My birthday in Hvar

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Happy birthday to me!!

After being woken by my phone ringing at 4:20am and then 5am (thanks Dan & Raelene haha ?), I still managed to sleep until just after 8am. Then I was excited to turn my phone back on and check all the birthday messages from family and friends around the world. Feeling totally loved ♥️♥️

Had a great long chat with Clare which was so lovely. I got an awesome (reasonable hour!) call from Daniel, Raelene, Marcel, Xavier and Vasana who were driving north to Coral Bay (hence their early morning attempts when they still had reception). They were just at the Overlander roadhouse so had reception but unfortunately I lost them after awhile as they headed into the great unknown (or far as the internet is concerned!!). Also got a wonderful video call from Christine and Justine (and little girls!) and had a great chat with Kellie (with Grace and Fay sending birthday wishes in the background!). What a wonderful morning! So many times when it is my birthday, I have so many things planned and on the go that I always feel bad if I don't have the time to properly take in all the messages and phone calls I get. That was the best thing about today - I could take it all in without feeling like I had to rush off to something.

Around 1pm I knew that it was now late in the land of Oz so headed out to walk along the coast for a swim. Before heading out I popped downstairs to see Ana as I wanted to put a couple of washes on. She was so lovely and let me use two of her machines - whites in one and colours in the other. I tried to explain that I would hang it all out when I got back from the beach but she was "Ana do it". No point arguing so I gave her a hug and headed out.

I walked all the way to Robinson's but the wind had changed and it really wasn't that nice there. So I walked back along the coast, eventually stopping at Pokonji Dol beach, where I decided to have some lunch. I ordered the grilled calamari and a cold glass of rosé and settled in to enjoy myself. I had a table right on the beach, under a palm tree so it was an ideal set up. The food was delicious, as was the wine - happy birthday to me! After lunch I sat down on the beach for a while but just couldn't muster up the desire to get into the water. It was about 5pm by now and was quite a bit cooler and I knew the water would be very fresh but the sun wouldn't warm me enough after. I was feeling tired from .......... well, doing nothing! I walked back up the track to the top of the hill and then onto the apartment for a little r&r and to decided what I wanted to do for dinner. When I got back I headed down to the laundry and low and behold, Ana was ironing my clothes! I tried to stop her from ironing some things, like my PJ's and knickers but she was insistent on everything else! Such a lovely lady. So I headed back upstairs with my clean, dry and ironed clothes, all ready to pack for my departure tomorrow.

Around 8pm I decided I would head out and walk to the harbour and find somewhere nice to have my birthday dinner. I checked TripAdvisor for suggestions as I really felt like a steak. It suggested Val Marina although I knew it would be in the expensive side. I walked along the harbour, checking out menus at different restaurants and then I came to Val Marina. It was the most expensive so far so I kept walking but in the end I went back there as I knew it was recommended and we'll, it's my birthday haha. I chose the sea bass cervice as a starter with a glass of rosé prosecco to accompany it. For my main I had the Black Angus steak (medium rare!) and a serve of steakhouse fries that had white truffle oil drizzled over them. I had a glass of Croatian red wine with this course. Everything was so delicious and most enjoyable, especially as I had a table right on the water. I finished it all of with a espresso macchiato and was feeling this was a wonderful way to enjoy my birthday if I have to do it on my own.

For some reason Hvar was really quiet tonight, which is strange given it is a Friday night. Perhaps it is coming to the end of the season. I know Ana has no one else in her apartments or wanting to get into mine tomorrow either. Anyway, I enjoyed the nice stroll back to my apartment, along the harbour front and the enjoyed a bit of Netflix time to end my day.

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