FOTO FRIDAY: SPECIAL TREAT

FOTO FRIDAY: Look who I am spending time with this weekend... this is a very special treat.

Started the morning with Uno. My how the rules have changed. Draw 15. What?

Last week's pic was:ADAPTATION

TBT: THE COMPANY YOU KEEP

 TBT: The saying "You are known by the company you keep" may have a negative connotation, but I am using it in the most positive way possible.

These gals made my Croatian adventure the 'best'. They were terrific travelling partners. Whether it was good planning, decision-making,  conversation, extra kindnesses,  and that extra dose of laughter to our days-  Thank you.

Kudos to Sally (white hat), who gets credit for initiating her long-time desire to visit Croatia. Although others helped, she put in countless hours finding the right yacht, side trips, lodging for our needs, and ensuring a consensus on all the options. 

* As in my travels, one also meets other special people and our  honorary member was Jane from Australia ( 5th from L)

Thanks to you all for the memories...

MIDWEEK MUSING: A SHELL FISH FARM?

MIDWEEK MUSING reflects back on our Mother's Day special field trip after lunch, where, after we docked in Slano, a bus took us to a small boat to ferry across to a small family-run farm, a very special kind of farm... a kind of farm I had never experienced.

You see, Slano is known for having one of the cleanest bays in the Adriatic and is perfect for farming oysters and mussels. Ropes are hung from buoys and shellfish grow naturally in the nutrient rich water.

We were on a makeshift floating restaurant with tables and even a swing to hear about the process and taste the results.

While our host busily shucked the fresh oysters we heard about his family who have been shell fish farming for decades. His 2 boys are also in the business and explained how the oysters grew on the ropes.. 

In the middle of the raft was a large rectangular opening to see down into the water... Isn't the water color unbelievable?

Then the lines were raised and we could see how the shellfish grew on the ropes. Production is down 30%  due to global warming with higher water temperatures. This loss really affects their income.

Simply fascinating as I had no clue this how commerical shellfish farming worked...

Candied nuts and orange rinds were our aperitifs to sweeten what would follow gastromically.

Each table was laden with foods that had never passed my lips before- a platter of oysters, a nice-sized skillet of wine-cooked mussels and anchovies (? ) Sally, always a trooper, went first...

Anchovies?

And to help his visitors swallow, there were small shot glasses of grappa, an Italian grape-based brandy (35-60% alcohol )

What an experience!

     Back to Slano where our yacht was docked for us to overnight.

                                              stunning scenery ... TBC

MONDAY MUSINGS: THE PEARL

MONDAY MUSINGS: It was a lovely welcome dinner on board the MS Diamond Saturday night and the next morning after breakfast, a bus took us back to the old city of Dubrovnik where we met our city guide Ivan  (BTW Ivan is a very popular Croatian name like John  here.) This one had steely blue eyes. 

Ivan shared Debrovnik's history, important  main square sites and stories to accompany the main statues.

He had a lot of competition from the many tourists starting to fill the square and the bell announcing a first communion. 

After seeing my copious note-taking, yacht mate Steve (transplant Skokie'ite now St Louis resident) wanted to see if he'd make my blog- Here it is Steve, Sorry you are upstaged by St. Blaise's church's bell tolling for the first communion... (Nancy was more visible than you in the lead photo too). 

Imagine what these children's memory will be of having their first communion in this historic church.

 

Sveti Vlaho, the patron saint of Dubrovnik is St. Blaise. Armenian-born, a 4th-century bishop and physician, martyred ~316 for his faith. The Croatian legend is he appeared in a vision, warning the city of a sneaky Venetian attack in 971. A year later, grateful locals made him their protector and have celebrated him in a city feast on February 3rd since 972. 

1000 years of parades, costumes, doves, etc...

He's also the Saint you go to with throat problems/choking since he saved a boy choking on a fishbone.(reason for the famous throat blessing of crossed candles on that day.)

This is the 18th C Baroque style Church with St Blaise above the main entrance holding a model of the city. 

Also in the main square is a bronze statue of Marin Držć (b.1506-died1567), a Croatian Renaissance playwright, the Croatian Shakespeare. He wrote popular comedies still performed today and actually criticized the ruling aristocracy which didn't go over well. Those plays were banned over fear of stirring up trouble. In 1566, he wrote secret letters begging the wealthy Medici family of Florence to send help to overthrow the government in Dubrovnik. They wanted no part of it, so Drznik although never jailed, returned to Venice, died there as he certainly wasn't welcome back home.

Note that Držić's nose is very shiny from visitors rubbing it for good luck.

Locals bring their water jugs to fill at the square's iconic Onofrio water fountain, built in the 1400s right inside the Pile gate. For almost 600 years, this 16-sided stone fountain has supplied fresh water, which flows from the carved heads. People love to sit on its sides and cool off from the spray too.

Arches can be seen everywhere... 

Beautiful carvings in wood/ stone.

It must have taken a long while

 to carve all of these...

Our hour walking tour left us with a half hour to wander more on our own, and we decided to head for an outdoor cafe to sit for a cup of coffee and try a local pastry to celebrate the beginning of our Mother's Day in Dubrovnik... 

We made it back to the bus in time as lunch was awaiting us on the yacht and a very special field trip to Slano. 

Stay tuned...

Goodbye to the Pearl of the Adriatic. Dubrovnik, we will miss you...

tUESDAY tUNES;: IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME

 

Timing is pretty amazing and yesterday's last Interfaith Zoom's recap of our Community Stories of Compassion evening had us talking already about the future. What do we foresee re: our own community re: the change we all need-

Perfect timing for the following song to come across my feed.

Sam Cooke's A CHANGE IS GOING TO COME is today's tUESDAY tUNES. Reggie on the street gets all kinds of singers volunteering to sing on the streets  but this NYC 's visit is super special in front of Lincoln Center with Junior.

A tune from the Civil Rights era with a strong message for us still today. Enjoy

FOTO FRIDAY: ADAPTATION

FOTO FRIDAY this week reminds us of a universal truth about survival: adaptation.  Even if you live in a  Croatian UNESCO site, you adapt...

Last week's FOTO FRIDAY

TBT:OUR DIAMOND IN DUBROVNIK

 TBT: OUR DIAMOND IN DUBROVNIK  Awaiting us at the  designated harbor was more than just our yacht, the MS DIAMOND. Actually, the yachts raft up, meaning one boat ties to the dock and the others tie up alongside each other, like a floating row of boats.  So one walks onto the boat tied to the dock and walks through each boat until you reach your own craft. We became quite proficient at this yacht hopping (one stop five across with 6 being the most permitted.) Very efficient. Synchronized departures with the outermost departing first...

Fortunately, our cruise director, Ivan, was awaiting our arrival and after introductions, handed out room keys so we could get settled. He also told us about the closest eateries for lunch. We would be having a welcome dinner and meeting that evening to explain our 8 day cruise and about a daily itinerary post (with suggested restaurants ) on a whiteboard so we could use our cells to take screenshots. (NOTED: first eco effort)

This was the Diamond's first cruise of the season. She runs 8-day cruises along the Croatian coast from Dubrovnik up to Split /vice versa.  Known for its good food and guided tours it has been part of Zantium Travel's fleet since 2015, refitted in 2024. I especially loved the remodeled cabin bathroom, with a large glass shower, a large shower handle, and a vanity with a deep drawer.

Passenger capacity is 38 for their 18 cabins, all with private bathrooms, AC, safe, hairdryer, TV, and no-charge WiFi. The cabins were European size, you know, SMALL. We were only 16 passengers hailing from Brisbane, Australia, St. Louis, Mo, Northwest (Washington/Oregon Me bad for not remembering), Chicago, Il, La Crosse, WI, Russellville, and Little Rock, AR. So we really got to know each other at meals and downtime. 

Above the cabin main floor was a lounge area, restaurant, bar,  kitchen, and captain's bridge. Above that, a covered upper lounge, big sundeck and hot tub.

Most of our crew were very friendly newbies with varying degrees of English proficiency. None of us knew any Croatian. We had the advantage of avoiding staff 'burnout' traveling at the beginning of the season. 

There were many advantages to not being in a large cruise ship that could not enter the small ports like we could.  Here's Zantium's link, should you want to check them out. 

https://www.zantium-travel.com/en/croatia-cruises/