San Francisco (SFO) to Munich (MUC) (via Dreamliner). Tight connection (45 minutes) Munich to Zagreb (ZAG), Croatia.
We boarded a prop job to Zagreb–one of the top places in the world to celebrate a Catholic Christmas and the place a million-plus Catholics and other Christians collect to share in the beloved holiday.
ZAG was a small airport. Security, though only about 8 people in line, took over an hour. For a minute, we thought we were back on Tahoe Time. They confiscated my nighttime moisturizer (add $30 to the cost of the trip :-(. Odd–because the U.S. let me take it through security. Oh well.
We eventually boarded an Airbus A319 to Dubronik. After the pilot announced a mechanical (although he mistakenly called it a “technical”) error, we sat on the tarmac for 2 hours while the mechanics worked on something to do with the engine. Start. Stop. Start. Stop.
We were heading into 24 hours of travel so we fell in and out of sleep. After 2 hours the pilot announced in Croatian that the mechanics would not allow the plane to fly. We knew this because the plane (minus 2 Americans) moaned and started gathering their stuff. So like good little travel lemmings, we, too, moaned and gathered our belongings.
De-plane. Re-bussed. Tarmac line to the stairs leading to the plane. Back on a new plane. Up in the air. Perfect flight over green Adriatic seaboard, white Alps, finally Dubrovnik. Exhausted.
No luggage. Who needs a coat in the winter (60 degrees but windy) or even clothes for that matter? Dinner at the hotel. Washed out cloths and dried them on the towel warming rack.
To adventure!
The next morning we had an interesting breakfast, some recognizable, some not like purposely cold oatmeal in a glass with hazelnuts, and we were off with our guide who walked us through this ancient city first formed in the year 400 by the Romans.
Dubronik is an ancient city having cycled through many inhabitants. The limestone walls are spectacular. An earthquake leveled the city in 1667 and it was eventually rebuilt after that. We are staying in the Hotel Excelsior in Room 007 (James Bond room).
As I write this, I hear the Adriatic Sea crashing against the wall of our hotel, literally. Who needs Amazon Echo rain sounds when you have the rhythm of the ocean pounding at your wall?
There’s so much more, but it’s midnight and we’re off to Montenegro tomorrow. We are just loving Croatia. The culture, the people, the history. It’s a wonderful place. More to follow.