within the walls of the old town. Some of the local dishes we tried were: Tuna tartare Fish pate Octopus salad Smoked paprika hummus Prosciutto with local cheeses Spinach & cheese rolls Dirty pasta (Pasta and Beef dish) Bacon wrapped monkfi...

T oday, we had no plans and just strolled around the waterfront area of Hvar.   We thought we would capture some of the messages that are on the back of the water bottles! We had perhaps the best meal since we have been in Croatia at Dalmatino tonight in Hvar.  The restaurant has no phone and only works with reservations through email.  You cannot make a reservation the day you want to go.  Because this is the end of the summer season (and we went early), we were able to walk over and get a table.  Gerry had Steak Istria (which meant it was covered in truffles) and Myra had Black Gnochi with shrimps and a truffle cream sauce.  Delicious! What does the end of summer season mean in Hvar?  We could not believe it given the number of boats and people in Hvar but the place literally closes down around October 15th.  The restaurants and the stores all shut down until mid April.  The younger adults go b...