Le Voyages: Sailing the Adriatic

S and I just returned from an amazing holiday in Croatia with our good friends from Australia - Erin, Chris, Liz and Megan. We were so lucky to be able to meet up with our friends who arrived from both Australia and Saudi Arabia and that we hadn't seen for months.

This was a long awaited holiday. We had been talking about it since mid way through last year. It finally happened...we sailed the Dalmatian Coast and the Adriatic Sea in Croatia!!!

Our journey began very early a few Fridays ago when we arrived in the very tropical port town of Split. Split is the second largest city in Croatia and the people of Split think of themselves as very trend conscious and glam. E had been incredibly sick the week before so we took it easy on Friday strolling around the Old Town. Believe it or not, Split was founded by the Roman emperor Diocletian in AD295. It had a very Italian and roman feel. The most impressive site was Diocletian's Palace which is now made up of cafes and shops. We also found the giant statute of Gregory of Nin (a 10th century bishop). Tradition claims that if you rub the statues toe, a wish will be granted.

On Saturday, we boarded our boat for our week long sailing trip down the Dalmatian Coast. We were lucky enough to only have 20 people on a boat with a capacity of 40. We were also delighted to find that we had a double bed, private shower and toilet, a huge sun deck on which to laze and a bar with staff that made yummy cocktails (Sex on the Beach and Pina Colada were the best).
Every day we would wake to find that we had left our last port and were sailing to our next unknown destination. It was such a great feeling being in the middle of the sea not knowing exactly where you are or where you are going next. It was also so peaceful - often we would not see another boat for hours.

We would sun bake on the top deck for hours, watching the amazing scenery go by, reading and chatting. Captain would drop anchor in an isolated cove and we would swim and float in the most crystal clear water we have ever seen. Then the crew would ring the bell to signal lunch. Lunch comprised of three courses and the food was absolutely delicious.

After lunch we would arrive into a new port and spend the afternoons exploring the towns. Each one was different but each had the same common calm and relaxed feel.

We would then have cocktails and delicious dinners followed by some serious partying and dancing. The beach towns of Croatia are known to be heaven for the party animal.

This was our typical day for seven days - what bliss.

There are a number of things which stood out for us about this country. We didn't have too many expectations about Croatia itself but we were blown away. Here are some things that we loved about Croatia:

The food. The Croatians are serious about their food. We ate so much fresh seafood. Usually a whole grilled fish or fresh grilled calamari. The food also had a rather Italian influence and the pastas and risottos were also great. We also loved a Croatian desert which consisted of rolled crepes with marmalade in the middle - yum.
The crystal clear blue water. The Dalmatian Coast has some of the clearest blue sea in the Mediterranean. By clear we mean that you could see the bottom of the ocean.
The attractive towns and rich culture. Croatia has an amazing history and a very turbulent one at that. In fact, Croatia has only been a free state three times in its history.

So what else did we do....

Split to Makarska

Our first stop was to go white water rafting in-land from the beach town of Makarska. What an experience this was. The river was fairly calm but we did experience some great white water runs (and some pretty narrow ones too). Safety was definitely not a concern. Teddy (our instructor) sat at the back of the raft directing us, telling us to row faster, while sipping on a tin of beer! S failed to follow instruction down one particularly tight run and we ended up getting stuck on a rock - Teddy was not happy. At one stage, we floated down the icy river looking at the cliffs on either side (outside of the raft).

That evening we had a beautiful dinner (grilled whole fish) and Teddy told us a little bit about the Yugoslav War. Only 15 years ago, it is still very clear in the minds of the Croats.

After dinner we went to two bars. One was inside a cave on the water front.

Makarska to Mljet

Day 2 saw us sailing past some beautiful scenery to Mljet. At Mljet we visited the Mljet National Park which had two large lakes with aqua blue water. The National Park was beautiful and relaxing. It was clearly a place that the Croatians came to visit on the weekends.
That evening we had a party on deck as we watched the first of the amazing sunsets we would see that week.

As the sun was setting the boys decided that they would jump off the front of the boat we were moored next to (it was roughly 8 metres high). S, not wanting to miss out, jumped but ended up standing on a sea urchin as he got out. At the time of writing this post, he still has 3 barbs stuck in his foot. Apparently they make their own way out of your system...here's hoping!

Up next....Part 2 of Sailing the Adriatic.

Some photos of our first few days sailing Croatia below.

E&S
xoxo