Dobar Dan from Dubrovnik

We have had a few friends visiting over the last two weeks hence the delay in the blog.

We stayed on Mljiet Island at Polace (po-la-che) for a few days catching up on school and taking it easy.  There was not a lot there but the scenery is spectacular and it's a very tranquil place especially in the early mornings and evenings when it just flattens off.  We did a trip across to the other side of the island where there was an old monastery sitting on a small island in the middle of a lake.  Very picturesque.

Scott's mother Karen was arriving on the Sunday so on Saturday we sailed back to Cavtat.  The wind was just about on the nose but Scott was determined to sail back and so we tacked back and forth for the whole day eventually arriving in Cavtat in the evening.  That evening there was a spectacular lightning display in the sky but it seemed pretty far away.  At around 3 o’clock in the morning the storm had centered right over us.  We had lightning, rain, hail and winds gusting around the 40kt mark.  Boats were going every which way.  We dragged a bit but there was plenty of room around us.

Nic enjoying Croatia

Next day we moved into Cavtat and moored stern to the quayside, squeezed between two huge motor yachts.  I think we were the smallest boat on the quayside.  It's interesting being stern to - there are lost of people strolling along the quayside so there are always spectators.  It's very convenient but anchoring is preferable as it's generally quieter and you can swim off the boat.  Plus its free most of the time.

Once we had Karen onboard, we went back to anchor and spent a couple of days catching up before moving up to Dubronik to catch up with some friends, Susan and Denise, who were over from Scotland staying in Dubrovnik for five days.  We put the boat in the marina so as we could visit the old city.  Karen did really well on the boat.  She is 84 this year and as such our oldest passenger to date but got around the boat with minimal trouble and the boat is not exactly octegenarian friendly.

Karen onboard

Dubronik is an amazing place.  We had sailed past it a couple of times by now and it did not look that interesting compared to some of the places we had seen like Bonafacio.  Once inside the city walls though you really get a different perspective on the town.  The whole place is like a movie set.  The red roofed buildings, all three or four storeys high are all made of solid looking stone. They have a plethora of interesting ornamental features on the walls or around the windows and doors and if that was not enough there are are ancient churches or civic buildings dotted about the town with spectacular carvings.  Running between the buildings are narrow streets made of travertine which shines in the sunlight.  To top it all off there is an encircling wall with watch towers which guards the town.  The only drawback is the amount of tourists at this time of year.  It was very crowded.  We spent the afternoon with Susan and Denise wandering around the town and managed a cable car ride in the evening allowed by dinner in the old city.

Beautiful Dubrovnik from the hillside

The following day we took Susan and Denise out for a day sail (or motor) on Dulcinea.  We ended up anchored off the small island of Lokrum just off Dubrovnik where we had an open table after Susan and Calley had completed an ice bucket challenge.  It was a great day and we ended up off Cavtat again in the evening.  

The open table with Denise and Susan

The more time we spend in Croatia the more we like it.  The people are really friendly, generally its not too expensive and there is enough variety in the coastline to make for interesting trips.  Still cannot get a handle on the weather though.

We said goodbye to Susan and Denise on the Friday night and Karen on the Sunday morning.  It was great to catch up with everyone and Calley was especially grateful for the extra company.  No sooner had Karen left than Keith and Susan, some friends of ours from Scotland joined us onboard for a week.  Keith and Scott went to Strathclyde University about ?? years ago and they have stayed in contact since.

It was Nic's birthday on the Monday so we had a bit of a present opening in the morning when everyone got up.  The weather had begin to turn.  At one point Nic got a suprise though when she went on deck to find that we had dragged across the bay in the rising wind and were only about 20m from a super yacht.  Very calmly she said, “Umm...Scott, I think you should see this.”  Then it  was all hands on deck to get us underway and away from the bay.  I think the near miss freaked out our guests a bit.

The weather forecast was for a strong southerly which was perfect for our plan to head North to the island of Korcula.  The wind got a bit higher than expected but since it was from the south we kept going.  Keith helmed initially but the motion and jet lag got the better of him and Susan took over and did a great job.  We had winds gusting to just under 40kts, seas around 2 to 3m and pretty heavy rain.  Susan got soaked but said she enjoyed it.  We took refuge that night at Polace as higher winds were forecast.

Susan helming (37kts wind and rain)

Keith on the helm - ready for anything at 9kts

The next day we pushed on to Korcula and had a great couple of hours sailing on a reach at 8 to 9 kts.  By this time Keith was fully recovered and got the hang of the helm although he now had to try and shake a “fair weather sailor tag”.  We anchored in a bay near the town.  Korcula is kind of like a mini Dubrovnik.  Lots of narrow streets and beautiful old stonework. Nowhere near as spectacular but interesting to walk around and visit.  Between it and the nearby islands we managed to spend a few days here relaxing and enjoying ourselves.  The big event was that we finally managed to get Sam a haircut.

Dulcinea moored outside a restaurant for lunch

From Korcula we headed south again for Dubrovnik and after a stop off on the island of Mljet we pulled into the marina just near the town.  Had another wonderful day in the old city and dinner courtesy of Keith and Susan.  Calley managed to scam a Croatia football shirt from them which she will not now take off.

It was really fun to catch up with Keith and Susan.  We all had a great time together and the week seemed to fly by.  They left us this morning.  We head south tomorrow to check out of Croatia and then set sail to Montenegro.