Croatia Trip...Part 3

Bok!

Today was road trip day. Darko loaned us his little orange Skrado and we took off through the mountains around 10am. The roads were great and all the signage very easy to follow. As we passed through the heavily treed mountains we encountered the occasional small town of red roofed homes and several very well built and well lit tunnels. About halfway to Krk it started raining very hard. We turned off the main highway and descended down the "long and winding road" to the bridge to Krk Island.  Fortunately the rain did not last the entire time. As we approached the bridge we got our first glimpse of the Adriatic. Despite the overcast skies, the view was lovely. We continued through the middle of the island and came out upon the tightly packed coastal town of Krk. Narrow roads, hotels, lovely stucco or stone homes and condos in white or pale colors with the classic mediterranean red clay tile roofs. We continued to wind down toward the water toward our final destination: The Hotel Bor (Bor means pine tree). 

The hotel is small and modest with a very tidy tiled outdoor eating area that looks out through a stand of shade trees onto the sea. What our room lacks in amenities is more than made up for by it's proximity to the rocky sea wall. Many outcroppings have been artfully paved in areas to accommodate sunbathers. Many people were doing just that as well as swimming. There is a lovely paved path that seems to follow the entire length of the town along the water line. We enjoyed a lunch of pasta, got settled into our room and later headed toward town along the sea walkway toward town. So beautiful! It was very warm when we got to town, but cooled perfectly by dinner time.

My first impression as we entered the stand of tightly packed buildings, stone walls and streets, wrought iron gates and window screens, window boxes cascading red blooms...was Italy. Krk has that same Mediterranean flavor. One of the streets was paved with terrazzo tile, most were stone. We wandered through the courtyard of an ancient castle then on to a very old Catholic church with wonderfully aged black and cream checked stone floors and gracefully carved wooden pews. From there we wound through more of the very narrow streets, checked out a few shops, then stopped for pizza at a waterfront restaurant. A two-year old Croatian boy with a crew cut, an adorable smile, and a Grand Rapids t-shirt entertained us while we waited for our pizza. After dinner we enjoyed a leisurely walk back to our hotel. The skies were growing dark and the water was quite still. We walked on past the hotel and discovered some benches on a point that looked out to sea. The water lapped up on the rocks, reminding us of a large lake. It was so peaceful. Still overcast, there were no stars, only the light of a boat miles away from shore.

We are relaxing in our room now, Jim and Mom watching the end of a movie and me typing away while I'm still getting a wi-fi signal. Technology is wonderful when it works and when it lets us communicate a world away to loved ones and friends.  

Sending love from the Adriatc coast,

Bernadette