Picture of the day - 16th August

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68216139@N00/7889318502/in/set-72157631295106388/

We liked Rovinj so much we went back and this shows the twisted street in the old city leading up to the church on the hill. The bus journey was straightforward and allowed us to drive down the side of the Lim Channel and bring back memories of Montenegran roads. The only problem with the bus journey back was the inconsistent air conditioning which meant that we sweated every minute of the hour it took to get back to the resort.

Picture of the Day - 15th August

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68216139@N00/7886030188/in/set-72157631295106388/

In Poreč and the rest of Croatia this was a National holiday as it was The Assumption of  Mary (the idea that Mary was taken into heaven either dead or alive depending on the church you ask). Being a feast day we decided to go into Poreč and see what was going on. What a rock concert and big screen had to do with The Assumption was not clear but where there are tourists few people get the day off as happens in other more rural areas of Croatia.

Picture of the Day - 14th August

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On this day we took a boat trip to Rovinj. This area is full of Venetian aged towns that grew up around ports. On the highest hill there is a church/ cathedral. The old towns are a warren of pedestrianised streets that wander in a charming yet higgledy- piggeldy manner. Along these routes are a series of small cubby-hole shops selling souvenir knick-knacks, art, traditional craft items or cafes. Above the shops are shuttered flats and apartments, seemingly unchanged apart from air-con units and satelite TV dishes. Attached to these old towns are more modern city centres that instead are maybe 100 years old and surrounding them more modern developments. Fortunately the towns in this area seem to have avoided the evil Communist hand of brutalist architecture (either that or it has all been pulled down).

We stopped at the Lim Channel, this is inaccurately described as a fjord but as glaciers never got this far south it is in fact a ria (flooded river valley) carved when the Adriatic Sea was a lot lower.

Picture of the Day - 13th August

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This was a real lazy day around the pool where we swam, drank, read and chilled out. After a very nice dinner it was back to the pool side for entertainment. This was a variable feast, the highlight of which was the Croatian Elvis who sang phonetically making all the correct sounds but without actually saying words. He was dealt an interesting issue when he had to deicde whether to continue with pelvic thrusts when the only dancer was a 4 year old paying him very close attention.

Picture of the Day - 12th August

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The coast of Northern Croatia around the town of Poreč is stunnigly beautiful and geographically interesting. The rock is limestone which leads to rocky beaches. People then build platforms close to the sea so that you sunbathe and either walk into the water for a swim or climb the ladder into the sea. The limestone give striking red rendzina soils which are heavily stained with iron. They are also very quick draining which means that conifers are the only trees that grow but this gives fantastic coastal woodland leading to shady coves and tree lined walks. It is also leading to a bit of a water shortage in Istria. There is also minimum high rise development so there is a busy but not packed feel that a lot of resorts can have.  The limestone will be a theme we will come back to.

Picture of the Day - 11th August

http://www.flickr.com/photos/68216139@N00/7882984408/in/set-72157631295106388

When you arrive at a hotel by the sea on honeymoon there a few things you would like. These include a sea view and a balcony. Room 345 was not the kind of room that dreams are made of. What we got was a view of the woods, disappointing, and a dark room with a kind of strange window. After complaining we got an upgrade despite the fact that the hotel was full and this picture was taken from the window. This was not the only complaint about the rooms we had. In Lake Bled our room with a lake view balcony did not have a balcony, the next room had a good view of a car park and the final room was third. It just goes to show if you are not happy then you get nothing if you keep it to yourself.

Being late

I hate being late but when it is for airports I am particularly irritable and one of the few times that I am stressed. On the way to the airport we were cutting it fine as the oil light came on. After check the engine we then tried to find some oil which was not easy at 5 in the morning especially as Tesco was pay at the pump. When we arrived we were later than expected but the queue we ended up in was moving so slowly it barely felt like it was moving. They did not help my stress levels. When we went through security the people in front were trying to take a chemist shop through and were stopped and we had to wait further and then at which point my belt became a target for their investigation costing us more time.

On the way back we were at the pick up at plenty of time but we then had to sit around until the exact time even though we were the only people. We then went to get other people and it took us ages to get across town, every moment making us even later. The lateness made me even more annoyed being late and amusing A.