Tirana Galleon

Dobra Dan,

Well, I just enjoyed a cappuchino at a shaded cafe overlooking the Old Port in Dubrovnik. With a slight breeze and shade, it is very nice. out in the sun, it is HOT and HUMID. On my way to the internet, I noticed some steamy clouds coming over the mountain range. Lora, the hotel manager, said today is a "not too hot" day! Well, we,ll see. I was doing some research on how to spend my next few days. I,ve decided to go to Korcula, an island about 3 hours away Monday morning by bus, stay overnight (they have a sword show something Monday evening) and take the ferry back the next day. Tuesday evening, I,m going out on the Tirana Galleon again for the "Sailing With Mozart" cruise. I will be able to see the city walls from the sea by night. The next day I leave early for my airport connections back home. I am confirming my reservations for those now.

I,m going to try to post some photos, but the connection may again be too slow. No, I can,t get it. I will try again later from another internet place.

Anyway, yesterday I wne t on another sea excursion on the Tirana, a duplicate of a 15th century sea galleon. See http://www.tirena.com/ for more info and pictures. It was great! I met a couple and their son, Sebastian (about Seth,s age) who live in England, but she is a Croatian. They come every summer to visit her family in Zagreb and vacation here on the coast. Sebastian is growing up bilingual like the boys speaking Croatian and English. They were really pleasant to spend the day with. I have photos of them I,ll post when I can. Anyway, we went to three different islands in the Elepant (sp) chain and enjoyed a grilled fish lunch with local Croatian musicians. Susanna introduced me to some special olive oil grown and processed by the locals at one of the islands. They don,t even sell it to the public, but she was able to get some for herself and me as well (bottled in recycled coke bottles)...great memories. i,ll have a special olive oil and bread hor,d,vure when I get home.

Mom, you must overlook all the spelling and grammar errors. It costs $$ to be on the web & I don,t have time to check all the Croatian (and other) words, sorry!

The Wall Walk is spectacular! I went in the evening when it wasn,t quite so hot. Hope I have some fabulous photos. In between times, and this morning i,ve been exploring the tiny, steep streets of Drubrovnik. I,ve found the cheapest places to eat. Most of the two main streets are sit out side, more expensive restaurants, but I,ve located the fast food places. One is like a self-service cafe where the local ladies doing the cooking, nothing fancy, but tasty and saves my $$ for these excursions. There is a fruit smoothy place I found this morning, but didn,t open till 9:30, will try it today or tomorrow. Another one, I saw is the Croatian version of veggie food, might try that one later this evening. So, Mom & Dad I,ll be able to tell you where all the cheap places are when you come to visit this fall

Tomorrow, Sunday, after an afternoon of swimming, I,m going to check out the Lapad section of the new town. Lots of hotels, etc that cater to the European crowd, but the promenade is supposed to be an interesting place.

So, now, I,m moving to another workstation to try again for a few photos for you. I want you to see some of the places I,ve been here. Also, it,s not as crowded in here now which may help. Besides that it,s cool in here! And I have all afternoon for swimming. Well, there is a five o,clock walking tour on the defence and politics of mediveal Dubrovnik I,d like to do, but it may just be too hot. I,ll see what I,m up for.

Till next post,

Steph