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We stayed at Mali Lošinj today. Apparently one of our neighbours had sailed from Pula during the storm and the waves had been up over the decks – I’m glad we hadn’t been out in that. As we were going to be stuck here all day our tour director had arranged for us to visit the local museum dedicated to the Croatian Apoxyomenos. This is a bronze statue from the 1 st  or 2 nd century BC which depicts a Grecian athlete scraping sweat and dust from his body with the small curved i

We left Zadar very early this morning – there was a strong storm moving in and the Captain wanted to try to get to Pula ahead of the storm. The sea was very bouncy – it didn’t really agree with me. As I was feeling overheated, although my skin felt cool, I laid down on the bench seating at the back of the yacht and dozed. After a while I was feeling better but when I went inside I found that all the chairs had been knocked akimbo by the bouncy conditions. The Captain decided

Moored at Šibenik We overnighted in Šibenik and this morning travelled to Krka National Park.  This park runs along the 73 km Krka River from the mountains of the Croatian interior to the Adriatic Sea near Šibenik. The park includes the canyons, travertine barriers, lakes and 17 waterfalls of the Krka River. The coach arrived at the Krka National Park and had to check that it was allowed to proceed to our destination. This is because the road down is only wide enough for one

We left Split this morning and headed further North along the coast to Šibenik. Šibenik is one of the oldest Croatian self-governing cities and, unlike the Greek-founded Dubrovnik and Split, was founded by Croats. In the 11 th  and 12 th centuries Šibenik changed hands frequently between Venice, Byzantium and Hungary. This culminated in a three-year war where Venice reigned supreme and ruled here until the fall of the Republic of Venice in 1797 which brought Šibenik under th

It was wet this morning. We had breakfast whilst watching the rain hammer down before we congregated in the restaurant/indoor lounge to wait for the coach to arrive. When the coach arrived it was a hurried scurry over to it – just like being back in Vietnam! The coach took us up the coast road to Omiš.  Omis is a town at the mouth of the river Cetina, dating as far back as 2,000 years. A big part of Omis’s history involves pirates! Argh!! In the 12 th  and 13 th  centuries, t

I had a lie in this morning – until 7am! Then headed up for breakfast as we waved farewell to Ploce’s unloaders ☹. Views when Sailing We travelled this morning to the island of Brač, the largest island in Central Dalmatia. This island is known for its lovely stone beaches and is covered with forests of cypress trees. Brač was first populated by the Croatian people in the 7 th  century, with the island becoming part of the Croatian Kingdom of King Tomislav in the 10 th  centur

Leaving Korčula I’m feeling better today but still not 100%. We couldn’t go to Opuzen as, due to the rain yesterday morning, the boat can’t fit under a bridge! What a difference to the European Gems cruise where we couldn’t get the boat from Amsterdam due to low water levels! However all was not lost, we went to Polce instead. As we approached Polce what did I see but the lovely view of unloaders, conveyors and stackers! And they were working! The ones at Port Talbot have sto

We left Sipan this morning. There had been a storm last night with sheet lightening. Neither Mum nor I had seen or heard a thing! However, all the seating on the lounge deck had been blown to one side and a plant pot had fallen over, going by the wee pile of stones and soil on the deck. We left Sipan and travelled to a small bay on a peninsula of the mainland for a swim. I noticed last night that I had caught the sun on my back and today had a headache – probably from overdoi

Today was the day when we finally sailed from Dubrovnik! However, before we continued on our journey North we had a treat - sailing South to view the old town from the sea. A great photo opportunity whilst enjoying champagne and chocolates. Dubrovnik Old Town From Sea Then we sailed North along the coast to the Elaphiti Islands. It was a very relaxing journey, Mum and I spent most of the day on the lounge deck enjoying the view and either reading or writing our holiday diarie

Today we had to wake up early for breakfast (again) as the coach to Kotor was leaving at 8:00am. It’s a long journey – 3hrs there and 3hrs back. Mum is grumbling about big bully ships – I’d better keep an eye on her when we get to Kotor! View over Dubrovnik Old Town The coach trip to Kotor was long, but we had Ivana with us to keep us entertained! On the way we took the coastal road which had some lovely views, and some not-so-lovely drops on the sea side! We passed Cavtat wi

Well, last night went! We got back to our cabin around quarter past nine and I think I was asleep by half past! Thankfully the email from the tour director, Renan, came as we arrived in the cabin so we knew what time breakfast was. I didn’t wake until just before the alarm was due to wake us, which was at 6am. No lie-ins allowed on this holiday! Breakfast was a buffet style continental breakfast (well, what we British call continental) with lots of different fresh fruit, smal

It was up early today, or rather up late since neither Mum nor I went to bed last night. We were being picked up to be driven to Gatwick at 1:10am – who on earth invented that ugly hour!!  The journey to Gatwick passed with Mum and I cat-napping in the back of the car which was one of those fancy Teslas. Mum was really intrigued by the sat nav (on a large screen) especially since it showed the traffic we passed and the traffic that passed us. We arrived in Gatwick around half

Today we leave Cambodia. Our flight wasn’t until this afternoon so, in the morning, I had a last swim in the pool. After lunch we were...

Today was our last full day in Cambodia and we were up early, really early, 4:30am early. The reason for this was to go and see the...

We left the ship this morning for the last time and got onto coaches to travel to Siem Reap. On the way we stopped at a service station....

It made us laugh to see the fire extinguishers on the ship – labelled “Dragon Powder”. This morning we started with a walking tour of...

This morning we visited the small town of Oknatay. This village is referred to as the Silk Village. When we disembarked we boarded...

This morning was an early start for our tour to Koh Chen and Oudong. We took a bus to Koh Chen and then transferred onto tuktuks to ride...

This morning, after breakfast, we had a passport check by the Cambodian Border Control. I think this was just to check that we matched...

Today was an early start for our tour to Tan Chau. This town is famous for its silk weaving. Once we reached the shore via tender boat,...