The Last Few Days on Seabourn Odyssey – The End of the Cruise: The last time I arrived in Dubrovnik was on the occasion of my first ever cruise. Then, way back in 1972, the City was part of Yugoslavia. It was also well ahead of the release of films like Game of Thrones and, for […]
Zadar and More – Health and Well Being in Dalmatia, Croatia
Health and Well Being in Dalmatia, Croatia: I spend a lot of my time in London doing rather unhealthy activities. Too many meals out, too much wine, too many late nights and not enough exercise. An invitation to visit Zadar and the surrounding area of Croatia to do something OTHER than review food and wine […]
Nin – The Island of Kings #LoveCroatia
A brief visit to Nin: Standing outside the Tourist Information Office, I look across the bridge to an ancient stone gateway. The tiny island across the water is the historic old town of Nin. It’s just 500m in diameter, connected to the mainland by two old bridges. Walk across, like me, and you’ll find yourself […]
Revisiting Croatia – Zadar and the Dalmatian Coast
Sunset and More in Zadar, Croatia: Sunset in Zadar is the most beautiful in the world and is much nicer than the one in Key West, Florida.” Alfred Hitchcock, 1964. Zadar, a small city on the Dalmatian coast of Croatia is built on a peninsula, reaching out into the blue waters of the Adriatic. The […]
Split, Croatia – A Roman Emperor’s Retirement Home
A Final Port of Call in Croatia – Split: Split on the Dalmatian coast was the last place I visited on my recent trip to Croatia. One of the most enjoyable challenges for me writing about Croatia has been that throughout the seven days I felt totally immersed in culture, history and gastronomy. I could […]
Colourful Croatia – Trogir, Dalmatia
Lore, Legend and History in Trogir, Dalmatia: I’d been told that the historic island towns of Croatia were stunningly beautiful. And I was looking forward to visiting Trogir, Dalmatia, joined to mainland Croatia by two foot bridges. It’s a UNESCO heritage site and curiously has acted as a location ‘double’ for both Venice and Provence […]
Colourful Croatia – Salt and Lace in Pag, Dalmatia
White Gold – Salt and the Story of Pag, Croatia: The approach to Pag is over a seemingly nondescript looking concrete bridge (but of course a landmark, built in 1968 which has huge importance for the economy of the island); for a moment, perhaps subconsciously influenced by the young driver who’d told me it wasn’t […]
Colourful Croatia – Plitvice Lakes – Nature in Action
Plitvice Lakes – Walking Boots and Karma Lack of time to do any real research and an innate desire to reach the coast of Croatia on my recent trip were the key reasons for asking to visit the Plitvice Lakes. Having started my journey in Slavonia I needed a landmark midway between Osijek and Split. […]
Colourful Croatia – Wines of Slavonia
Slavonia #Croatia – Ancient Vines and Fabulous Wine: Visiting Croatia a few weeks ago just before they became part of the European Union, I met with both curiosity and hesitant anticipation. Hardly suprising from a Country which gained independence through a bloody home war less than twenty years ago. While many I chatted with were […]
Colourful Croatia – The Baranja
Food and Wine in the Baranja: The Baranja is an agricultural area on the far East of Croatia, bordering Serbia and Hungary. The region produces a wide range of crops including apples, cherries, walnuts and hazelnuts. And of course, where there are hills there are vineyards. The first vineyards in the Baranja were planted by […]