Blogs from Croatia, Europe - page 3

Croatia is sufficiently close to Italy to have excellent gelati. But clearly, it is also too far away from Italy to possess the skills required to make a satisfactory waffle cone. Such are the hardships of cruising the Dalmatian Coast. That is how we are feeling now. We are relaxed, enjoying some beautiful sights and well fed. I think that is what cruising is all about, isn’t it? But we didn’t feel that way from the moment we arrived in Croatia. When we got off the plane in Zagreb, we found that our bags didn’t get off the plane in Zagreb. They were still in Vienna, which was problematic! Oh well, there is no point in stressing too much about something that is out of your control. At least that is what I was saying to ... read more

Jane and I were up early. We wanted to see a little more of Milna. Jane went in the direction of last evening while I strolled in the opposite direction where we eventually met up and headed for a coffee venue. The yachts and cars in the parking lots were covered in ash brought in by the wind overnight from the fire on the mainland. Brian washed our yacht. “Ocean House” needs to be returned refuelled. We were 10th in line when we joined the queue at 10.15am. It was a slow process with patience required. The sun was setting the tone for the day … a hot one. Fuelled, we headed, under sail, for Stomorska, our first evening destination that we were turned away from due to being ‘full’. A stroll around small Stomorska, a ... read more

Tricked you. It’s not hiking boots and poles (for Julie) yet but track shoes and sunscreen as we walk, boat and car/train around and over the Plitvice Lakes. But first, we found some pretty good ice-cream, not the best but pretty good. And that was after stumbling across an outdoor concert commemorating the Romani genocide. Yes I know that sounds as welcome as a pig at a Jewish picnic but it was surprisingly good. Probably 20 orchestral members (percussionist, harpist, violist…) and 4 excellent vocalists belted out some great sounds. Very gypsy/Spanish feel but fun. Now it’s today and breakfast and the customary raid on the rolls, roast beef, salami and cheese platters. Always enjoy breakfast then we were off round the corner to meet our transport for the day. It’s just over 2 hours travel ... read more

The wind did not let up. The Vis bay became packed with yachts seeking safe anchorage. While were away from the yacht the Vis port manager whizzed around on his runabout ordering everyone to vacate their moorings and find another anchorage position on the opposite side of the bay as a fleet of over 50 “Sail Croatia” yachts had booked the mooring area plus other positions. Feedback told me that Peter and the other Skippers were not happy chappies. I had walked back from the town only to find no “Ocean House” and numerous yachts roped together where my yacht had been. I assumed we had been moved … Peter wouldn’t have pulled stumps and left me behind … would he? Jane met me as I was returning to town and to the other side of ... read more

This has been a far from uneventful yacht cruise. This morning the winds were blowing at 30knots from the direction of our planned sail. To add to the raised heart rate the generator which supplied the yachts power was NOT working. A face time technical phone call to Kastella with the yacht company’s electrician rectified the problem. By this time the wind had increased, and the sea was up. I was hoping that we would head into the wind and stick to our plan, however that was not the case. We ran with the wind and the sea rounding the island of Vis and headed into the town of Vis and its safe anchorage. There were no port tie-ups or docks available so it was a matter of finding a mooring. Easier said than done. Found. ... read more