Hey, look another building that stirs Dwayne to lust.  Really, it would save us so much money if he would just take up with women instead of architecture.  

 

  So happy to be in Venice, even if it signals the final leg of our journey.  More to love about Venice soon.

 …and something like this in our backyard.  You can start placing your bets on whether can Dwayne have the trifecta: columns, arches, and wife.

 

From top to bottom, Piper, Wes, and Kyla

My only dinner requirement was for a rooftop terrace. I got it,and all my heart’s desires, at the Panorama Restaurant at the top of the gondola. Not only did it allow us to avoid standing in the long line to head back down, but we had the most pleasant dinner–three times as good as anything else at only twice the cost, so a bargain!  This is what the terrace lookes like in daylight–a total grab-pic from Bing images.

And the view only got lovelier.  Dubrovnik, I’m not done with you yet!  I can’t wait to return some day.

 

This stop had the two best hours and two worst hours of the entire trip–possibly of the year.  I will save the best for tomorrow’s post and survive the retelling of the worst now.

It started really well as we stepped off our catamaran and walked about 30 minutes to Hotel Zagreb.  At first, I was disappointed that we were so far from the Old Town, but a bus that ran every 10 minutes that was just steps from our hotel and Dwayne and I have getting used navigating public transportation in foreign countries.  Also, we quickly figured out that our historic hotel, surrounded by a garden and patio furniture, was right on the pedestrian-only street that was the popular promenade that led right down to Sunset Beach.  

Right away, Dwayne and I left hot, tired children in the hotel and “pedestrian-ed” ourselves out.  When we got down to the sea, we discovered one of the hotels had cleverly installed an inflatable obstacle course swimming distance from the shore, and was charging about $15 per hour.  It was the perfect place to revive our kids and after doing a little more exploring and getting lunch ingredients, we returned to the hotel, fed the kids, and led them to what I solemnly told them would be an afternoon of torture.  

Turns out, it was. But not in the ironic sense I had anticipated.

We have it on good authority that this is The Best Thing EVER!!!  And when their hour was up, they happily came up the beach to swim and play among the rocks.  I was reading another book, and Dwayne grabbed Wesley’s new green floatie to bring him and go swimming himself.  Next time I looked up, Dwayne still had the floatie and was hanging out with the girls.  I went over and did a quick search to make sure Wes was nearby, but I didn’t see him and the others weren’t sure where he was.  It had a been a little while, but this was No Big Deal.  The kids all love the shore and I would just have to look a little further over all the rocky obstacles.  

Still no Wes.  I organized the fam to make a larger radius.  No Wes.  I sent Dwayne and the girls up the beach to really scour the area and I walked the half mile the other way, getting more and more frantic.  Dwayne’s phone was dead, so I had hope that when we met up, they would have Wes with him.

They didn’t.

Wesley is a fish, but he’s not an invincible swimmer and it seemed that he was equally likely to be in the water as land–and I would see him on land.  We split up again and I started using Mom Voice to call for him.  By the time I had walked the entire beach to the road from our starting point–again–I could not find him anywhere.  I was not convinced that we would find him, alive at least.  I wasn’t scared of kidnapping but drowning is the second (unintentional) cause of death in our state.  I helped fundraise for free swim lessons for all 4th graders last spring.  It happened to the 8th grade football player in our district last May.  Drowning was a real possibility that even my life of good fortune could not prevent.

I do not live my life by fear, but for that hour, I was terrified.

At last, with trembling fingers, I was able to text this to my mom.  Of course, my mom.  I needed to write it down and I needed another mom. My mom.

Hvar is the only place where we get two full days.  Our agent recommended finding a tour and exploring chain of islands more. A boat taxi for five is the same price as hiring a private boat for the entire day, but both cost more money than we were willing to leak out of our personal expense fund—every meal out never cost less than $100, even with small dishes and shared plates. That’s the real cost of traveling with a family to world-popular destinations in peak season!

I led the way “to the beach by going through adorable alley ways” but the kids were on to me.  So to the beach we went to, at least for the morning.  Soon, we had kids both hungry and needing to use the restroom.  Croatia, so far, doesn’t have many public toilets, and when they do, there is a charge for them.  It’s nominal, but we rarely have bills less than 50kn (about $8), let alone the coins for a 5kn toilet fee.  So, finally on Day #4 of Croatia, we made our way to a coffee bar.

Rick Steves would be disappointed to learn how long we waited to spend a few hours enjoying a treat as we people watch from our patio seating.  We ordered ice creams and pankakes (crepes), juice and something possibly uniquely Croatian, ice coffee.  Our RS lecture “warned” us that ice coffee is NOT iced coffee.  It is a full scoop of vanilla ice cream and whipped cream slowly melting into your cup of coffee.  

I read, Kyla listened to a book, Dwayne played cribbage with Piper and Wes, and we deliciously wiled away a siesta until it felt time to go explore the next beach.

Finally!  A beach with a topless woman, giving me permission to get a better tan and a longed for European experience….and true realization that there are plenty of old men with large breasts than mine.  I loved the empowerment and though each kid asked in turn why I wasn’t wearing my top, only Piper made it clear she would never do that.  When I came out of the water, she threw me the rest of my bathing suit so that I could cross the rocks with her and see “her” tide pool.

She must have spend almost two hours trying to catch fish and letting the ghost shrimp nibble her cuticles.  Our marine biologist couldn’t believe we’d drag her away from her lab experiment at 5pm to return to the hotel.

Kyla vacillates between swimming and exploring the rocks and enjoying the shade and listening to another audio book.  She’s completed more books than I have this trip, and I have done my best to read my brains out.  (Booklovers, I am currently really enjoying Shelly Thomas’s Elemental Trilogy, finding it almost as compelling as her Lady Sherlock series.)

Wesley is swimming and playing and swimming and playing, and has loved all the beach time we’ve had in Croatia. In a family of three water babies, he’s the “wateriest”.

Dwayne is dreaming of pillars and columns, future yard projects for us. I, however, want something just as unreasonable in overcast Washington: a sundial.  The islands of Croatia brag about the hours of sun they get annually (Hvar has 1-2 foggy days a year, and they feel so dreadful about it that Fodors claims tourists get refunds if they happen to be there that day), making a sundial natural.  However, the fact that I took this at 15:30 doesn’t add up.

Jelsa, we were charmed!

We sadly left Split behind to head to Hvar*, an island designed for nothing but enjoying the Adriatic Sea…with thousands of other vacationers.  

Getting there was fun, as it was like flying without any of the airport or luggage hassle.  Lots of seats, most of them not by windows, but we grabbed a table and played cribbage. When we disembarked, we had about a 15 minute walk (mostly uphill in the unforgiving heat), but we arrived at our hotel at 10am, long before we could get our room, but plenty of time to gather our beach gear and store our luggage.
  

I told these two that I was sorry I had to drag them to the sea and that it was clear they were making the best of terrible circumstances.  They tried so hard to look miserable, but they just couldn’t pull it off.

I don’t know how to compare the saltiness of the Puget Sound and the Adriatic, as there is nothing about the temperature in or out of the Sound that is conducive for swimming for an hour, but floating was so effortless, even my skinny, sinkable brothers could have bobbed in the Adriatic.  

Our schedule in Hvar:

Day 1 in Hvar:  All day at the beach. Jump in pool.

Day 2 in Hvar: Laze in room, pool, beach, pool.

Day 3 in Hvar: Go to Jelsa, play at beach, laze at a coffee bar before going to second beach, return to hotel pool.

See a theme? 

In the relatively cooler evening, I, ahem, suggested we climb up to the fortress overlooking the city before dinner.

Although it was just about a 15 minute walk once we got out of the upper city gates,there was whining aplenty.  Dwayne tried to give the impression he was on my side, but I saw through him.  I did show mercy and didn’t insist upon touring the museum.  

 Even miserable, Wesley couldn’t resist climbing the walls.

Is this not a fantastic beginning?  If you are not positive, then let me reassure.  It is indeed an excellent frolic.

 

 

While we felt we already had half a day’s adventure in Split the night before, this was our one full day to soak in the wonders of this early Roman and medieval city. We were going to fully engage in this city in our short time here.

I was wagging my tail to see it all, with no better plan than to shoot off in whichever direction looked the shiniest. I’m our group leader only because I walk the fastest and with the most (unsubstantiated) confidence. When I get myself hopelessly lost, I wait for Dwayne’s practicality to catch up and straighten us out.

But in Split, it’s hard to go too wrong. We quickly found a stairway up an old (repetitive, I know) lookout tower. We can separate our family into two camps: those that care ….  

…and Wes & Piper.

And then as a sign of our divine circumstance, we heard singing–just as St. Rick Steves anticipated.

You can imagine the acoustics of a stone tower. Heavenly.

Outside the north gate stood this statue of…someone famous. But he has a golden toe, that if rubbed, will bring the doer good luck.  As if one needs more luck than to actually be in Split.

The youngers were saved by frequent kitty spottings.  Even I was not thoroughly off put by the feline population of Split.

Great view of this coastal town, though!

A swim followed by Nutella crepes for the kids and spinach smoothies for their keepers firmly put the day on good ground.

It was the perfect time to leave the kids at the hotel with their electronics while Dwayne and I toured the cathedral, crypt, and baptistery, before prowling more alleys and shops.  A white linen shirt for Dwayne and a red dress (with pockets!) for me meandered their way back with us through the farmers market, port, and side shops of this charming city.  It was a good strategy for us—family adventure for part of the day, and then let the kids recover in air conditioning while the grown ups explore unencumbered. 

By the time dinner time (formerly and quaintly known as “bedtime”) rolled around, we had added more to our step count and underestimated our kids’ stamina a bit.

We reluctantly checked out of our hotel, with it’s lovely deck and spacious sleeping areas, that was built upon 4th century Roman baths–not that we got to experience them, as they don’t seem to exist anymore outside of historical record.  What I remember best about our lovely stay is that when we seemed to turn a random corner (random to me, not Dwayne) and spotted “our” stairs, it felt like a homey miracle. 

 I hope this isn’t the last time we see Split!

 

We didn’t arrive in Split until 10pm (22.00), and during the short ride from the airport, I wondered if I would be able to feed my family dinner so late at night.

Nightlife was in full swing when our driver dropped of us on the Promenade, with another porter guiding us the last few minutes through the alleys to our hotel.  We quickly changed for a night on the town and set off to find the perfect place to dine.  In our case, perfect meant “Pizza, pasta, and something good for the adults”.  We found just the spot and quickly embraced the late night dinner schedule.  Dinner was good, but really just fuel for some more exploring.  

People were sitting on steps, drinking wine and enjoying the ambiance that an ancient Roman-built palace square effortlessly radiates.  I was determined Dwayne and I, sans children, would be back the next evening.

Our marvelous travel agent booked us a very fine hotel right in Old Town, just a few minutes meandering from this gorgeous center.

More, more, more tomorrow.

A morning hotel check out before a late afternoon flight is always a bit awkward, as we were hours away from our next airport and had to drag our luggage with us as we did a few final hours in London. I am very grateful that we each have a rolling suitcase and a backpack, so it’s not too inconvenient, but I already can think of things I could have left at home. 


Gatwick Airport could only be accessed through Victoria Station, so I looked around the area to see how we could entertain ourselves for our last few hours in London.  A few royal gardens (parks), Buckingham Palace, and Trafalgar Square were all within walking distance, so off we went, luggage trailing behind. 

We stumbled across Buckingham first, and I think the flag signaled that the Queen was at home.

Even Dwayne couldn’t find fault with the Trafalgar Lions—they were impressive!

 

A little lunch in St James Park before heading back to the station and making our way to our least favorite part of our adventure: catching a cheap flight to Split, Croatia (“EasyJet” is woefully misnamed).  Forget the pseudo-wisdom “journey is the destination”; sometimes the journey must be endured to get to the prize.

Fare thee well, London!  I am more inspired to show our kids New York now.