Discovering Croatia and Slovenia
Joe and Penny’s Journal
November 3-13, 2008
Family, Friends, Travel Buddies:
Penny and I are about to leave for another international tour. There are 24 people in our Collette Vacations group. 16 are in the contingent I put together. We fly out of Philadelphia on Monday evening for our destination, Zagreb , Croatia, with a brief stop in Frankfurt , Germany. Don't worry, we all voted via absentee ballot and will learn the results of the election in Croatia.
The purpose of this preliminary communication is to test the accuracy of the emails in this special travel address book, and also to give you an opportunity to "opt out" of my daily updates along the route of our tour if you prefer to keep your mailbox uncluttered. The frequency of the emails depends on whether I can find an Internet Cafe or Business Center at the various locations.
I checked the weather reports for our destination cities, and the ten-day forecasts show an average temperature of between 60 and 65 in most of the places we will visit -- which is better than we originally expected. We’ll be staying in 6 different hotels on this tour. Needless to say, we are excited about this trip to a very beautiful part of the world. I have placed an outline of the itinerary below. If you want to see a more detailed description of the places we will visit, you can find additional information on my website, www.LauferTravel.com.
Unless you decide to "opt out", you'll be hearing from me over the next ten days or so from Croatia and Slovenia. I would like to warn you that some of my emails may have glaring spelling and grammatical errors in them, as I often don't have time to proof them because of tight schedules and people waiting to access the one computer in a particular location -- so I have to type fast, with little attention to literary style. When I get back, I will edit them and post them on my website.
Day 1 – Monday, November 3
Our group was picked up in Vincentown by Family Limo at 2:15 p.m. We go to Philadelphia quickly and were on our Lufthansa flight for departure at 6:05 – leaving on time. It was a bit tight in our airbus, but we arrived safely in Franfurt on Tuesday morning at 8:05 (on time) and left for Zagreb on a Croatia Airlines Flight at 9:30 a.m., arriving in Zagrem at 10:50.
Day 2 – Tuesday, November 4
If our first day is any indication of what is in store for us over the next ten days, we should have a wonderful visit to Croatia! We were in our hotel rooms before 1 p.m. We were greeted by sunshine and 60 plus degrees F, despite warnings of much cooler weather in most travel publications (and over-packing with layered clothing to deal with the predicted cold weather). Most of us decided to fight jetlag by touring the historic part of town. Our Hotel, the Zagreb Westin, is smack in the middle of everything, so with little fear of navigating a new city, we took off in different directions to explore. The main center of the town has a resemblance to the main square in Amsterdam, or sections of Paris. The buildings are reminiscent of classic 19th century buildings in those European cities. The people are quite friendly, and English is spoken widely.
A lot of people on our trip have been asked by their friends, "why Croatia?", and our typical answer is "because we have heard so much about it as a great new travel destination." Zagreb is a good example of "why?"
Here are four things that will forever remind me of the uniqueness of Zagreb as distinguished from other European cities I have visited over the years:
1. The beautiful women -- everywhere (about 4 women to every man).
2. The proliferation of graffiti (all over the place -- on almost every building, including historic and public buildings in the heart of the city-- probably an expression of the welcome freedom after the many years under Communism.) Yet the city is very clean.
3. Smokers everywhere. They have not yet discovered the dangers of second hand smoke. There are literally hundreds of outdoor cafes where people sit, drink coffee, chat, and SMOKE. We wondered whether anyone really works here. It seems everyone spends the entire afternoon in the outdoor cafes -- which occupy blocks and blocks of pedestrian streets all over the city. Several of us joined in the experience (without the smoking, of course) and could easily get hooked on it!
4. There are no typical, touristy "Souvenirs Shops" anywhere to be found. It is as though Zagreb has not joined the tourist trap club. I am not complaining - just reporting this unique fact. Yet Zagreb belongs high on a list of great European cities to visit.
Our 5-star hotel Westin is truly luxurious and our dinner tonight was as excellent as one could desire. Everyone has been very welcoming. Our Collette Tour Manager, Steve Walker, who met us at the airport, is an outstanding leader and guide.
Steve Walker, our Collette Tour Manager
Despite the fact that I said we got off to a great start here in the Zagreb, our pre-departure from Philadelphia developed a few snags as we prepared to leave. Three of our participants had to cancel at the last minute (literally!) because of personal or family medical emergencies, two of them staying back to be the primary caregivers for their husbands. So instead of arriving with 19, we came with 16 -- and were joined by 8 other individual travelers, for a total of 24. While insurance took care of the payments of the cancellations, we are diminished by the absence of these three friends. We hope that they are getting back to normalcy as we travel and want them to know they are missed.
Our stay in Zagreb is brief. We take a formal tour of the historic city tomorrow morning and then leave for a 100 mile trip to our second destination, Bled , Slovenia, where we stay for two nights.
One final thing about the computers in this Business Center in the hotel - because Croatia keyboards have several letters in different locations than American computers (especially the Y and the Z), I had to go back and change them all after typing this email. In this paragraph alone this is how I originally typed these words:
ke z boards, t z ping, originall z , t z ped...(.Imagine how man z times I t zped Yagreb!)
We will be pretty busy tomorrow, but hopefully I will find a computer at our next hotel in Bled and be able to write you tomorrow night. Regards to all -- and thanks for reading this.
Joe and Penny
Day 3 - Wednesday, November 5
We spent this morning on a formal guided tour of the City of Zagreb. We had a wonderful local guide who took us through the old city, explaining the many wonders that date back centuries. It is truly a great European city, probably one of the best kept secrets of world travel. As the capital of Croatia, it doesn't have many of the features of other European Capitals -- it only became the capital in the early 90s, when Yugoslavia was dissolved into several independent countries. We visited a number of beautiful churches, the most magnificent one being the Cathedral. We were given free time for lunch, and Penny and I ate in an outside Pizza Restaurant -- of which there are many in Zagreb -- another "trademark" of the city to add to the four I described yesterday. At 1:00 p.m. we boarded our bus for our next country: Slovenia. At 2:00 p.m. we reached the border checkpoint between Croatia and Slovenia. We all had to get off the bus and go through customs to have our passports stamped -- then back on the bus for our 2.5 hour ride through the most beautiful countryside on earth to our destination, Lake Bled in the north of Slovenia, near the Austrian border. Slovenia is a European Community nation, so we are using Euros for the next two days (instead of the "Kunas" we use in Croatia, a non-European Community nation).
I failed to mention that we awoke to a light rain this morning, but it was sporadic, and didn't really hinder our morning tour. By noon the sun was shining brightly and the temperature was again in the mid to upper 60s.
On our ride throught the countryside of Slovenia we were treated to lush farmland and forested areas, sprinkled with very small towns, almost each of them having a quaint white church in the highest area of the terrain -- on the top of a hill or a mountain. I wish I had begun counting the churches when we entered Slovenia, because I am certain we passed at least 100 between Zagreb and Bled. They are definitely a "trade mark" of Slovenia.
As we approached Bled, we were dazzled by the snow-capped Julian Alps which are on the border between Slovenia and Austria. We learned that they had received their first dusting of snow during the past week or so. The mountains are beautiful to behold, and you can see them clearly from our Hotel on Lake Bled. We arrived in Lake Bled a little before 4:30 p.m., giving us a full hour of daylight before the sun went down. Penny and I quickly checked into our room and went down to the promenade along the lake to see the ducks and swans, view the castle overlooking the lake and the church-bedecked island in the middle of the lake. I am now in the hotel business center at 6:00 p.m. writing this email. We have dinner at 7:00.
Our hotel is on the lake. It has an indoor pool and spa overlooking the lake. We definitely feel that we are in one of the ante-rooms of paradise. Being the northernmost spot on our tour, it is definitely the location with the lowest temperature -- but once again the weather reports were all wrong, as all we need is a spring jacket -- no layers, no sweaters. It is much, much warmer than anticipated -- truly unseasonably warm. And best of all, as we are in the latter part of the "off season" -- there are no crowds. It is the perfect time of the year to visit Slovenia.
One last word on the Presidential election. The people of the world were certainly interested (and pleased) with the outcome. All our tour guides mention it. Barack Obama biographies are featured in bookstore windows. We were able to learn everything first hand, as our hotels have CNBC and CNN (also BBC). Penny stayed up all last night and followed the results completely. I fell asleep because of all that we did yesterday. Here's hoping that this is a new beginning for America. The world is counting on us!
Hope all is well at home. Tomorrow we have a boat ride on Lake Bled -- paddled from the rear in the manner of the gondolas of Venice. I'll tell you about it in my next email.
Day 4 – Thursday, November 6
Our tour continued on Day 4 here in Bled , Slovenia. The weather wasn't as cooperative today as it had been on the first three days. It was overcast and intermittently misting (no heavy rain, but enough to make us keep our umbrellas and ponchos handy). Yet the temperature was still unseasonably mild. We were supposed to take "Pletna" Boats (something like Italian gondolas) out on Lake Bled to explore the 17th century cathedral located on an island in the middle of the lake. We got to the island, but on battery operated versions of the unique boat because of the iffy weather. The pleasure was in the ride and in the destination. We had to walk up a relatively long hill (or the many stairs -- which Penny and I did) to the beautiful Cathedral to ring the "wishing bell" in the classical bell tower. The island cathedral is one of the two trademarks of Bled. Later in the afternoon, we ventured to the other trademark, the magnificent castle on a cliff overlooking the lake -- again, a long, arduous climb on foot, as the bus could only go up so far. This was, without question, the highlight of the day. We marveled at how this fantastic castle could ever have been built in medieval times in this remote location. We also marveled at ourselves for having been able to muster the strength to climb to the top. Once there, we enjoyed the vista of lake, mountains and villages below us. At night, the castle is illuminated and we can see it from our hotel across the lake. If you are real computer users, "google" Bled , Slovenia, then click on "images" and the first few pictures you will see are the island we visited in the morning and the castle we visited in the afternoon. You'll be blown away at the magical pictures. Aside from those two events, the day was fairly relaxed. Some went swimming in the hotel pool. Others took advantage of our free time to select a special restaurant for our dinner (we were on our own for lunch and dinner).
Let me say something about this part of Slovenia. As you drive around the region, you might think you are in Austria. The homes and buildings look like those in an Austrian Alpine Village (we are only a few kilometers from the Austrian border -- and the long history of Slovenia is associated with the Austrian Empire in earlier days). The snow-capped mountains give you the feeling of being in ski country. Once again we were told that we were here at the perfect time of the year -- no lines, and not many tourists.
I'd like to close with a political anecdote. As we were leaving the main entrance of the castle (still well up on the high cliff) there was a young couple probably in their mid 20s sitting at the gate with their travel book. The young man asked me if it was worth the 7 Euros to see the castle. I said it definitely was -- with the museum, the view, the wine cellar (and wine tasting) and the architecture. I said we spent almost 2 hours inside and still had not seen everything. I then asked where they were from. They said Australia. Having been there last April, I asked where in Australia. The answer: Melbourne. I told them how much I really loved Melbourne and hoped to return there someday. He then asked me where I was from. I said New Jersey, USA. He then said, "How do you like the outcome of the election?" I had to be careful, because our group of 24 has mixed feelings about the results -- so I said "some are very pleased, and others are skeptical". I then turned the tables on him and asked what he thought -- and his answer was: "everyone in Australia is overjoyed -- along with a couple of million people in other parts of the world. We're hoping that America will reassume its leadership role in the world under your new President." As he and his girlfriend disappeared into the castle, several of us who witnessed the conversation commented on how none of us would have had a bit of interest in what was going on in Australian politics, but here was somebody from another part of the world really interested in America. Another reason why international travel is such a wonderful thing -- providing us with a pulse on the world -- not just our little corner of it.
Tomorrow morning we head south again, stopping first in Lipica, Slovenia to see where they train the Lipizzaner horses, and then in Trieste , Italy for lunch. We end up tomorrow evening for dinner back in Croatia in the town of Opatija -- when you'll hear from me next time.
Day 5 – Friday, November 7
Here we are on Day 5 of our trip (half way!), and back in Croatia. We left Bled, Slovenia at 8 this morning and drove south through the Eastern part of Slovenia for two hours to the town of Lipica - the home of the Lipica Stud Farm where world-famous Lipizzaner horses are bred and trained. This gives you another indication of the historic relationship between Slovenia and the Austrian Empire - because the Lipizzaners are associated so much with Vienna , Austria. We had a tour of the vast property, learned the history of the Lipizzaners, and got to see them up close where they are bred and trained. We then continued our journey south, crossing the border from Slovenia to Italy. We spent about three hours in the coastal town of Trieste , Italy, where we had lunch. I was surprised to see how big this city was and how much its layout and architecture resembled Rome and other major Italian cities.
After lunch, we boarded the bus for the final leg of the tour, crossing the border between Italy and Croatia, arriving in the City of Opatija at around 4:30, our home for the next two days. Opatija is considered Croatia’s " Riviera". It is a beautiful waterfront city and our luxurious hotel is on the water overlooking the bay. The weather is still warm, but overcast. A couple of us have contracted a bug or something and are dragging a bit (I am one of them – can’t stand the sight of food!). At last count it was Bob and Tom Ritter, Ann Stella, me and Janet Aaronson with the bug. We hope to be back to our old selves tomorrow. As most of you know, we generally have more drugs on our bus than a Columbian drug dealer. That willbe it for now.
Day 6 – Saturday, November 8
Today was the day to choose between relaxing at the hotel, or to take an optional tour. Being a glutton for history, I took the tour and it was a great choice (and Penny loved it too). Only five people stayed back in Opatija (shopping, swimming in the pool). We took a two hour bus ride down to the coast for a boat ride to Brijuni Island, the luxurious hideaway of Marshal Tito, the post-war leader of Communist Yugoslavia during the cold war. On the island we took a tram (the kind they have in Disney World) around the island. Tito loved animals, so had his own Safari Park filled with animals given to him from all over the world - it was something like the Safari Park at Great Adventure. There were also Roman ruins on the island as well as a museum dedicated to the story of Tito. I learned a lot today. First, that Tito was not as bad as I was taught growing up in America in a Catholic School during the period 1940 to 1952. Sure, he was a Communist, but he was not aligned with Hitler nor with Stalin. And for the period, he was good for the people of the several countries that made up Yugoslavia. We all know what happened after he died -- but that isn’t to say that what eventually developed in this part of the world since his death (parts of which we are seeing on this tour) isn’t for the better. What I learned today is another example of the educational value of travel.
After returning to the mainland, we visited Pula, a town with a Coliseum that rivals the one in Rome - an amazing discovery. When you see the pictures, you will think we took a side trip to an improved Coliseum in Rome.
The weather today was a mixture of everything - but for the most part it was sunny and warm. The few times it rained (and there was one deluge) we were either under cover on a ferry boat or in the covered tram. We never really got wet. It was choreographed rain -- just for us. But the Sun was most welcome.
My "bug" went away as fast as it came -- and the others who had it are getting better, too. Tomorrow we head to Plitvice Lakes, more to the interior, before we continue down the Dalmatian Coastline. The variety of venues on this tour is amazing.
There is only one computer in this hotel, and two guys are giving me the evil eye to get me to wrap it up, so I will. One last thing. We got back to our hotel at 4:30. We are located two doors from a Jesuit Monastery that had a Saturday night Mass at 6 p.m., so we went. It was the shortest Mass I ever attended since pre-Vatican II. We were out in 20 minutes. There was no sermon (we wouldn’t have understood it anyway, as the Mass was totally in Croatian). But it was an interesting experience for those of us who went. It reminded me of the old 10:15 mass at St. Nicks in Wilkes-Barre. (My brother and sisters will know what I’m talking about).
That’s it for now.
Day 7 – Sunday, November 9
Wow! Is this trip flying by! Here we are on Day 7 in Plitvice Lakes -- a World Heritage National Park, somewhat inland from the coast, and only 5 miles from the border of Croatia with Bosnia. We arrived here late this morning and immediately ventured out onto the nature paths to view the absolutely marvelous natural beauty that surrounds us. There are more waterfalls here than I have seen anywhere. Computer savvy people can get a glimpse of all the beauty by simply going to google.com, type in Plitvice Lakes, then click on "images" and you'll see what we saw today. Unbelievable! It is a naturalist’s wonderland. I have to admit that by the end of our 4 hour trek through the park, my legs were about ready to give out. I will certainly sleep tonight. Only about half of our group was deemed physically fit to do the tour, because of the strenuous nature of the climbing and walking. Penny and I passed the test. The travel books call it "awe-inspiring" and "phenomenal" -- and we saw first hand why it has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is another example of the wide variety of venues we have experienced on this tour.
Incidentally, and ironically, Plitvice Lakes is where the first shots of the Homeland War were fired on Easter Sunday, 1991. The war lasted till 1995 -- so it was only 13 years ago since it ended. As we were driving from Opatija to this location, we passed many evidences of the war, including abandoned homes, bullet-riddled buildings and structures, and many ruins. In fact, this hotel where we are staying was destroyed by the Serbs during the war. We have learned much from our tour guides about this conflict and will return home with a much better appreciation of the facts surrounding the break up of Yugoslavia and the Ethnic Cleansing which followed.
Tomorrow we head to the magical coastal town of " Split". I'll fill you in on that when we get there. Everyone seems to be back to good health. Today's weather was superb for the park tour. Beautiful sunshine, warmth and just perfect. In fact, our park tour guide told us that it was absolutely the best day at thepark in the entire year (and he was not bluffing us for a good tip). And.. there were no crowds. In addition to the walking part, there was a brief ride on a ferry on one of the lakes, and a tram through certain sections.
We leave here tomorrow morning for Split, where we will be for only one night -- then on to Dubrovnik for two days, then home. Hard to believe we are in the final stages of the tour. It has been everything we anticipated and more. I am finding it very difficult to adequately describe the beauty of this part of the world.
Day 8 – Monday, November 10
We are now in our beautiful, modern hotel just outside the city of Split, Croatia. We drove along the Adriatic Coast on a new super highway, funded by loans from the European Union (although Croatia is not yet a member). The sun has been shining and the temperature is in the upper 60s - a most fabulous day. We spent the latter part of the morning touring the Palace of Diocletian (the Roman Emperor who persecuted Christians). The old city of Split was built within the walls of his palace -- that is how big it was (is!). It is a well-preserved palace dating back 1700 years to the early 300s. We actually had lunch in one of the rooms of the palace (Pizza and Beer - Diocletian would have loved the fact that we were enjoying his Palace in 2008!). Split is a coastal resort city - frequented by the yachts of the rich and famous. Between the history, the charming people, the bright sunshine and the warm Adriatic breeze, it was a great day. In the mid afternoon, 15 of us took an optional excursion to a nearby medieval town called Trogir. It reminded me of the Italian city of Assisi. Narrow cobblestone streets with 800 year old stone houses, still occupied, 15 - count them - 15 small medieval churches - a real trip back in time -- also a coastal city on UNESCOs World Heritage list. Its only difference from Assisi is that it is flat, while Assisi is on a hilltop. To me, it was a real discovery - a magical place I never even knew existed in such a preserved state.
After seeing our ultra modern hotel (probably the most luxurious I have ever stayed in during all my years of world travel since 1984), we are disappointed that we will be here for only one night.
Tomorrow morning we leave for our final city - Durbrovnik, also on the Adriatic Coast, and reportedly the highlight of our trip. To get there, we have to pass briefly through the country of Bosnia - so I will have a third new country (in addition to Croatia and Slovenia) to add to my list of countries visited in my lifetime, bringing the total to 55!
Penny and I have taken loads of pictures - so be forewarned that you will be getting our invitation to view our photos on Snapfish when we get home.
Our fellow travelers are having a great time -- we have gotten to know one another very well over the past ten days and will have lots of funny stories to share. Some of the old farts on the tour are really showing their inner cravings as these unbelievable Croatian girls flaunt their beauty on the streets and in the coffee houses and bars of Croatia. We are having lots of laughs.
This is an incredible region of the world and in addition to being awed by its natural beauty, we have been inspired by the determination of its people to rebuild after a nasty war and a history of being bounced around by occupiers of many hostilenations. We have also been embarrassed by our own ignorance of the history of this very historic area and many of us plan to enhance what we have learned on this short visit by future study when we return home.
The countdown to our return has begun, and my next email will come from Dubrovnik, the final city on this fabulous adventure.
Day 9 – Tuesday, November 11
We arrived here in Dubrovnik this evening after a trip down the coast from Split. On the way, we passed briefly through the country of Bosnia and then took a ferry boat over to the island of Korcula, the birthplace of Marco Polo. This was another great discovery, because Korcula is very much like Trogir, which I had told you reminded me of the medieval Italian city of Assisi. It was really interesting to see this well-preserved city tucked away on this somewhat remote island. On the way there we also saw a wall very much like the Great Wall of China which took us all by surprise and which had us oohing and ahing in disbelief. I mention these things because this trip has been nothing but discoveries of things we never expected, but which replicate historical venues found in many other parts of the world. It makes me want to suggest that if anyone wants to see a sample of most wonders of the world in one place, come to Croatia!
Dubrovnik is a medieval walled city which has been called the “ Pearl of the Adriatic ”. It is a major tourist destination for cruise ships. Fortunately, we are here in the off season, so have the place pretty much to ourselves. This city was bombed pretty extensively during the homeland war in 1991 to 1995. It has been pretty well restored since then.
Our hotel here in Dubrovnik is outside the walls and is ultra-modern, and only one year old. It makes our final two days here even more special. Some of us went to the walled city of Dubrovnik tonight as a preview of what we are to see tomorrow. The others crashed after a long day of travel and touring.
I am a bit rushed tonight because this business center closes at 10 p.m., and I do not have the customary leisure time to write exactly what I want to. I will hopefully fill you in tomorrow. It is hard to believe the trip is almost over. But the good news is that we once again had a perfect day of warmth and sunshine and the same is predicted for tomorrow. Penny and I did not use any of the winter clothing we brought along, something for which we are most grateful.
On a “down” note, Penny got the bug today and had a rough time on the bus and on the boat to Trogir. Immediately upon arriving at our hotel she headed to bed, hopefully to recover for our final day, tomorrow.
That will do it for now. More to come.
Day 10 – Wednesday, November 12
Well, the time sure flew by. It is hard to believe that the trip is all but over. In about two hours we will be leaving for our Farewell Dinner at 6.15 pm in a nearby village. Here several families will dress in traditional national costumes and provide us with local folk music and a traditional Croatian meal. It will be our farewell dinner at the end of an absolutely fabulous trip back in history.
To wrap up yesterday, there was one item I left off. On the way here to Dubrovnik we went through Croatian wine country and stopped at a winery for some wine tasting. Also along the way we passed some extensive Oyster beds along the waterways but didn’t do any tasting of those.
A word about our hotel here in Dubrovnik. No one in our group has ever been to such an ultra modern hotel. It is almost an architectural wonder from a Science Fiction book. It was built about a year ago by a Turkish investor. It is extremely spacious and built on a sea wall going from a cliff to the sea. We are on the 9th floor, but that is the 9th floor going down from the lobby, not up. Our room opens onto a balcony overlooking the Adriatic Sea. In the very middle of the room is a glass enclosed bathroom and shower. I am talking about clear glass enclosed so that from the bed and sitting room, you can see your partner taking a shower as though they were right in the room with you. Lots of laughs going around for those non-married couples, particularly Gus Haines and Hanz Rottau, who are sharing the same room. They now know more about each other than they need to know. It has been a riot listening to the stories. To add too the high visibility, imagine a ceiling to floor mirror, the full length of the shower, on the opposite wall, providing double the view. There’s also a shower head built into the ceiling that simulates rain coming down.
To contrast the modern view, now imagine the highlight of our day today, which was visiting the medieval walled city of Dubrovnik. It is as it was in the 11th or 12th century, despite many sieges from the Ottoman Empire, The Venetian empire and everyone in between, and as recently as 1991 when the Serbs and Yugoslavs tried to destroy it in the Homeland War. Everyone in our group loved their day here and some of us, myself included, took the challenge to walk the entire 3 to 4 miles of wall around the city, with its literally hundreds of steps, up and down. It took me about an hour and a half to do the entire perimeter. What beautiful views I had of the sea on one side and the orange tiled roofs of the homes on the inside.
After sleeping in during the morning, Penny recovered by noon and got to complete her souvenir shopping in the many shops of Dubrovnik, and our guide told us we should be grateful for the weather, which was the best she has ever seen here in November, and for the lack of crowds, as dozens of cruise ships normally land here during the high season, packing the streets with tourists. This morning we had our group picture taken in front of the backdrop of walled Dubrovnik.
We have to be on the bus for the airport tomorrow morning at 4.30 a.m. --- that is correct. 4.30. We then begin our day-long trip home, arriving in Philadelphia late afternoon on Thursday.
As I indicated in my last email, this trip has been a miniature of a worldwide travel adventure. Here is my analysis and breakdown....
- It was like Paris and Amsterdam ... Zagreb
- It was like San Malo, France .... The Castle at Bled, Slovenia
- It was like the ruins of Greece and Rome ... The Coliseum in Pula and Diocletian’s Palace in Split
- It was like China ... The meandering city wall in Ston, Croatia and the wall around Dubrovnik
- It was like the Amalfi Coast in Italy ... The Dalmatian Coast from Split to Dubrovnik
- It was like Vienna , Austria ... The Lipizzaner Horses in Lipica
- It was like the French Riviera ... Opatija , Croatia
- It was like Yellowstone National Park ... Plitvice Lakes, Croatia
- It was like going to the medieval city of Assisi ... Trogir and Korcula
- And it was like visiting anyplace with a relationship to World War II and the Cold War, from Russia to Berlin, Normandy to Luxembourg ...with our visits to countries and towns impacted by Tito, occupation, war, etc.
- And looking at the architecture in Slovenia… it was like being in the Austrian Alps; and seeing the architecture of the Istrian peninsula, …it was like being in Italy.
- The natural beauty of the region can only be described as magnificent, and the pictures will have to tell that story.
I really have not heard many complaints about this tour. It has certainly exceeded my expectations, and I am confident that the same will be reiterated by most people on the tour.
Thanks for bearing with all my verbiage over the past ten days. I hope I was able to convey in some slight way the excitement we have experienced on this trip. Also, I hope that someday many of you will be able to enjoy the same experience.
Day 11 – Thursday, November 13
We received our wakeup calls at 3:30 a.m and were on the bus by 4:30 a.m., headed to the Dubrovnik airport. Our plane left at 6:40 a.m., arriving in Zagreb at 7:35, then flying to Frankfurt at 7:35, arriving there at 11:30. We left on Lufthansa at 1:20, arriving in Philadelphia at 4:25. Our mini-bus was waiting to take us to Vincentown, and we were home by 6:30 p.m.
Mark this as one of the more exciting trips of my travel career. It was enlightening and enjoyable and exceeded my expectations more than any other trip I have taken over the years. I recommend a trip to Croatia to everyone who likes to travel. However, I strongly recommend that to get the most out of it, you should travel off-season as we did – namely in the early to mid Fall, or mid to late Spring. There is no sense in making a trip like this in the Summer, as you will have to fight the crowds and not really benefit from the nice weather (unless you have your own yacht). Also, there is an issue in Dubrovnik with the many cruise ships that come in daily – however, we were not affected by any cruise traffic in early November! Also, as the word gets around, the crowds will get larger – so go now!
Happy travels!
Joe and Penny
P.S. If you are interested in viewing over 500 pictures from our Croatia Adventure, send me an email, and I’ll forward my link to Snapfish!
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