OUR FIRST PORT OF CALL ... DUBROVNIK, CROATIA

We disembarked early this morning for our visit in Croatia.

I'd never given much thought to this country until this trip, but it's history is very interesting. Our guide's name was Alexi and he was extremely knowledgeable about his country. He gave us an excellent history lesson.

Dubrovnik is located in southeastern Croatia, on the Dalmatian Coast of the Adriatic Sea. It's notable for it's medieval double walls and fortifications as well as many historical buildings.

We were on a Panoramic tour where you see many things from a bus. It was a great way for me to travel since I'm not walking great distances just yet. We stopped at a lovely place beside a stream to sample some of the delicacies of the area.

There we were served all sorts of homemade drinks .. walnut brandy, grappa and a couple of other sweet drinks.

The people who served is were in native costume and it put everyone in a festive mood. It turned out to be a delightful visit.

We were served ham and proscuitto sandwiches along with pickles and olives. They were perfect accompaniments to go with the drinks.

We visited with some people from Oklahoma during this break. He was a urologist, so we had an interesting conversation discussing medical things along with football.
The tour was really good and I was able to take a lot of great photographs. The area reminded me a lot of the Amalfi Coast. It was not and extended journey, so it was the perfect length of time to be gone since it was my first venture out off the ship. My back held up very well and I was very pleased about that. The most challenging thing was getting on and off the bus.

We found out from our guide that there are no immigrants in Croatia. There's also no crime, all children must complete 8 years of primary school and 4 years of secondary school and they must learn at least 2 languages other than Croation. There is a 22% tax on everything and the average wage is 790 Euro's a month. It takes 1580 Euro's per family to live, so both parents must work. All the homes in Dubrovnik were destroyed by the Serbs as the Croations had no army and no weapons. They have done a wonderful job of rebuilding their homeland.
When we returned to the ship we sat out on our balcony and played gin as we sipped wine and watched the ships sail by as the sun went down. A great way to spend the late afternoon.

We decided to go to the Vista Lounge for the show tonight. As we have the late dinner seating we can go to the show at 7:00. There are 2 shows an evening and we feel fortunate to be able to attend the early performance as we like to go to bed early. We started a little early tonight as there was a champagne welcome hosted by the Captain. His name is Arjen van der Loo and he was charming. This photograph is a little soft as we were not allowed to use a flash in the showroom for safety reasons.

The waiters were all dressed in tails and they served us our champagne before the show started.

Tonight's performance was a musical tribute to Hollywood. Bob Mackie designed the costumes and they were lovely as you can see.

It's a long walk from one end of the ship to the other, so we always get an early start. It's 951 feet from the showroom to the dining room, so I certainly am getting my share of exercise! Here are a few shots that I took around the ship. This is the Ocean Bar where they make wonderful Blood Mary's.

This is the Piano Bar where you can enjoy good music and quiet conversation. I'm sure if Doug Montgomery were here, we'd find him at this piano!

This is the Explorer's Lounge which is connected to the Library.

Each HAL ship has a focal point in the atrium and this ship has this beautiful Waterford Crystal globe.

There are 6 of us at our table. One couple is from Chicago and the other is from Florida. I'll tell more about them later when we all become better acquainted.

It's a very interesting mix of personalities and we are really enjoying their company.
It's time to sign off for now. There's more to come tomorrow.

XOXO, Pcasso