Croatia

For those who do not know, Shea recently decided to switch companies.  As a result, he had a few weeks of garden leave where he was still getting paid by the former company but could not start at the new company.  This left us with a bit of time on our hands (and me with an especially annoying husband to contend with).  After a few days of this, we decided we had to take advantage of this opportunity (how often do you get extra time off in the middle of summer?) and go on holiday.

After a few days of debating and talking with friends about where to go, Shea remembered an article he had read on a BA flight about a company that was trying to make is easier for tourists to rent sailboats and explore the world from the seas.  After a couple hours of research, we had a trip basically planned to sail for a week. The hardest part was where to sail: Greek Islands or Croatia? We have been getting a lot of news about the various situations in Greece (debt crisis, migrants from the sea) and decided that Croatia was the better option.

Interesting fact: our knowledge on Croatia and sailing are very limited. Thankfully, we hired a skipper who took care of us and taught us a thing or two about both! The journey through Croatia, tracked on a map can be found using the following link:

http://www.scribblemaps.com/maps/view/Croatia/2z7Esd5J2E

The numbers will correspond to various locations mentioned below and will be in blue font.

No matter where we go, Shea can always find some sort of version of a hot dog.

 After flying from London to Croatia's largest airport in Zagreb (it was actually very small), we then had to take a 5 hour bus ride to Biograd (1), where our boat awaited us.

Someone was a bit too tall to stand inside the ship.

 And off we sailed!

Shea getting used to steering "Elizabet" (that was the ship's name).

Biograd is a small sailing town. Kind of pretty, but not much to do other than be on a boat or enjoy the many beaches.

 Our first attempt out of port was unsuccessful. A huge storm blew in and we had to turn back to Biograd for the day.

The storm in the distance.

 The next day, we were finally able to sail off and explore Croatia's Archipelago.

I'm actually on a sailboat!

We got to see some beautiful sunsets from the Adriatic Sea.

 Our first stop-over was at Zlarin, a tiny port island with not much (2). There are no vehicles on this island, but Shea did notice the nude beaches on the map.  Here, I learnt how to was my hair of the back of a boat (there were no shower/bathroom facilities here) which was far easier than using the tiny bathroom on board our ship.

Zlarin. That is pretty much the whole town. 

This was my nemesis the whole week: the plank.  I hated having to walk across this thing to get on and off the ship.  I never seemed secure enough and the distance from land to the ship was always at least two steps. 

The sails are up on a happy, sunny day!

The archipelago is full of hundreds of islands covered with pine trees.  We learnt that where there is pine in Croatia, there are crickets. Tons of them all making their cricketing sounds.  Many of the islands have old stone fences around the bottom as they were used for farming many, many years ago.

View from the "kitchen" window.

 Our second day on the high seas consisted of sailing up a river, passed Sibenik to Skradin (3).

Entering the estuary with Sibenik in the distance.

We got to sail under a bridge.

As we got close to the bridge, a bungee jumper jumped. 

We also got to see some very impressive yachts along the way. 

This is the Ferrari of yachts. It's 118 feet long and only $33 million.

Finally, we arrived at Skradin, another little port town.

 Skradin has one attraction worth seeing (other than the charm the town offers).  If you hop on a ferry, it will take you to Krka National Park. Within the park are amazing waterfalls to see and swim in.

This is as close to the falls as I was willing to take my camera to.  

But we have a Go Pro which got these shots!

The water was so refreshing on a hot, sunny day.

Skradin was my absolute favourite place that we saw in Croatia. The town was beautiful and peaceful. The falls were amazing and the marina was wonderful with a live band playing in the evening.  I could have easily spent another day in this paradise.

After Skradin, we sailed to Murter (4). The sailing was a bit damp but when we arrived, the clouds parted and the sun came up.

The skies of Murter. 

Shea enjoying some sun!

The next day of sailing was a bit scary. It was our first day sailing into the wind. This means you have to have the sails just right or they flip to the other side. You also can't sail straight to where you want to go. You have to zig-zag there which can take some time. We had very heavy winds and rough seas to also contend with.

As you can see, we are not exactly sitting flat against the ocean or the land ahead. This angle was very scary as you think you will roll down from port to starboard and then into the sea. 

Thankfully, we had a fantastic, experienced skipper to keep us upright. 

I was not exactly sure of this sailing business at this point. I was ready for the boat to tip over and had my evacuation plan plotted in my head.

Shea on the other hand loved it!

This video should give you a sense of what it was like.  The sail at the front is at 90 degrees with the water when we are upright and not tilted.

Shea working hard on his holiday!

Shea also took a stab at sailing upwind and tacking the sails from port to starboard.

 Our next stop was Zut (5), The little towns were starting to look the same now...

Zut-Alors! That means "damn it" in French. 

From Zut, we went to Park Priorode Telascica (6) (a National park). This one had cliffs and a salt lake in store for us.

Yep, that's a cliff. 

Us trying to smile through the heat after walking uphill to the cliff. 

Yep, that looks like a lake. I will take your word on it that it is salty. After all, I can swim in the sea on this trip. 

Shea decided beer makes the hot day better.

This was our home in Croatia. The Elizabet. She is a Bavaria 32.

After all this sailing, it was finally the end of the week and time to return to Biograd (1).

Living on-board a ship was not a piece of candy. It was interesting, but it was not the Four Seasons.

This was our bedroom for the trip. It is basically a triangle shaped bed with a couple tiny pillows. The length of the bed is 6 feet. On each side are some cabinets to store your clothes. We also each had a tiny closet on each side of the door. We did have a skylight that we could open to see the stars.

The Kitchen and the door into the Skipper's room. Under that circular piece of counter is the hatch to the fridge. Beside it is where the stove is.  The circular piece of counter covers the sink when you are sailing. 

This is the dining/living area. The kitchen is off to the bottom left. Through the door was our bedroom.  On the bottom right is the control area. 

The control area where all the electrics, maps, mp3 player are found. The bathroom is just behind it.

Picture taken from our bedroom. Bathroom door is on the left. You have to go up those stairs and out the companionway to get on deck. 

Shea and I both fell in love with sailing and are planning to do this again in the future. Our goal now is to become certified skippers so we would be qualified to command a sailboat.  We are thrilled that we will be able to explore the world this way as it opens so many new places to visit while challenging us to learn new skills and work together so one of us is not thrown overboard.