Saturday April, 3. 2010

After a nice breakfast we gather our bags and say goodby to the lovely city of Rovinj taking the boat ride to the mainland, and then to head to our next destination. Plitvice Lakes NationalPark.

We have chosen to drive along the coast as to enjoy the scenery rather than the freeway. With Bob as the "internationl driver" and 3 navigators we wind our way down the coast. The scenery is just breathtaking never ending vista for miles. We stopped along the way outside a town called Senji for a very delightful lunch, the views were worth a million dollars.

When going through the little towns along the way we notice there are people selling cheese and some bottled liquid of some type. We finally stop and buy some cheese and Teresa and I sampled some plum brandy very tasty. Bob and Greg sampled some Gin(homemade) it smelled really strong and they said it cleared out the sinuses just like hot mustard.

We finally arrive at the park. There are many of rooms and hotels in the park we opted to stay at the Hotel Plitvice. Arriving late I still managed to get Bob to go and hike to see some of the falls. This place is really beautiful,there are acres of walking paths and breathtaking waterfalls. After a dinner at the hotel we settled into the crisp white sheets and the sounds of the falls. Tomorrow we once again start down the coast.

Friday April 2, 2010
The Hotel Istra is a newly remodeled hotel that is stark but luxurious. I started my day with a walk around the grounds of the island which included beautiful wildflowers, quiet areas and labyrinths. The hotel also offers exercise classes when they are fully booked, for right know they have a very nice streching class led by and instructor names Alexandra.

We boarded the boat and started our exporation of the town. At one time in the 1500's a canal divided the old town with the main land. The harbour is all lined with granite sea walls and boats tied up to the wall mediterranean style (stern in). Teresa and I began our exporation through the narrow windy streets to climb to the top of the hill to the church of St. Euphemia. The tomb of St. Euphemia the patron saint of Rovinj is located on the right side of the altar. The bell tower is topped by a copper statue of St. Euphemia which shows the wind direction by turning on a spindle.

Teresa and I thought it would be a good idea to get something for sandwiches and once inside the market things became complicated. Who would think we had to weigh oranges, tomatoes and banans. There is a scale but no pictures only numbers that are below the items on the shelves, that took some time but soon I figured it out. Talk about feeling silly. Teresa and I also manged to get on the correct boat but never even asked the captain where the boat's destination was we still could have been cruising around the islands's.,

We chose not to have sandwiches for supper and took the boat to a great restraunt right on the warf the food was the best. Fresh trout, pasta, and of course Bob had the beef steak.

Thursday April 1, 2010
Wow what a difference a day makes the sun is shining and the rain has finally ended. The mountains sourround the beautiful lake in the town of Bled, Slovenia. The hotel we stayed at was Vila Presien which is named after the famous poet who wrote the national anthem for Slovenia. Presien's pictures are everywhere he truly is an icon in this country.

After I had a very nice massage at a nearby wellness center we loaded up the car to head to Rovinji which is located along the coast of Croatia in the Istria area (northwest part of the country next to Italy) The drive was a long drive but with the help of the navigational team , Greg on a map, Teresa on a different map and I ran Gerti(GPS). With all of this help we only managed to get lost 4 times or more.

• Upon arriving at Rovinji we boarded a very large passenger boat to get us to our Hotel Itra located on an island which took about 15 minutes. After having a big lunch we opted for bologna sandwiches for dinner. Greg and I particpated in some silly stage show and won tickets to some fancy pool within the hotel called the zen spa. Bob and Teresa opted out of our fun and enjoyed some wine in the quiet lounge. As fancy as a hotel that this was I wasn not able to get interent to work.

Wednessday March 31

What a great day it was here at Lake Bled. I will prefice this whole experience by saying it is raining and 40 for the high so make the best of it.

We had a slow start to the day , had to go to the bank and cash in $ for euros, eat breakfast try and find the correct adapter for the computer as I purchased the combined adapter that would not work with the computer and then figure out fun things to do. With all the tasks completed let the fun begin.. With raincoats and rainpants, (I thought I was camping or sailing) we started out to discover the beauty of the area.

The hike up to the Grand Castle took teresa and I only about 15 minutes, the boys chose the comfort of the car. Once at the Castle we had a big history lesson of how it was built, the year it was built 1010 and redone 1500 and how it is currently operating.

The views were beutiful of the island and Greg did well at saboring a bottle of sparkling wine and I even created a video. The video will come when I have time to put it on You Tube.

From here we took the car down the road about 30 km past a beautiful alpine lake called Lake Bohinj.The lake is very isolated and the mountains truly dipped into the lake like massive walls.

We finally arrived at our destination called Slap Savaca, we hiked about 20 minutes through the forest and ended up at a beautiful water fall. The picture does not do it justice the force and amount of water was really cool. We ended the day and prepared for a lovely dinner over where Teresa and Greg are staying.

The dinner was the best and can't thank Teresa and Greg enough for the complimentary dinner and great company. I think we are on the road for great fun and great food and great company.

Tuesday March 30
We are finally here for the beginning of the trip. We left MN
on Monday at 10:00 AM had a holdover in Atlanta . GA
then on to Paris there we were patiently waiting for 5 hours and I never did see Paris. Landed in Ljubljana, at 3:00 checked into our hotel Vila Presien and are all settled.
Lake Bled is a a great spot. The lake is surrounded by mountains on all sides and there is a "great castle on the top of a big hill overlooking the lake.
Bob and I were greeted by Teresa and Greg with suprise cocktails in our room. Dinner at our hotel and off to get some much needed sleep. It has been along time of hanging around the airports waiting for the next flight. We have more time than money but this was alot of time hanging around. Tomorrow brings a great day hiking up to the castle, then on to the famous church on the lake that just happens to be on an island how we are getting there is yet to be determined.

Monday March 29, 2010

The journey has begun, for the next 6 weeks we will be traveling by plane, train, car and of course a ferry. Today is the travel day , Perry was so gracious to drop us off at the airport and from there we flew to Atlanta. The Delta Sky Club is where we will be spending a couple of hours then on to Air France landing in Paris, then on to Slovenia. Hopefully I will be able to establish internet in other parts of the world.

On our last car trip we packed the car with everything we could think of. On this trip Bob and I will be using carry on back packs and that is it. Believe me they are not as big as they look.