Observations on our last day


Some 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 Zinfandel originated!  Wines from the Dingac region are much bolder and we tended to like them better.  We loved the Posip white wines.

Food
One of the things we enjoyed in Croatia were the different foods.  While in the Istria area, everything was cooked with truffles.  Sea bass,  butter, steaks, gnocchi, cheeses, eggs - everything.  It was truffle heaven!  There is a veggie spread called Ajvar.  The main ingredient is red pepper and often combined with eggplant and garlic and hot peppers.it is served with meats and goes with everything!  One thing that was different from most of Europe were the portion sizes.  Except in the fine restaurants, the portions are huge. 

Work
A major portion of the GDP in Croatia is generated from Tourism (one guide told us 20 percent). People who live on the coast work 6-9 months of the year and have the rest of the time off or try to find other jobs not tourist related.  The Dubrovnik luxury hotel (Villa Dubrovnik) we are staying in shuts down in November and reopens in March!  As we mentioned before, Hvar shuts down in mid October and reopens in the late Spring.

Money
Croatia is part of the European Union but the currency is the Kuna.  If a charge card could be used, all tips had to be paid in cash.  No other currency was accepted. Montenegro is not yet part of the European Union yet their official currency is the Euro.  Bosnia is not part of the European Union and their official currency is the Mark.  But they would take anything- Kuna, Euro, USD, credit card.  The joke was they would even take a gold tooth!

War
The War that was fought after the breakup of Yugoslavia in the 1990s is ever present in the minds of all of he citizens of Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro, Serbia and Bosnia Herzgovena.  The worst part of the fighting was in Sarajevo in Serbia while the least was in Zagreb and Slovenia.  The further south we came the more stories we heard.

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