And so it continues....

Our dinner for Lynley was delicious...the man in charge decided what we should eat...it was a neighbourhood street restaurant & was full of locals coming & going...anyway, we were to have a small entree...there were two huge platters of shaved ham, two huge pizza breads with olive oil on them, a big platter of tempura veges & zucchini flowers & 2 platters of sliced rockmelon & the biggest figs I've ever seen...plus a big bowl of buffalo mozzarella!!  & that was only the entree...our main course was a platter of mixed meats which turned out to be grilled meats...very deliscious...plus fried potato chunks & 2 big bowls of salad...the salad was particularly appreciated as we haven't had much in the way of veg on this trip.
Checked out of our rather unusual apartment...(the showers were contrary) & it seemed that someone lived there & had only moved out for us to move in....& headed for the airport....rather sad as our trip was pretty much over.  Ron & Di have been left at Dubai airport as they have booked straight through.  We are at our hotel in Dubai but can't check in for a couple more hours yet. Love to all

A final blog from Rome

This is a hot & dirty city...now back a step or 2...
we were quite sad to have to leave Ljubljana...it is such a clean & pretty city...in fact the whole country is gorgeous...we will definitely go back there..our bus trip to trieste left at 6.25am   & took a bit over 2 hours....what a change to be in Trieste...a hot & smelly & grubby place....the Italians just dont have it !!!  We had checked the previou evening on the internet where the Hertz depot was in relation to the bus depot & it looked a long way around the harbour...so we had decided to catch a taxi....the young lady driving it radioed to her base with the address & then started to laugh as she held up her hand to us & said "just a little trip"...it was around the corner from the bus station!!!  We only had to pay the flagfall as the meter didnt change in the time it took us to drive there...we felt like dills but she saw the funny side & we all had a good laugh!!
Our drive south was uneventful except I missed one of the turnoffs from the A1 & we had to go about an extra 120kms out of our way...oh well, we saw lots more of the countryside.....
Found a neat little hotel & had dinner in yet another hilltop village...very very steep streets...but a fantastic Tuscan meal in a fantastic little street restaurant.
The drive next morning into Rome....we found a DFO & had a visit in ther...there were some good bargains & the shops were very different to the ones at home...John got a shirt & some shoes...I didnt bother...they didnt have much in the clothing line for my size anyway.
We were a  bit tense about driving in to Rome again as we didnt have any maps...but the fantastic Barkers came through again...we can find our way in most places!!!..we drove strsight to the Hertz place (we had collected our original car from there).  After much finger gripping in the taxi ride, we made it to our apartment to catch up with the Bennetts & Vintons...sooo good to see them all again...& we all headed out for a drink, dinner & a catch up...there was lots of talking & laughing...drinking & dining...got back about midnight....yesterday we walked about a hundred kms around Rome...saw Spanish steps minus the flowers, Trevi Fountain which was even more fantastic than I had remembered...absolutely gorgeous.  John was going to plank on the edge of the fountain & we were deafened by the whistles of the police as he was told to get off...youre not even allowd to sit on the edge!!!  saw a few other monuments then the other 4 went off to do a tour of the Colisseum...we went for a walk to the river then headed back for a siesta. 
Went out for a proper dinner for Lynleys birthday last night...now just have to get organised for the trip out tnight

have to go now...run out of time  love to all

Ljubljana

Isn´t Ljubljana a fantastic name??  It sounds like something from a fairytale...anyway, we went off to Lake Bled today....gorgeous...as I read somewhere it looks like it was designed to go onto a postcard.
Our day started out a little precariously as we had a massive thunderstorm during the night & woke to constant rain...we were in 2 minds whether to go or not but decided to risk it.  It was also quite chilly & wasn´t going to get any higher than 21 deg...so we were excited to be able to put on jeans for a change...plus raincoats!!
The bus trip was about 1,5 hrs...& all the way we were looking at mountains with lots of cloud cover.  Because of the weather, lots of the tours which would normally have been there were cancelled..lucky us.  We decided to walk the 6 kms around the lake & also wanted to go on a pletna...a boat across to the island...which we did part way around.....this island has no permanent inhabitants but a gorgeous Church of the Assumption.  There are 99 steps up to the church.  I wanted to ring the Wishing Bell inside the church which I was able to do...our boat man said it was so nice that no-one was ringing the bell so far today as they get very tired of hearing it going all day in the summer!!!!!
After our walk was completed, we were starving as we´d only had a coffee & shared a danish for brekky...barely anything was open even to eat but we found a little place selling "hamburgers"...delicious...& killed those hunger pangs in time for us to get the bus back to town.  We are having a quiet time for a while as we aren´t hungry yet but will head back into town for some dinner later.
Exploring Ljubljana is on the plans for tomorrow.   By the way, we are making the most of the free internet & computers in this hostel..
love to all

Rovinj...a little more

Had our day in Rovinj...what a lovely church we visited ...the Basilica of St Euphemia....apparently her stone sarcophagus floated to shore in Rovinj in 304 & the only person able to pull it ashore & up to the church was a small boy!! Sheś been there ever since. There is a statue of her on the top of the spire & it revolves in the wind as it is set on a base of metal ball bearings...so itś sort of like a wind vane.  We could see her from our apartment. Anyway had a good day wandering around...headed home for lunch of local Istrian ham, cheese, olives & bread..then it was time for a siesta. Found a lovely little bar with seats right on  the waters edge for pre dinner drinks & sat there for a couple of hours before looking for dinner.  This morning, we had organised to leave at 7,00am & they were there to check us out right on time.  A 3 hour drive back to Zagreb & we returned opur car in time for the train to Ljubljana.
Wasn´t that an interesting ride...only 2hrs 45min...but 45 mins of that was spent sitting at the station across the border in Slovenia...they turned the train off so there was NO aircon & the doors were shut!!  We watched guards walk along beside the train extending mirrors underneath...then they came on board & checked every spot someone could possibly hide...even opening roof panels & shining torches inside.  Then we had the Policija come through to check our passports...our names & birthdates were relayed via a small mike...but then it got interesting as the 2 guys in front of us were Iranian...the guy took their passports away off the train...one of them was doing stuff on his laptop & it was all in Arabic which made the Policija raise his eyebrows...so then we sat & waited...the Customs came through twice asking if we had anything to declare & the Iranian guys were getting tense about their missing passports!!  Eventually, the boss Policija came on & wanted them to write down their address in Iran, the passports were returned & away we went.
We were most impressed with the countryside, very Austrian looking & sparkling clean...no rubbish aywhere.
Tonight in Ljubljana, we have stumbled across a local wine & food festival....plus there is a Summer festival of music & we sat & listened to that for a while...quite funny to listen to Frank Sinatra songs sung in Slovenian!!  We have tasted many wines & cheeses & local ham tonight...then John found a stall selling the local goulash which has 3 different meats in it...I found chicken!!   It was quite spicy (paprika) but very tasty. An ice cream & a walk back to our hostel & we are ready for bed. 
Going to Lake Bled tomorrow so will maybe have some more photos for you.   Love to all

Now for some photos....

In the fort above Hvar town..our yacht was moored amongst the islands behind us

Dinner in a fish restaurant in Stari Grad..sitting in the outside courtyard

In the Peristile..Diocletian Palace..Split...having drinks on the steps & watching a couple of weddings

Our rental car...not really...just a relic from the communist days

St Marks Church in Upper town, Zagreb..note the gaslights which are lit every evening at dusk by hand...there are over 200 of them

The Interceptor...Croatian Highway Patrol...we were told to watch out for these on the motorway!!!

One of the Arcades in Miragoj cemetery & looking through to the other arcade

The outer walls of Miragoj...this is only in one direction from the main gate

Strossmayer Promenade...still early in the evening...note the "chandelier" hanging in the trees

The view directly opposite our apartment in Rovinj

Rovinj from across the harbour

Having a coldie in Motovun

A view from Motovun

Istria Peninsula

Well, we have revised our opinion of Rovinj...the smell has mostly gone....the weather yesterday was once again blu skies & hot...about 30 deg...which is what we have been having most of the time we¨ve been away...got a bit of a tan going which won¨t last long once we get back to that chilly weather.
Yesterday went for a drive to Pula to see the 6th largest remaining Colosseum in Europe...very interesting but considering the size of the place, it was damn hard to find!!!  Did the audio tour...now we dont have to go back to the one in Rome (which hasnt changed much in the last 32 years that we could see) ...& one per trip is enough, we feel. Pula itself is not very appealing & we couldnt wait to get out...drove down a side road to a place called Fašana...absolutely gorgeous & really quiet...lovely little rocky beach with very clear water...we wished we had our togs with us.  Leaving there we were going to return to Rovinj but decided to continue on to Motovun...a hilltop fortified village...quite old & very pretty...the views were to die for...all across the valleys over the vineyards & olive groves....had a drink in the shade of a chestnut tree on the very top in a piazza.  Walked around the walls for our views...almost did ,360 deg.
Everywhere we have gone, there have been groups of schoolkids & teachers....doing end of year trips to all the interesting things nearby...typical kids..really noisy & the teenagers are smartasses just like at home!!
We drove back vis Poreć outskirts & on to Funtana (which is known for a dialect peculiar only to that town), around the Lim Fjord & back to Rovinj...it was a long day of touring around but we are having today to look really thoroughly around Rovinj .
Tomorrow, we return our car to Zagreb & catch the train to Ljubljana.  Love to all

Zagreb...& on to Rovinj

What a fantastic place Zagreb was...we fell totally in love with it...it has such a nice feel, the people are very friendly & very willing to help in any way.  We did our hop on hop off bus tour...at least one of the trips anyway...it started to rain in the afternoon & so we didn,t get to do the trip around the outside of town.  We had already walked most of the streets but it was good to have the commentary to fill us in on what we had seen.  We got off at the 2nd last stop to have our lunch at the Miragoj cemetery (I hope that,s how it,s spelled)...it is the most beautifully laid out place...you,ll have to see if you can google it Mum...it,s well worth the look.  We could have spent hours there.  Later that afternoon after our next trip had been cancelled, we walked up to Strossmayer Promenade in the Old Town... we had taken the funicular up there the previous evening, but were too weary to hang around there for too long...they have music in the summer evenings.  The funicular is the shortest in the world at only 33 metres & takes 55 seconds to complete the trip!!!  Anyway, we had a good look around the old town that night & then got ourselves settled into a good spot for the music...we had a great time & enjoyed 2 bottles of particularly delicious white wine.  The place was absolutely buzzing...& on a week night too...there were kids & adults everywhere...it all had a very Bohemian feel about it.  Also in the Old Town, we visited St Marks church...the roof tiles are all glazed & are laid out in the coats of arms of  Croatia & the city of Zagreb...beautiful.  Plus visited the Museum of Naive Art which John really loved...and the Museum of Broken Relationships...most interesting & we had a few laughs in there. John has a feeling it has been mentioned by Dominique in the past..though it hasnt travelled to Australia as yet.

Picked up our car next morning to drive to Rovinj...it was a 3 hour trip which we did on the motorway...got to our apartment & we were very disappointed as the first thing that struck us as we came through the door from the street was the putrid stench of rubbish...there was a bin behind the door...plus the fruit & veg markets were just across the street ...almost stomach churning.....luckily the smell has gone today!!!!

A quick walk around town then some dinner & an ice cream  we were in bed by 10,00pm.  This town is very pretty but so very very touristy...there are souvenir stalls & stands selling everything you can imagine...in rows along the streets.  The place is absolutely overrun by GERMANS...to the extent that we are greeted in German everywhere we go...& lots of the signs are in Croatian & German.

More later as this machine is beginning to play up & I¨m going to get a bit tense if this doesnt publish.  Love to all

Its the next morning & obviously this didnt publish...thank god I saved this!!