Hong Kong and Eastern Europe Day 28

October 2009


Day 28

After a late breakfast we took the local bus to Zagreb, about a 3.5 hour trip. We walked from the bus station to the Best Western Astoria, before setting off for a self exploratory walk of "lower" Zagreb. We visited The well of life, Jelacica Square and Tomislavovi Square.

We finished the day with finner at Piccalo, which was ok, but a bit too touristy for us, before stopping at Millennium for ice cream on the way back to the hotel.

Hong Kong and Eastern Europe Day 27

October 2009

Day 27

We enjoyed breakfast in the hotel, surrounded by chandeliers before walking into town to get our bus tickets for Zagreb, which we would need in a few days.

We then joined our group on the mini bus and drove into the tiny town of Hum. We then got back onto the bus and made our second stop at Motovun, which is Mario Andriette's hometown (at the time when her was born it was under Italian rule for those of you who are wondering). We got on the bus again and made our third and final stop at Rovinj. We had a Burek of cheese and meat in the park before grabbing an ice cream and walking along the promenade. We joined back up with our tour group and enjoyed a short walk through the old town.

We had our final group dinner that night back in Opijati at Roko, once again having my favourite of grilled squid, while DH had a Calzone.

Hong Kong and Eastern Europe Day 26

October 2009

Day 26

We got on another mini bus and drove to Rijika. We stopped here for a guided walk, which included the markets, the concert halls, churches, roman arches and an old monastery. We broke from the group at the end of the tour for lunch and to find a restroom, it would have to be the hardest place ever to find a restroom, we spent around 30 minutes searching for one that was open or we were allowed access to.

We then met up with our group again to visit the upper part of the town, which included the Trasat Castle and yet another church with monastery (the church fatigue had definitely kicked in by this stage).

We drove to Opatija, and checked into the Hotel Bristol with it's gorgeous sea views. We took a walk around town and finished up having a delightful dinner of sausage minestrone and cheese ravioli at Gostiona Istranka.

Hong Kong and Eastern Europe Day 25

October 2009


Day 25

Our group boarded the mini bus for our 4 hour trip to the Plitvice Lakes National Park, one of those locations that had always been on top of our list and the main attraction for this trip.

We caught the "train" (really a bus) to a walking point and then spent time winding our way down through the beauty to the boat point. We then spent 10 minutes on the boat before continuing our walk to our dinner point, 4 hours in total.

We had dinner at Lika Kuca, where we enjoyed the mixed platter of lamb from the spit and veal and potatoes cooked in "the bell".

Now I know I may have overdone the pictures in this post, but can you really blame me? Neither DH nor I are great photographers, but these pictures all give you a glimpse into the beauty of the area.

Hong Kong and Eastern Europe Day 24

September 2009

Day 24

In the morning we caught a cab to the bus rank, with a driver who kept on playing a catching song over and over (I thought it was titled Moski Voui, but could not find it on itunes or online when I returned, if you know what I might be talking about I would love to know what it is and where I can download it).

We arrived in Trogir and spent some time walking through the old town, viewing the cathedral, the walks and the promenade. We had Cevapcici and hamburger for lunch ( it had been a while since I'd enjoyed Cevapcici), before catching the bus to Siberik.

In Siberik, we settled into our hotel on the harbour before going on a guided tour with our group, where we saw St Michael's Cathedral with it's beautiful stained glass, the old town and the cat & dog bowl built into the wall! DH and I decided to walk up to the fortress and enjoyed watching the sun set.

We had dinner of scampi in crepes and local mussels at Vijecnica in the old city hall, which while enjoyable was a bit over rated for the price, before enjoying ice cream for our walk back to the hotel.

Hong Kong and Eastern Europe Day 23

September 2009

Day 23

Up early for a 4.5 hour bus ride to split. We dropped our things off at the Art Hotel, before grabbing lunch at a local bakery and walking through the markets.

We joined our tour group and were given a guided walking tour of the old town. We wondered into one section, to find four men singing and selling their CDs, it was a wonderful atmosphere.

We had dinner at U Fife, in which I tired the Black Risotto (way too salty for me) and the Veal in wine sauce.

While not as well known or visited as Dubrovnik I actually preferred Split and in the summer months it is a great spot to base yourself to explore the Islands of Hvar and Brac.

Hong Kong and Eastern Europe Day 22

September 2009

Day 22

We caught the local bus with our new tour group to the old town, to re-do the walking tour we did with our first group, it was great seeing it all again and there was a lot less people making it easier to stop and just look. Going through our pictures at home I can't believe how many we took from the city walls!

We grabbed a quick lunch of sandwiches from a local bakery and enjoyed lunch down by the harbour with all the cats! We enjoyed a nice drink at Pizzareia Dommanica, just enjoying the view and the wonderful weather, before heading back to the hotel.

We enjoyed our final dinner in Dubrovnik at Kampas, where I strayed from my usual of squid to enjoy the salmon pasta, while DH enjoyed the seafood pasta.







I have to say Dubrovnik definitely lived up to the hype and I was glad we got to enjoy some downtime here. But it is expensive, and we found this out more so as we headed up the coast of Croatia and the prices just seemed to drop, I guess the downside of being such a big tourist and cruise destination.