I'm feeling more than a bit guilty for not writing this up for a month, but my only excuse is that things were pretty hectic during that time (nothing to do with being lazy then.)
That was the end of the rat...thank goodness! We were worried that there may be have been more than one on board, but after a few rodent free days, it was clear that he was a lone operator, and we began to relax again. So far, the only evidence of his presence is the chewed mosquito screen - and as we heard about a yacht which ended up with seven thousand euros worth of damage after a rat got on board, we feel we got off quite lightly.
With Frank back after his trip to Jersey, we had just a couple of nights on our own before my Goddaughter, Sarah, was due to arrive. She was eager for a few days of sunshine, so we were aghast when we checked the forecast to discover that storms were scheduled to arrive soon after she did! And sure enough, after one beautiful day, during which we picked her up from Cavtat, motored down to Porto Montenegro and lazed around the pool for the afternoon, the clouds gathered, the heavens opened, the thunder roared and the lightning dazzled! The storm went on for 36 hours and was spectacular, with the wind rising from nowhere, battering the marina, and then falling away again. Once it had passed through, we hired a car and drove to Kotor, and then up into the mountains above the Boka Kotorska. The views were sensational, and the landscape away from the coast was amazing, especially the huge plateau at the top of the mountain. On the way back to Porto Montenegro, we got our first view of Sveti Stefan, the landmark island which originally housed a monastery and now a hotel, used in all the advertising blurb for this region.
By morning, conditions had improved and we were able to fill the tanks and retrace our footsteps up to Croatia. Having hoped to have a night at anchor off one of the islands, we were disappointed when the wind (which wasn't particularly strong) was all over the place, and so we opted to go into the creek at Zaton which had provided us with good shelter in the past. Sarah finally got some proper sunbathing in, but by evening the wind was rising a bit, and our anticipated meal at a restaurant had to be cancelled as we didn't fancy the dinghy trip or leaving Zaffina when she was getting blown around.
We ended up having a pretty appalling night! Huge gusts of wind kept pushing us around, seemingly coming from any direction, and the noise of the waves on the hull, combined with the anchor alarm which kept going off, prevented any of us from getting a good night's sleep. In fact, it was the worst night we can ever remember at anchor...and Sarah's first!! Not a great experience for her.
The next day we all flew home, as Frank and I were coming back to Jersey for Chris and Jenna's wedding. (What a fabulous occasion!) As Ken and Hilary were due to join us whilst we were still away, we left the keys for them and told them to make themselves at home till we got back! It was strange to return to Zaffina with guests already on board! As soon as we'd unpacked, we dropped the lines and headed out to sea, taking them to Sipan for our first night together, and introducing them to Kod Marka, the lovely restaurant which we have christened "fish or meat" due to the lack of menus. It was up to its usual standard, although I think the waiter, Gino, was pleased that we were a little less rowdy than last time...down to the company!
Croatia was determined to impress, and in lovely conditions we started the trek up towards Hvar, but as we went northwards, the wind came up again. With Ken at the helm, there was a sudden shriek as the bow cushions detached, flung themselves into the air and then into the sea! We had an impromptu and, I'm pleased to say, very successful man-overboard practice, rescuing both cushions before they got waterlogged and sunk beneath the waves.
With sea conditions deteriorating, we went into Mljet for the night and celebrated Ken's birthday with another good meal in the tiny village. Anchored in the pool nearby, Zaffina was inundated with wasps! Although they didn't seem inclined to sting, thank goodness, they were strangely attracted to the brightwork, and loads of them could be seen crawling over the rails, the wheel and elsewhere. They even landed on us, crawled around for a bit and then flew off. In the end, I made a jam jar trap which they were more interested in and kept them off us.
Our next stop was the lovely little town of Korcula, and the next episode in our eventful week - another rope around the prop! As we were directed into our mooring space, the marinero pulled up the line diagonally across the berth - and then wondered why it got tangled. Again, the marina admitted liability, and all was sorted amicably.
We finally completed our trip to Hvar the next day, returning to the lovely marina at Palmazana which was almost empty. When we went across to the town - the taxi was a high speed rib this time, rather than the slow boats on the route in the summer - we discovered that it was a local saint's days and there were massive processions around the harbour, bishops, monks, choristers and locals, singing and chanting as they headed into the cathedral. It was quite a sight to behold. In the evening, we went to a fabulous concert in a Fransiscan Monastery, where we sat beneath the stars in the cloisters and enjoyed an excellent programme of music. By contrast, when we came out and wandered back to the square, there was a live rock concert blaring out at full volume!
Ken and Hilary opted to get a ferry back to Dubrovnik so we could continue our wanderings around and north of Hvar for our last week, but when we enquired about the timetable, we discovered the last ferry had left several days earlier and the next one was due next year! The winter timetable simply didn't exist, and the only solution was for us to take them back to Korcula, where they could get a boat and bus to the airport. So, over a beautifully calm sea, we returned to Korcula town.
Hilary and I were shopping in Korcula when she suddenly realised that she had lost one of her diamond earrings. We went back to all the shops we'd visited and then back to Zaffina but there was no sign of it. The only possibility we could think of was that it had dropped into the water when she jumped down from Zaffina (we were moored side to) so the following morning, our heroic skipper armed himself with a mask and jumped into the marina. After his first foray into the deep he emerged with a battered tea spoon and we sent him straight back in again, but the second time, amazingly, he was triumphant and returned to the surface bearing the diamond earring in his hand. I'm going to send him down for treasure more often! Hilary was delighted.
We checked the forecast and realised that last week would have to be curtailed - high winds were on their way and it was time for us to start heading back towards our winter berth. Ken and Hilary departed on the 6am bus and after watching the sunrise, we dropped our lines and headed back to Mljet, where Frank nosed into an inlet we hadn't been in before. It was sensational! A tiny hamlet, with a few restaurants, a couple of hotels and a handful of houses, faced a little port, completely sheltered from just about every direction. We anchored in an adjoining bay and spent a glorious night on board, watching the sun go down over a completely flat sea. It was hard to believe that things were going to change in just a couple of days.
For our last night out of port, we returned to Jakljan, another favourite, and it seemed as if Croatia was trying to persuade us to stay, conditions were so perfect. During the afternoon, Frank backed Zaffina up to a tiny pontoon in the anchorage, I leapt ashore and he paraded our lovely Azimut in the bay in front of me, whilst I took photographs and videos for Motor Boat & Yachting Magazine. In the evening we watched the sky melt from blue to lemong to gold as the sun dropped and the night descended. We promised ourselves a swim with the sunrise, but when we got up in the morning, the day was beautiful but the sea was not - a passing boat must have emptied its black water tanks in the vicinity, and there was no way we were swimming in that! So sadly, we pulled up the anchor and returned to Dubrovnik Marina.
We had just 24 hours to clear the boat ready for our return home. In fact, it was more like 4 hours as the sun was still out when we got into port, and I spent most of the day lying out on the bow, taking in the last of the glorious weather, before rushing round, getting packed and clearing us out! By morning, the wind was starting to come up and things felt a bit cooler. We went to the office to check the time of the lift - Zaffina was being taken out of the water for the winter - to be told that the rate we'd been quoted didn't include the use of the crane! A rather large argument ensued, during which Frank threatened to take the boat down to Montenegro for the winter, whilst I blanched at the thought of making the journey again, until eventually they backed down and peace broke out. After that, everything happened remarkably quickly; we took Zaffina around to the lift out dock, manoeuvred her into position and then she was lifted. It's quite an emotional experience, seeing your home being removed from its natural environment, dangling overhead, and then put away for the winter! The hull was amazingly clean, barely a barnacle in sight!
And that was it, summer over.
Roll on 2012!
Saturday, 15 October 2011
Wednesday, 14 September 2011
Tuesday 14th September 2011
We wondered how Lily would get on with living on board. She's only 22 months old, and obviously has no experience of this lifestyle which is second nature to us, but we needn't have worried...she was great! The only place where there was room for her travel cot was in the middle of the saloon, which raised the question of whether or not she'd be happy sleeping in such a strange environment, but there wasn't any problem; if she was tired, she settled happily in there and if she wasn't, she let us know in no uncertain terms!
We decided to take things fairly gently for the week, as Jo wasn't too familiar with the boating life either. After a night in Dubrovnik, we meandered up to nearby Sipan and, after an afternoon in Jakljan, found a lovely, peaceful anchorage nearby for the night. Very conveniently, it had stone bollards for us to tie up to once we'd dropped the anchor, which ensured that we weren't bothered too much by the gentle wind which sprung up.
Our ultimate destination for their visit was Korcula, but we couldn't bypass Mljet without a stop off, and this time we went into the bay near the village where we dropped anchor and again tied up to the shore. It was a lovely position to be in and a quick hop across to one of the restaurants which line the seafront for our dinner. Last time we ate there, the place was full to capacity; this time it was almost empty, but the waiter expressed relief that it was so quiet after, he told us, three months of full houses!
Jo and Tim fell under Korcula's charm, as have all our guests, and we returned to the restaurant at which we'd had breakfast with Christian, Adam, Leonie and Brian a couple of weeks ago. It was just as good for dinner as it had been early in the morning, and Lily kept us entertained long into the evening. This time, however, we didn't follow it with a visit to the cocktail bar on top of the tower! As the weather forecast was a bit iffy, we stayed in port for a couple of night, and had one of the most overcast days we've had for a while, which included a brief shower of rain in the early morning. It was still warm, very warm and very sticky, despite the cloud, which had cleared through by late afternoon. Tim and Jo went out for a dinner a deux whilst Frank and I babysat on board Zaffina.
The next day we went back to an anchorage that has become a favourite, just across from an old monastery and by the channel leading up to Korcula town. Again, conditions were lovely as we whiled away the afternoon, and Frank and I had a fabulous dinghy trip before we left, zipping around some of the tiny islands nearby and deciding which one Christian needs to buy for his shack, his donkey and his bar! Lily got more and more confident in the water during the course of the week, and apart from swimming around in her little pink armbands, her favourite game was pushing either her Daddy or her Papa off the bathing platform and into the sea!
The trip down towards Dubrovnik was slightly bumpier than we've been used to lately, but not too bad. We put the speed up where the sea was a bit rougher and then slowed down again as we reached the shelter of the mainland coast. We had considered going into Sipan again but with the wind in the northeast, there wasn't too much shelter there so we went instead into Luka Zaton, the inlet near Dubrovnik, where we knew we would have an easy night. After an afternoon near the village, we moved deeper into the inlet to get the most protection when the breeze came up again later in the day, but we needn't have bothered; before we took the dinghy ashore for dinner, things had calmed down entirely and the whole inlet was calm for the night.
Tim, Jo and Lily left us on Thursday and, after four weeks of guests, Frank and I were looking forward to a couple of lazy days a deux. We retraced our footsteps up to Jakljan for our first night on our own, and had a lazy dinner under the stars. Frank woke me first thing in the morning (ie before 8am) and insisted that I join him for a swim whilst the water still had that calm sheen which is there before the first breath of wind flits across the sea. It was glorious, and certainly woke me up! After breakfast, we upped the anchor and took Zaffina off to explore the Stonski Canal which was lovely. We meandered up river for about half an hour, past tiny villages, wading birds and elegant villas, to salt pans and walled towns. A restaurateur was eager for us to tie up outside his establishment when we reached Stron but we declined and turned back towards the south, before striking out for Mljet.
We've frequently seen boats in a fabulous anchorage by an islet off Mljet and that was what we were aiming for as we crossed the channel between the mainland and the island. It was free when we got there, so after dropping the anchor, Frank backed Zaffina up towards a little concrete promontory and I swam ashore with the rope, making her fast to one of the bollards provided for that purpose. We were delighted with our position and had a lovely day, going across to the islet and climbing to the top where we enjoyed some sensational views and took loads of photos. In the evening, we went ashore for an extremely average dinner at a little restaurant and then returned to Zaffina for the night.
Frank woke me early in the morning. He'd been up on deck and discovered some droppings there and on the bow. Rat droppings. Horror of horrors, when we looked further, we realised that our nocturnal visitor had managed to get behind the window screens and was, without doubt, now somewhere inside our lovely Zaffina. After a search through the boat, which only showed us more droppings and some half chewed grapes, we upped anchor and returned to Dubrovnik, our romantic days at sea at an abrupt end. Frank managed to get a rat trap and after setting it with some smelly cheese, we booked into a hotel in the city, arranging with Boris, who runs a local chandlery and boat businesses, to check the trap in the morning.
He called the following morning to say no luck - more droppings but no rat. He put out more traps for us and some glue which is used locally in these situations. We booked another night in the hotel! The next day...success! Boris messaged to tell us that the rat had been caught and was now in the cage. Frank was due to go home to Jersey for a few days, but we decided that I should stay another night in the hotel just in case Roland had brought any friends with him when he'd done his trapeze act across the rope. Fortunately, this wasn't the case, and yesterday we had Zaffina thoroughly cleaned, inside and out, before I moved back on board last night. It was a bit spooky coming back alone at 10pm and hoping there wouldn't be any more nasty encounters, but the cleaners had done a fabulous job and, I'm relieved to say, there is no evidence of Mr Rat's visit remaining on board!
I have now ordered some rope shields to prevent any more unwelcome, nocturnal visitors climbing on board and we're determined never to have a repeat of such a nasty experience!
We decided to take things fairly gently for the week, as Jo wasn't too familiar with the boating life either. After a night in Dubrovnik, we meandered up to nearby Sipan and, after an afternoon in Jakljan, found a lovely, peaceful anchorage nearby for the night. Very conveniently, it had stone bollards for us to tie up to once we'd dropped the anchor, which ensured that we weren't bothered too much by the gentle wind which sprung up.
Our ultimate destination for their visit was Korcula, but we couldn't bypass Mljet without a stop off, and this time we went into the bay near the village where we dropped anchor and again tied up to the shore. It was a lovely position to be in and a quick hop across to one of the restaurants which line the seafront for our dinner. Last time we ate there, the place was full to capacity; this time it was almost empty, but the waiter expressed relief that it was so quiet after, he told us, three months of full houses!
Jo and Tim fell under Korcula's charm, as have all our guests, and we returned to the restaurant at which we'd had breakfast with Christian, Adam, Leonie and Brian a couple of weeks ago. It was just as good for dinner as it had been early in the morning, and Lily kept us entertained long into the evening. This time, however, we didn't follow it with a visit to the cocktail bar on top of the tower! As the weather forecast was a bit iffy, we stayed in port for a couple of night, and had one of the most overcast days we've had for a while, which included a brief shower of rain in the early morning. It was still warm, very warm and very sticky, despite the cloud, which had cleared through by late afternoon. Tim and Jo went out for a dinner a deux whilst Frank and I babysat on board Zaffina.
The next day we went back to an anchorage that has become a favourite, just across from an old monastery and by the channel leading up to Korcula town. Again, conditions were lovely as we whiled away the afternoon, and Frank and I had a fabulous dinghy trip before we left, zipping around some of the tiny islands nearby and deciding which one Christian needs to buy for his shack, his donkey and his bar! Lily got more and more confident in the water during the course of the week, and apart from swimming around in her little pink armbands, her favourite game was pushing either her Daddy or her Papa off the bathing platform and into the sea!
The trip down towards Dubrovnik was slightly bumpier than we've been used to lately, but not too bad. We put the speed up where the sea was a bit rougher and then slowed down again as we reached the shelter of the mainland coast. We had considered going into Sipan again but with the wind in the northeast, there wasn't too much shelter there so we went instead into Luka Zaton, the inlet near Dubrovnik, where we knew we would have an easy night. After an afternoon near the village, we moved deeper into the inlet to get the most protection when the breeze came up again later in the day, but we needn't have bothered; before we took the dinghy ashore for dinner, things had calmed down entirely and the whole inlet was calm for the night.
Tim, Jo and Lily left us on Thursday and, after four weeks of guests, Frank and I were looking forward to a couple of lazy days a deux. We retraced our footsteps up to Jakljan for our first night on our own, and had a lazy dinner under the stars. Frank woke me first thing in the morning (ie before 8am) and insisted that I join him for a swim whilst the water still had that calm sheen which is there before the first breath of wind flits across the sea. It was glorious, and certainly woke me up! After breakfast, we upped the anchor and took Zaffina off to explore the Stonski Canal which was lovely. We meandered up river for about half an hour, past tiny villages, wading birds and elegant villas, to salt pans and walled towns. A restaurateur was eager for us to tie up outside his establishment when we reached Stron but we declined and turned back towards the south, before striking out for Mljet.
We've frequently seen boats in a fabulous anchorage by an islet off Mljet and that was what we were aiming for as we crossed the channel between the mainland and the island. It was free when we got there, so after dropping the anchor, Frank backed Zaffina up towards a little concrete promontory and I swam ashore with the rope, making her fast to one of the bollards provided for that purpose. We were delighted with our position and had a lovely day, going across to the islet and climbing to the top where we enjoyed some sensational views and took loads of photos. In the evening, we went ashore for an extremely average dinner at a little restaurant and then returned to Zaffina for the night.
Frank woke me early in the morning. He'd been up on deck and discovered some droppings there and on the bow. Rat droppings. Horror of horrors, when we looked further, we realised that our nocturnal visitor had managed to get behind the window screens and was, without doubt, now somewhere inside our lovely Zaffina. After a search through the boat, which only showed us more droppings and some half chewed grapes, we upped anchor and returned to Dubrovnik, our romantic days at sea at an abrupt end. Frank managed to get a rat trap and after setting it with some smelly cheese, we booked into a hotel in the city, arranging with Boris, who runs a local chandlery and boat businesses, to check the trap in the morning.
He called the following morning to say no luck - more droppings but no rat. He put out more traps for us and some glue which is used locally in these situations. We booked another night in the hotel! The next day...success! Boris messaged to tell us that the rat had been caught and was now in the cage. Frank was due to go home to Jersey for a few days, but we decided that I should stay another night in the hotel just in case Roland had brought any friends with him when he'd done his trapeze act across the rope. Fortunately, this wasn't the case, and yesterday we had Zaffina thoroughly cleaned, inside and out, before I moved back on board last night. It was a bit spooky coming back alone at 10pm and hoping there wouldn't be any more nasty encounters, but the cleaners had done a fabulous job and, I'm relieved to say, there is no evidence of Mr Rat's visit remaining on board!
I have now ordered some rope shields to prevent any more unwelcome, nocturnal visitors climbing on board and we're determined never to have a repeat of such a nasty experience!
Thursday, 1 September 2011
Wednesday 1 September 2011
August has gone - how the heck did that happen???
As I write, we're sitting in the marina in Dubrovnik, one set of guests left yesterday (Adrian and Family) another arrives in an hour (Tim and Family) so there really hasn't been much time to get on the computer and write up what we've been up to. Apologies.
As anticipated, we went from Palmazana - I think that's the right spelling this time, but don't quote me - up to Viz, a few miles out to the west. It was one of our slightly bumpier crossings, but then we've got used to the sea being pretty calm since we've been back here, and I can't say it was bad at all. On the southwest point of Viz, we found a nice little bay to anchor in, not the prettiest but it did give good shelter which was as well because there were quiet a few whitecaps on the sea later in the day and we decided to stay there for the night, eating on board and spending the rest of the evening playing charades (with a certain amount of cheating I fear!)
Next day we pottered around the coast of Viz, getting in really close to some of the small caves which indent the rocky shore line and then, when we were a bay or two away from Viz Town, finding a submarine pen hidden from view in an inlet! Frank nosed Zaffina right in, a wierd experience, with the noise of the thrusters echoing round the chamber. After exploring it for a while we went into Viz town itself, on a blisteringly hot afternoon and immediately set out to find some cool drinks - which turned out to be a bit on the wierd side! Christian and Leonie ordered pina colada which turned out to be about half an inch of a yellowy, milky looking liquid in the bottom of a glass and nothing else! Leonie then decided to have a spritzer instead, at which point the waiter brought her a tumbler of white wine and a glass of neat lemon juice! She was not impressed.
In the afternoon, four of us went to a nearby beach where Frank decided to go swimming with his one week old telephone in his pocket. It didn't enjoy the sensation. A group of elderly Croatian ladies were sunbathing near us and suddenly all went for a dip; they swam out a certain distance and once away from the shore, all broke into song together. It was lovely. In the evening, the port was much livelier than it had seemed during the day, with crowds promenading along the seafront but bang on 11pm,everything closed and they all disappeared - much to the changrin of the kids who were hoping for some nightlife!
The next day saw us heading down to Korcula as we'd heard of the sword dancing there and hoped to catch it. It was a beautiful trip, pottering along slowly and hugging the shoreline, and we were lucky to get a berth in the port. Once there,we booked a table at our favourite restaurant, forgetting to check the time of the sword dancing...and of course the two things clashed. Sod the sword dancing, we ate well! After dinner, our guests dragged us off for a drink, choosing a tower set in the walls of the town which had a bar on the roof, and was accessed by various rather dangerous staircases and a rickety wooden ladder! Health and safety would have a field day at home, there nobody cared! We made it up - and, more importantly, down - the ladder but didn't go too mad on the cocktails for fear of falling off the top!
Had a brief shop after breakfast in town the following morning, then back to sea but not very far. We anchored off by a beautiful old monstery, where deer were grazing near the water, and spent half the day just swimming and sunbathing in perfect conditions. Early evening saw us en route down to Mljet, another of our favourite places, where we anchored in a stunning little cove, tying up to the shore and swimming in the sea after dinner, with hundreds of fish following us around.
As Brian had only 9 days with us, we had to keep on heading south, and spent the following night at anchor at Sipan, taking them to another of those restaurants that we've really enjoyed on this trip. This is the one where there are no menus, simply a choice of fish or meat. Brian and Adam had meat, but that turned out to be just the main course, as the first 3 courses were still fish, even for meatlovers! The waiter eventually had to ask us to keep our voices down a little, when our singing after dinner wasn't entirely appreciated by other tourists (why not, I have no idea!)
We dropped Brian off in Cavtat as we made the usual arrangements for checking out of Croatia, then pootled off down the coast to Montenegro. We had told the kids about the yacht club there, with its amazing swimming pool, and I think it lived up to expectations.
The temperature was extremely high, day after day, but I think it peaked when we were in Montenegro. Adam and I went shopping at 9am one morning and before we'd gone more than half a dozen paces, the sweat was pouring off us. Someone said it was knocking on 40 degrees and whether that's true or not, I don't know but it sure felt like it. We were relieved, later in the day, to get out and anchor off a nearby island where we could dive into the water to cool off, and then we all sat in the cockpit watching a small fire on a hillside turn into an enormous blaze as it spread through the dry undergrowth. Eventually a couple of small aeroplanes doused it with great dollops of water and by the time we left, things seemed to be coming under control.
We had a quick spin around the fjord so our guests could see the famous landmark islands with their little churches on them, then, after spying some more fires breaking out on another hillside, we started the trek back up to Croatia where we managed, for the first time, to secure a berth in Cavtat. It wasn't as calm as we'd anticipated, and considering we were in port, we had quite a bumpy night, but it was lovely to be there and, whilst Christian and Leonie went out for a romantic dinner a deux, we had a not so romantic dinner a trois with Adam!
Our last day with my brood was spent at anchor in the inlet near Dubrovnik before we went into port and then into town for the evening, where we had an excellent meal at a restaurant where the boys (inc Frank) all lusted after the manageress who had the longest legs (and shortest skirt) imaginable!
Last Wednesday was turn around day - Christian, Adam and Leonie left, Adrian and his family arrived, all within a couple of hours! We opted to take them in to Dubrovnik for their first night, so they could see this beautiful city, and had a meal in the restaurant overlooking the old port that we had enjoyed a couple of times before. In the morning, we set out to sea, on course for Mljet which immediately turned into a favourite place for everyone. We anchored off again, close to where we had been a couple of nights earlier, and the children spent most of the afternoon and evening in the water. Dinner was a barbeque under the stars, then more swimming before bed - an idyllic day!
We have been incredibly lucky with the sea conditions, and they stayed good as we sailed from Mljet to Lestovo, an island we hadn't visited before. It was very pretty but we decided not to stay there and sailed on to Vis, where we showed our guests the submarine pen - they were as intrigued by it as we had been and impressed that Frank could negotiate Zaffina right inside. We anchored near one of the islands opposite Hvar for the night, then next stop was Palmizana, which was, amazingly, almost empty! We couldn't believe it, and feared that perhaps there was a mighty storm due to pass through and that everyone was taking shelter elsewhere, but that wasn't the case - apparently at the end ofAugust, things drop off for a while because prices are still high so everyone hangs on until Sept and gets a better deal on their holiday! The last time we were here, we'd spotted what looked like a fabulous restaurant on the other side of the island, and made our way there for dinner. It was fab - sitting on the terrace with paper lanterns swung through the trees and swaying in the breeze; the meal was pretty fab too!
The next day, Adrian and I took the dinghy over to Hvar to have a quick spin around the supermarket, as the fridge was looking somewhat depleted! We all went over later in the day, and ended up hiking up to the castle which stands guard over the town - the views were brilliant, although the walk up there in the heat of the day was pretty tiring! After a pizza dinner in the square, we wandered around the town for a while then got a taxi back to our anchorage.
We were debating whether to go back to Korcula with our guests, but everyone wanted to return to Mljet, which had proved to be their favourite spot of the holiday, so we retraced our footsteps south, stopping again at the monastery for a swim break before anchoring close to where we'd been previously at Mljet. It was as gorgeous this time around and a good choice for the night. The children had a great time driving the dinghy round the anchorage and going further afield with Adrian or Frank driving, and we enjoyed another barbeque dinner. Nobody wanted to leave the next day, so we stayed at anchor until the afternoon, when we moved a few miles to Sipan where we again dropped the hook for a swim. As the anchor went down, I noticed something fall into the water - one of the bolts from the anchor release had sheared off and disappeared, so it was rather nerve wracking when the time came to pull the anchor back up. Fortunately it came up ok, but once in place it was clearly not serviceable any longer, so even if we had wanted to anchor again, we were not able to. We drifted back into port at Dubrovnik over a calm sea and after our guests had all had a swim in the marina pool, we went out for a quiet last night at a small restaurant nearby.
And then suddenly it was quiet again! Adrian, Michael, Dominic, Howie and Chantelle departed yesterday morning so we spent the remainder of yesterday and this morning cleaning Zaffina in readiness for Tim, Jo and Lily who arrive shortly. Last night we met up with Ed Bailhache and Kath who are touring Europe, and had dinner together in Dubrovnik - another lovely evening. And that's about it really!
As I write, we're sitting in the marina in Dubrovnik, one set of guests left yesterday (Adrian and Family) another arrives in an hour (Tim and Family) so there really hasn't been much time to get on the computer and write up what we've been up to. Apologies.
As anticipated, we went from Palmazana - I think that's the right spelling this time, but don't quote me - up to Viz, a few miles out to the west. It was one of our slightly bumpier crossings, but then we've got used to the sea being pretty calm since we've been back here, and I can't say it was bad at all. On the southwest point of Viz, we found a nice little bay to anchor in, not the prettiest but it did give good shelter which was as well because there were quiet a few whitecaps on the sea later in the day and we decided to stay there for the night, eating on board and spending the rest of the evening playing charades (with a certain amount of cheating I fear!)
Next day we pottered around the coast of Viz, getting in really close to some of the small caves which indent the rocky shore line and then, when we were a bay or two away from Viz Town, finding a submarine pen hidden from view in an inlet! Frank nosed Zaffina right in, a wierd experience, with the noise of the thrusters echoing round the chamber. After exploring it for a while we went into Viz town itself, on a blisteringly hot afternoon and immediately set out to find some cool drinks - which turned out to be a bit on the wierd side! Christian and Leonie ordered pina colada which turned out to be about half an inch of a yellowy, milky looking liquid in the bottom of a glass and nothing else! Leonie then decided to have a spritzer instead, at which point the waiter brought her a tumbler of white wine and a glass of neat lemon juice! She was not impressed.
In the afternoon, four of us went to a nearby beach where Frank decided to go swimming with his one week old telephone in his pocket. It didn't enjoy the sensation. A group of elderly Croatian ladies were sunbathing near us and suddenly all went for a dip; they swam out a certain distance and once away from the shore, all broke into song together. It was lovely. In the evening, the port was much livelier than it had seemed during the day, with crowds promenading along the seafront but bang on 11pm,everything closed and they all disappeared - much to the changrin of the kids who were hoping for some nightlife!
The next day saw us heading down to Korcula as we'd heard of the sword dancing there and hoped to catch it. It was a beautiful trip, pottering along slowly and hugging the shoreline, and we were lucky to get a berth in the port. Once there,we booked a table at our favourite restaurant, forgetting to check the time of the sword dancing...and of course the two things clashed. Sod the sword dancing, we ate well! After dinner, our guests dragged us off for a drink, choosing a tower set in the walls of the town which had a bar on the roof, and was accessed by various rather dangerous staircases and a rickety wooden ladder! Health and safety would have a field day at home, there nobody cared! We made it up - and, more importantly, down - the ladder but didn't go too mad on the cocktails for fear of falling off the top!
Had a brief shop after breakfast in town the following morning, then back to sea but not very far. We anchored off by a beautiful old monstery, where deer were grazing near the water, and spent half the day just swimming and sunbathing in perfect conditions. Early evening saw us en route down to Mljet, another of our favourite places, where we anchored in a stunning little cove, tying up to the shore and swimming in the sea after dinner, with hundreds of fish following us around.
As Brian had only 9 days with us, we had to keep on heading south, and spent the following night at anchor at Sipan, taking them to another of those restaurants that we've really enjoyed on this trip. This is the one where there are no menus, simply a choice of fish or meat. Brian and Adam had meat, but that turned out to be just the main course, as the first 3 courses were still fish, even for meatlovers! The waiter eventually had to ask us to keep our voices down a little, when our singing after dinner wasn't entirely appreciated by other tourists (why not, I have no idea!)
We dropped Brian off in Cavtat as we made the usual arrangements for checking out of Croatia, then pootled off down the coast to Montenegro. We had told the kids about the yacht club there, with its amazing swimming pool, and I think it lived up to expectations.
The temperature was extremely high, day after day, but I think it peaked when we were in Montenegro. Adam and I went shopping at 9am one morning and before we'd gone more than half a dozen paces, the sweat was pouring off us. Someone said it was knocking on 40 degrees and whether that's true or not, I don't know but it sure felt like it. We were relieved, later in the day, to get out and anchor off a nearby island where we could dive into the water to cool off, and then we all sat in the cockpit watching a small fire on a hillside turn into an enormous blaze as it spread through the dry undergrowth. Eventually a couple of small aeroplanes doused it with great dollops of water and by the time we left, things seemed to be coming under control.
We had a quick spin around the fjord so our guests could see the famous landmark islands with their little churches on them, then, after spying some more fires breaking out on another hillside, we started the trek back up to Croatia where we managed, for the first time, to secure a berth in Cavtat. It wasn't as calm as we'd anticipated, and considering we were in port, we had quite a bumpy night, but it was lovely to be there and, whilst Christian and Leonie went out for a romantic dinner a deux, we had a not so romantic dinner a trois with Adam!
Our last day with my brood was spent at anchor in the inlet near Dubrovnik before we went into port and then into town for the evening, where we had an excellent meal at a restaurant where the boys (inc Frank) all lusted after the manageress who had the longest legs (and shortest skirt) imaginable!
Last Wednesday was turn around day - Christian, Adam and Leonie left, Adrian and his family arrived, all within a couple of hours! We opted to take them in to Dubrovnik for their first night, so they could see this beautiful city, and had a meal in the restaurant overlooking the old port that we had enjoyed a couple of times before. In the morning, we set out to sea, on course for Mljet which immediately turned into a favourite place for everyone. We anchored off again, close to where we had been a couple of nights earlier, and the children spent most of the afternoon and evening in the water. Dinner was a barbeque under the stars, then more swimming before bed - an idyllic day!
We have been incredibly lucky with the sea conditions, and they stayed good as we sailed from Mljet to Lestovo, an island we hadn't visited before. It was very pretty but we decided not to stay there and sailed on to Vis, where we showed our guests the submarine pen - they were as intrigued by it as we had been and impressed that Frank could negotiate Zaffina right inside. We anchored near one of the islands opposite Hvar for the night, then next stop was Palmizana, which was, amazingly, almost empty! We couldn't believe it, and feared that perhaps there was a mighty storm due to pass through and that everyone was taking shelter elsewhere, but that wasn't the case - apparently at the end ofAugust, things drop off for a while because prices are still high so everyone hangs on until Sept and gets a better deal on their holiday! The last time we were here, we'd spotted what looked like a fabulous restaurant on the other side of the island, and made our way there for dinner. It was fab - sitting on the terrace with paper lanterns swung through the trees and swaying in the breeze; the meal was pretty fab too!
The next day, Adrian and I took the dinghy over to Hvar to have a quick spin around the supermarket, as the fridge was looking somewhat depleted! We all went over later in the day, and ended up hiking up to the castle which stands guard over the town - the views were brilliant, although the walk up there in the heat of the day was pretty tiring! After a pizza dinner in the square, we wandered around the town for a while then got a taxi back to our anchorage.
We were debating whether to go back to Korcula with our guests, but everyone wanted to return to Mljet, which had proved to be their favourite spot of the holiday, so we retraced our footsteps south, stopping again at the monastery for a swim break before anchoring close to where we'd been previously at Mljet. It was as gorgeous this time around and a good choice for the night. The children had a great time driving the dinghy round the anchorage and going further afield with Adrian or Frank driving, and we enjoyed another barbeque dinner. Nobody wanted to leave the next day, so we stayed at anchor until the afternoon, when we moved a few miles to Sipan where we again dropped the hook for a swim. As the anchor went down, I noticed something fall into the water - one of the bolts from the anchor release had sheared off and disappeared, so it was rather nerve wracking when the time came to pull the anchor back up. Fortunately it came up ok, but once in place it was clearly not serviceable any longer, so even if we had wanted to anchor again, we were not able to. We drifted back into port at Dubrovnik over a calm sea and after our guests had all had a swim in the marina pool, we went out for a quiet last night at a small restaurant nearby.
And then suddenly it was quiet again! Adrian, Michael, Dominic, Howie and Chantelle departed yesterday morning so we spent the remainder of yesterday and this morning cleaning Zaffina in readiness for Tim, Jo and Lily who arrive shortly. Last night we met up with Ed Bailhache and Kath who are touring Europe, and had dinner together in Dubrovnik - another lovely evening. And that's about it really!
Tuesday, 16 August 2011
Tuesday 16 August 2011
Croatia is everything we hoped it would be, and far, far more. We went home for a couple of weeks to enjoy a little bit of rain, wind and fog and a wedding (congrats Davina and James) and then, with great excitement and much checking of the weather forecast, hopped on a flight or two back down to Dubrovnik.
Since we’ve been back, the weather has been exactly as the forecast predicted: endless blue skies, cloudless days, warm balmy nights and just the occasional light wind rising in the afternoons. Perfect.
More guests came down to Zaffina with us, this time Christian, Adam, Leonie and Brian. On the way back from the airport, our taxi driver dropped Adam and me off at a big supermarket where we did a huge trolley dash in readiness for their time with us. Adam was highly amused by the café alongside the store which went by the appetising name of Café Scorpion! The rest of their first day with us went exploring the port and the pool and then in the evening we took them into Dubrovnik and gave them an idea of why we had raved about the city quite so much! In the early evening light, it looked even more beautiful than last time we’d seen it and quite a bit more crowded as, with all of Italy taking the month of August off and heading off on holiday, this really is the height of the season in Croatia. Fortunately we’d managed to book the restaurant we had promised to take them to, and overlooking the little fishing harbour, we dined on octopus, black rice, fresh fish and tender steak. After dinner we drank cocktails at a popular outside bar until the boys decided to drop ice cubes down the back of Frank’s trousers and we headed back to Zaffina. A good start to any holiday!
We’d promised ourselves that if we had a good sea, we’d move straight up towards Hvar the day after our arrival and sure enough, the wind was down and the sea was calm so once the port formalities were completed, we meandered back up the winding channel that connects the marina with the sea and pointed the boat to the north. Our only problem was that the plotter wasn’t plotting and navigation had to be done manually but in such perfect conditions and an easy sailing ground, it wasn’t a problem.
By the afternoon we’d reached a small island just south of Hvar where we’d anchored once before, and decided to drop anchor there again, this time slightly deeper into the inlet. A bit of a breeze had come up towards the end of our trip and was blowing across the anchorage which made life a little awkward when I swam ashore with the rope – the first time we tried to tie on, Zaffina pulled away before we were attached and the end of the rope shot back into the water and promptly coiled itself into innumerable knots. As I tried to untangle the knitting, Frank had the difficult job of trying to keep Zaffina in place until eventually we were secured by both anchor and mooring rope to the land. The boys swam ashore to check out the nearest café/bar whilst the rest of us lazed on board until the sun dropped in the sky and we broke out the barbeque for dinner. Afterwards, the six of us piled in to the dinghy and returned to the bar for liqueurs and ice creams, where we played a silly rhyming charades game until the staff, fed up with their clientele (not just us) turned all the lights off to encourage all to depart!
We woke to perfect conditions on Sunday and after demolishing a few croissants and swimming in the fish filled water around the boat, we upped anchor for the short trip to Hvar. Frank called up a marina on the nearby island of Parmezana but was told there was no room. However, once we got close, we decided to nose in and see if perhaps a space was available and thank goodness we did…berths are obviously allocated on a first come first serve basis, and with just four spaces left, we were given a perfect position near the marina entrance.
The marina here is more of a winding inlet with permanent pontoons around the edge than a proper construction but it is absolutely lovely. Crazy paved pathways lead from the boats throughout the island and the scent of pine, lavender and herbs hangs in the air. The ever present cicadas start their music when the sun comes up and serenade us throughout the day and on the other side of the island, just a ten minute walk away, there are two or three tiny, crowded beaches and some shady restaurants around a teeming anchorage. The taxi service runs from here to Hvar whenever there are at least five people ready to go, although they prefer to make you wait until they have a full boat, and can take between ten minutes and half an hour depending on which of their boats is running when you want to leave!
We opted for dinner in Hvar on Sunday night, and the town proved as beautiful as we had hoped. Our chosen restaurant had views over the main square and the marina, the food was good, the wine flowed and the music was…well, there was music! After cocktails at a noisy rooftop bar, Frank and I caught the boat back to Parmezana whilst our guests stayed behind to sample the nightlife. Their return coincided with the sunrise the following morning, as they’d decided to experience the full moon party, along with around 996 other people! (And bumped into several Jersey acquaintances whilst they were there!!)
Naturally yesterday was a somewhat quiet day – well, to start with anyhow! Frank and I left them all in their pits whilst we pottered across to have breakfast in Hvar and explore the town, another maze of tiny, winding streets dotted with tiny, cave-like shops. On our return, the four party-goers were waiting for the boat-taxi, bleary eyed and weary looking, (and one, who shall remain nameless, with a multitude of cactus thorns in his foot!) but ready to face the remains of the day! They took off for town as we prepared for an afternoon on the beach, where we spent a considerable amount of time cooling off in the deliciously refreshing water of the Adriatic.
All, especially the Famous Four who had had an eventful afternoon in town, had a quiet evening on Zaffina! I don’t think they’ll forget Hvar in a hurry, nor do I think Hvar will forget them (although not for want of trying!) Today we’re hoping to strike out for Vis, a few miles to the west of here, but we’ll be sorry to leave Parmezana as it’s such a delightful little island and such a perfect marina. We'll be back!
Since we’ve been back, the weather has been exactly as the forecast predicted: endless blue skies, cloudless days, warm balmy nights and just the occasional light wind rising in the afternoons. Perfect.
More guests came down to Zaffina with us, this time Christian, Adam, Leonie and Brian. On the way back from the airport, our taxi driver dropped Adam and me off at a big supermarket where we did a huge trolley dash in readiness for their time with us. Adam was highly amused by the café alongside the store which went by the appetising name of Café Scorpion! The rest of their first day with us went exploring the port and the pool and then in the evening we took them into Dubrovnik and gave them an idea of why we had raved about the city quite so much! In the early evening light, it looked even more beautiful than last time we’d seen it and quite a bit more crowded as, with all of Italy taking the month of August off and heading off on holiday, this really is the height of the season in Croatia. Fortunately we’d managed to book the restaurant we had promised to take them to, and overlooking the little fishing harbour, we dined on octopus, black rice, fresh fish and tender steak. After dinner we drank cocktails at a popular outside bar until the boys decided to drop ice cubes down the back of Frank’s trousers and we headed back to Zaffina. A good start to any holiday!
We’d promised ourselves that if we had a good sea, we’d move straight up towards Hvar the day after our arrival and sure enough, the wind was down and the sea was calm so once the port formalities were completed, we meandered back up the winding channel that connects the marina with the sea and pointed the boat to the north. Our only problem was that the plotter wasn’t plotting and navigation had to be done manually but in such perfect conditions and an easy sailing ground, it wasn’t a problem.
By the afternoon we’d reached a small island just south of Hvar where we’d anchored once before, and decided to drop anchor there again, this time slightly deeper into the inlet. A bit of a breeze had come up towards the end of our trip and was blowing across the anchorage which made life a little awkward when I swam ashore with the rope – the first time we tried to tie on, Zaffina pulled away before we were attached and the end of the rope shot back into the water and promptly coiled itself into innumerable knots. As I tried to untangle the knitting, Frank had the difficult job of trying to keep Zaffina in place until eventually we were secured by both anchor and mooring rope to the land. The boys swam ashore to check out the nearest café/bar whilst the rest of us lazed on board until the sun dropped in the sky and we broke out the barbeque for dinner. Afterwards, the six of us piled in to the dinghy and returned to the bar for liqueurs and ice creams, where we played a silly rhyming charades game until the staff, fed up with their clientele (not just us) turned all the lights off to encourage all to depart!
We woke to perfect conditions on Sunday and after demolishing a few croissants and swimming in the fish filled water around the boat, we upped anchor for the short trip to Hvar. Frank called up a marina on the nearby island of Parmezana but was told there was no room. However, once we got close, we decided to nose in and see if perhaps a space was available and thank goodness we did…berths are obviously allocated on a first come first serve basis, and with just four spaces left, we were given a perfect position near the marina entrance.
The marina here is more of a winding inlet with permanent pontoons around the edge than a proper construction but it is absolutely lovely. Crazy paved pathways lead from the boats throughout the island and the scent of pine, lavender and herbs hangs in the air. The ever present cicadas start their music when the sun comes up and serenade us throughout the day and on the other side of the island, just a ten minute walk away, there are two or three tiny, crowded beaches and some shady restaurants around a teeming anchorage. The taxi service runs from here to Hvar whenever there are at least five people ready to go, although they prefer to make you wait until they have a full boat, and can take between ten minutes and half an hour depending on which of their boats is running when you want to leave!
We opted for dinner in Hvar on Sunday night, and the town proved as beautiful as we had hoped. Our chosen restaurant had views over the main square and the marina, the food was good, the wine flowed and the music was…well, there was music! After cocktails at a noisy rooftop bar, Frank and I caught the boat back to Parmezana whilst our guests stayed behind to sample the nightlife. Their return coincided with the sunrise the following morning, as they’d decided to experience the full moon party, along with around 996 other people! (And bumped into several Jersey acquaintances whilst they were there!!)
Naturally yesterday was a somewhat quiet day – well, to start with anyhow! Frank and I left them all in their pits whilst we pottered across to have breakfast in Hvar and explore the town, another maze of tiny, winding streets dotted with tiny, cave-like shops. On our return, the four party-goers were waiting for the boat-taxi, bleary eyed and weary looking, (and one, who shall remain nameless, with a multitude of cactus thorns in his foot!) but ready to face the remains of the day! They took off for town as we prepared for an afternoon on the beach, where we spent a considerable amount of time cooling off in the deliciously refreshing water of the Adriatic.
All, especially the Famous Four who had had an eventful afternoon in town, had a quiet evening on Zaffina! I don’t think they’ll forget Hvar in a hurry, nor do I think Hvar will forget them (although not for want of trying!) Today we’re hoping to strike out for Vis, a few miles to the west of here, but we’ll be sorry to leave Parmezana as it’s such a delightful little island and such a perfect marina. We'll be back!
Friday, 22 July 2011
Friday 22nd July 2011
And after a zillion loads of washing, our next guests arrived! Actually, we managed to squeeze in a couple of lovely nights at anchor whilst we were still on our own, off the island of Sipan just a stone's throw from Dubrovnik. A deep inlet close to the village of Sipan gives great shelter and was the perfect place to drop the hook and this time when we put a line to shore, it was a far more manageable swim than my previous marathon effort.
Someone had recommended a restaurant in Sipan, so we booked it for our second night here and turned up in the dinghy to find we had the best table, in the corner of the terrace right over the water - gorgeous. The meal was pretty gorgeous as well! No menu - the waiter just came and asked if we wanted meat or fish and when we opted for fish, course after course was presented to us, including tuna carpaccio, a risotto to die for, octopus meatballs and a mouthwatering bass. Before we left, we booked a table for two nights hence and spent the interim looking forward to it!
Our next guests arrived on Friday, so we pottered back to Cavtat, where we had a rather awkward arrival, to pick them up. As we needed to fill the water tank, we were allowed briefly on a berth between two superyachts, but as we reversed back into position on the anchor, we ran out of chain and had to start the whole procedure again, all this with the entire crew of both the aforementioned massive craft looking on. Not good! Of course, by the time we were onto the second manoeuvre, the wind was blowing and Zaffina was continuously being pushed towards one or other of our neighbours, much to their horror. Eventually we got into place and it was with considerable relief that we were finally tied up.
Our guests arrived whilst I was out doing a quick supermarket sweep, and as soon as we were all on board and the water tank was filled (at a cost of £50!!) we were back out to sea and heading towards Sipan again. We spent the first of another two nights there in an inlet we'd visited with our previous visitors, where there is nothing but an abandoned hotel on the shore, and the second night back near the village where together we all enjoyed the meal Frank and I had been eagerly anticipating for two days.
New batteries were due to be fitted on Zaffina, so we took ourselves into Dubrovnik Marina on Sunday night in anticipation and all was carried out quickly and successfully on Monday morning, leaving us the rest of the day for a visit to the city. Even having seen it before, we were still bowled over by the beauty and majesty of this walled citadel and we discovered another fabulous restaurant for lunch with views over a busy little port where the tourist boats arrive and depart. In the evening we dined in one of the lively squares, songbirds swooping overhead and crowds milling about throughout the meal.
It was back to Cavtat (now known as Satnav)over a bumpy sea the next day. We attempted to get back on the private mooring which had proved so useful a couple of weeks ago, but it was impossible to lift the rope required to attach Zaffina's stern and in the end we had to abandon our attempt and instead drop the anchor in a bay close to the port. It wasn't as sheltered as we had hoped and the wind was constant, so what had promised to be a relaxing day on the water turned into quite a noisy, breezy one. Our guests left early the following morning but, with no spaces available in the marina and the sea too rough to make a dash down to Montenegro, we stayed put and endured a very forgettable 18 hours of rock and roll. The wind finally abated some time during the night before last and early yesterday morning we went back into port in order to complete the tedious check out facilities (we asked if we could go ashore in the dinghy to do the paperwork but no, we had to move Zaffina and tie up briefly on the quayside, which turned into another saga when the anchor chain started to play up!)Finally we were on our way and within a couple of hours, entering the Boka Kotorska and approaching Porto Montenegro. The further we went, the more the wind came up again and we were glad that we had set off so early in the morning; it wasn't until we got into the fjord that the water flattened out until it was silky smooth for our approach into port.
And here we are, back in Montenegro and giving Zaffina a good clean inside and out. The weather is still extremely hot - we read that Croatia has had the hottest first half of July in the last 100 years! - although there's a bit of cloud around and there was a shower at some point during the night. Fuel in Montenegro is less than half the price we'd have to pay in Croatia so as soon as the forecast is good (more gusts predicted over the weekend), we'll book up to refuel and then head back north. Since we were last here just two weeks ago, amazing changes have been wrought on the quayside. About eight new shops and several bars have opened in buildings which were still under construction a fortnight ago, a rough area has been transformed into a small park complete with dozens of fully grown trees, the yacht club and swimming pool have opened and a bakery is almost ready to start baking! Now all that's needed is a few superyachts to provide the custom to keep everyone in business, but they all seem to have disappeared! Guess we'll just have to do our best!!
Someone had recommended a restaurant in Sipan, so we booked it for our second night here and turned up in the dinghy to find we had the best table, in the corner of the terrace right over the water - gorgeous. The meal was pretty gorgeous as well! No menu - the waiter just came and asked if we wanted meat or fish and when we opted for fish, course after course was presented to us, including tuna carpaccio, a risotto to die for, octopus meatballs and a mouthwatering bass. Before we left, we booked a table for two nights hence and spent the interim looking forward to it!
Our next guests arrived on Friday, so we pottered back to Cavtat, where we had a rather awkward arrival, to pick them up. As we needed to fill the water tank, we were allowed briefly on a berth between two superyachts, but as we reversed back into position on the anchor, we ran out of chain and had to start the whole procedure again, all this with the entire crew of both the aforementioned massive craft looking on. Not good! Of course, by the time we were onto the second manoeuvre, the wind was blowing and Zaffina was continuously being pushed towards one or other of our neighbours, much to their horror. Eventually we got into place and it was with considerable relief that we were finally tied up.
Our guests arrived whilst I was out doing a quick supermarket sweep, and as soon as we were all on board and the water tank was filled (at a cost of £50!!) we were back out to sea and heading towards Sipan again. We spent the first of another two nights there in an inlet we'd visited with our previous visitors, where there is nothing but an abandoned hotel on the shore, and the second night back near the village where together we all enjoyed the meal Frank and I had been eagerly anticipating for two days.
New batteries were due to be fitted on Zaffina, so we took ourselves into Dubrovnik Marina on Sunday night in anticipation and all was carried out quickly and successfully on Monday morning, leaving us the rest of the day for a visit to the city. Even having seen it before, we were still bowled over by the beauty and majesty of this walled citadel and we discovered another fabulous restaurant for lunch with views over a busy little port where the tourist boats arrive and depart. In the evening we dined in one of the lively squares, songbirds swooping overhead and crowds milling about throughout the meal.
It was back to Cavtat (now known as Satnav)over a bumpy sea the next day. We attempted to get back on the private mooring which had proved so useful a couple of weeks ago, but it was impossible to lift the rope required to attach Zaffina's stern and in the end we had to abandon our attempt and instead drop the anchor in a bay close to the port. It wasn't as sheltered as we had hoped and the wind was constant, so what had promised to be a relaxing day on the water turned into quite a noisy, breezy one. Our guests left early the following morning but, with no spaces available in the marina and the sea too rough to make a dash down to Montenegro, we stayed put and endured a very forgettable 18 hours of rock and roll. The wind finally abated some time during the night before last and early yesterday morning we went back into port in order to complete the tedious check out facilities (we asked if we could go ashore in the dinghy to do the paperwork but no, we had to move Zaffina and tie up briefly on the quayside, which turned into another saga when the anchor chain started to play up!)Finally we were on our way and within a couple of hours, entering the Boka Kotorska and approaching Porto Montenegro. The further we went, the more the wind came up again and we were glad that we had set off so early in the morning; it wasn't until we got into the fjord that the water flattened out until it was silky smooth for our approach into port.
And here we are, back in Montenegro and giving Zaffina a good clean inside and out. The weather is still extremely hot - we read that Croatia has had the hottest first half of July in the last 100 years! - although there's a bit of cloud around and there was a shower at some point during the night. Fuel in Montenegro is less than half the price we'd have to pay in Croatia so as soon as the forecast is good (more gusts predicted over the weekend), we'll book up to refuel and then head back north. Since we were last here just two weeks ago, amazing changes have been wrought on the quayside. About eight new shops and several bars have opened in buildings which were still under construction a fortnight ago, a rough area has been transformed into a small park complete with dozens of fully grown trees, the yacht club and swimming pool have opened and a bakery is almost ready to start baking! Now all that's needed is a few superyachts to provide the custom to keep everyone in business, but they all seem to have disappeared! Guess we'll just have to do our best!!
Tuesday, 12 July 2011
Tuesday 12th July
Our visitors came, and our visitors went home! The last ten days have been hectic and writing this blog is one of the tasks that somehow got ignored whilst we had a full boat. My other excuse is the fact that we've had problems getting online (it's always tricky in another country when you don't know the systems and, even if you do manage to buy a sim card, you can't ready the instructions!)
Regular visitors to Zaffina, Tim and Annabelle, arrived in Montenegro 12 days ago, along with Charles and Liz, and as anticipated, the weather immediately took a turn for the worse. It was still hot though, but the overhead expanse of blue was obscured by grey tinged clouds by the time our guests boarded, and it was a few days before things settled down again. We stayed in port for the first night, then took ourselves off to explore the fjord, spending a glorious, still, night at anchor before heading back to the ancient walled town of Kotor. Saturday night was spent at Le Galeon, a restaurant Frank and I had already visited, but this time we sat on the covered terrace as the rain belted down around us. It didn't dampen the spirits and the evening was punctuated by much laughter and culminated in the six of us abandoning our seats and dancing to the live music - something the other diners and staff clearly weren't used to!
Sunday started with a headache.
The weather was still iffy and having decided to stay in Kotor marina for another night, we wandered into the walled town to find somewhere for lunch. We hit lucky with a little restaurant which had only been open for a couple of days, where the staff were eager to please and the rooftop terrace gave us a lovely view over a square buzzing with tourists. After lunch, we continued our exploration of the town, and Charles, Liz, Frank and I somehow found ourselves on the path leading up to the castle which stands high on the cliffside overlooking the fjord. Tim and Annabelle had the good sense to abandon us and head back to Zaffina, whilst we climbed, and climbed, and climbed. By now, the sun had decided to come out again and blast heat at us, and whilst the views were amazing, the hike to the top was pretty exhausting, and the price of the bottled drinks on sale got progressively more expensive the higher we climbed! It wasn't quite the Itex Walk, but it still felt like quite an achievement when we reached the top, and quite a relief when we reached the bottom again!
Our main task on Sunday was to refuel in Porto Montenegro. Fuel here is half the price of Croatia or Italy but there is one stipulation - you have to leave the country within 24 hours of refuelling, so Monday morning saw us up and out at around 7am, and finally on our way to Croatia. As we left the fjord, the heavens opened, and instead of the glorious arrival in bright sunshine which we had anticipated, we sailed into Cavtat in the pouring rain!
Tim had been offered use of a mooring in Cavtat and once we had finished our check in formalities, we manoevred Zaffina into the space which was just a stone's throw from the picturesque waterfront. It wasn't until the middle of the afternoon that the last raindrops fell and the sun eventually came back out, but since then, the weather has just got better and better.
The four of us went for a walk around the little town before finding a restaurant on the quay for dinner, and the following morning Tim and I zipped up to the supermarket and fruit & veg market for a fridge restock in readiness for nights at anchor. Once back on board, we left harbour and headed north past Dubrovnik. We had heard about all the islands off the coast of Croatia, but hearing about them and seeing them are two different things! There are dozens and dozens of islands, all with inlets and coves to explore, and the sea conditions were perfect as we made our way to Mljet. We had also heard about the habit of pulling into a cove and being offered lazy lines by restaurateurs, and sure enough, when we got to our destination, we were immediately offered a mooring on the quayside lined with restaurants. The deal is that if you take the line, you eat at the restaurant, so it was a relief to discover that we had chosen well, and the restaurant we moored up to was probably the best in the village!
Mljet was lovely and is already earmarked as a place to return to, but we wanted to explore further with guests on board, and the next day our destination was the island of Korcula, where we anchored off in a wide bay and spent the afternoon swimming, eating and sunbathing. And maybe drinking a little wine. In the evening we went into Korcula Town which we had been told was lovely and sure enough, it lived up to expectations - another ancient, walled town, oozing with character. We ate dinner outside the walled town, in another new restaurant, and again we had a fabulous meal, after which we decided we ought to at least have a look at the town centre. As we walked across the bridge and under an arched gate in the moonlight, our feet treading on stones worn smooth by centuries of footsteps, the town bells chimed for midnight and it was a magical, memorable experience.
The morning brought us back down to earth! As we came to pull out of our mooring we had been warned to drop back properly before engaging the engines, for fear of getting one of the ropes tangled. What the marina staff had failed to tell us was that the rope was actually already caught around the prop, and must have been since we arrived as they had given us the wrong lazy lines...cue another diver and a long delay as the whole fiasco was sorted out. By the time we left Korcula (with the marina having admitted it was their fault) it was early afternoon and the day was baking hot. We had another glorious trip up to an island whose name I can't even remember, just south of Hvar. We dropped anchor in a secluded inlet and then Frank decided we should follow local practice and drop a line back to shore and attach it to a tree. No prizes for guessing who had to swim ashore, which turned out to be a much greater distance than originally anticipated, and it wasn't until three ropes were tied together that our line finally reached the chosen tree! Still, it was worth it for the fantastic anchorage, a great barbeque and the glorious evening we spent under the stars. When I went back for the rope prior to our departure the following day, I kept hold of it after untying from the tree, and thoroughly enjoyed being pulled rapidly across the water and back to Zaffina! Not quite waterskiing, but fun nevertheless!
Our next anchorage was quite a contrast, in a busy bay where all size and manner of boats were moored. Again the weather was beautiful and the water warm, and the time passed all too quickly. In the morning we passed close to Hvar Town as we moved back southwards, and immediately promised ourselves that we will make a visit later in the season as it looked lovely. However, time was running out for our guests, and we had to get back down to Dubrovnik, a four hour trip away. The sea conditions were exceptional - some of the best we've ever experienced, and Zaffina glided across water which barely had a ripple in it. Before we reached the town, we stopped at another small island and chose a bay in which to drop the hook for the afternoon. It was another great choice, and just a stone's throw from Dubrovnik but only a couple of other boats shared the anchorage so we had a peaceful afternoon in the sun. The water, by the way, is deliciously warm but still refreshing.
Early evening saw us heading up to the Dubrovnik Marina, and yesterday we decided the explore the town itself. Dubrovnik is fabulous; if you haven't been here, then put it on your list of places you must visit. The temperature was 36C in the shade, so sightseeing was pretty exhausting but worth it. We had seen plenty of pictures of the town but nothing quite prepares you for the impact it makes, and we wandered around marvelling at the beauty of it. After returning to the marina for a swim in the pool, we got a taxi back into Dubrovnik (it's about 10 mins away by car) and ate at a stunning restaurant overlooking the sea. It was a memorable last night for our guests and again, the evening air rang with laughter.
And today? Well today is quiet. Everyone has gone except for Frank and me, the boat has been cleaned externally and the fourth batch of washing is in the machine! It's very hot and I think that very shortly the pool is going to prove an irresistible attraction!
Regular visitors to Zaffina, Tim and Annabelle, arrived in Montenegro 12 days ago, along with Charles and Liz, and as anticipated, the weather immediately took a turn for the worse. It was still hot though, but the overhead expanse of blue was obscured by grey tinged clouds by the time our guests boarded, and it was a few days before things settled down again. We stayed in port for the first night, then took ourselves off to explore the fjord, spending a glorious, still, night at anchor before heading back to the ancient walled town of Kotor. Saturday night was spent at Le Galeon, a restaurant Frank and I had already visited, but this time we sat on the covered terrace as the rain belted down around us. It didn't dampen the spirits and the evening was punctuated by much laughter and culminated in the six of us abandoning our seats and dancing to the live music - something the other diners and staff clearly weren't used to!
Sunday started with a headache.
The weather was still iffy and having decided to stay in Kotor marina for another night, we wandered into the walled town to find somewhere for lunch. We hit lucky with a little restaurant which had only been open for a couple of days, where the staff were eager to please and the rooftop terrace gave us a lovely view over a square buzzing with tourists. After lunch, we continued our exploration of the town, and Charles, Liz, Frank and I somehow found ourselves on the path leading up to the castle which stands high on the cliffside overlooking the fjord. Tim and Annabelle had the good sense to abandon us and head back to Zaffina, whilst we climbed, and climbed, and climbed. By now, the sun had decided to come out again and blast heat at us, and whilst the views were amazing, the hike to the top was pretty exhausting, and the price of the bottled drinks on sale got progressively more expensive the higher we climbed! It wasn't quite the Itex Walk, but it still felt like quite an achievement when we reached the top, and quite a relief when we reached the bottom again!
Our main task on Sunday was to refuel in Porto Montenegro. Fuel here is half the price of Croatia or Italy but there is one stipulation - you have to leave the country within 24 hours of refuelling, so Monday morning saw us up and out at around 7am, and finally on our way to Croatia. As we left the fjord, the heavens opened, and instead of the glorious arrival in bright sunshine which we had anticipated, we sailed into Cavtat in the pouring rain!
Tim had been offered use of a mooring in Cavtat and once we had finished our check in formalities, we manoevred Zaffina into the space which was just a stone's throw from the picturesque waterfront. It wasn't until the middle of the afternoon that the last raindrops fell and the sun eventually came back out, but since then, the weather has just got better and better.
The four of us went for a walk around the little town before finding a restaurant on the quay for dinner, and the following morning Tim and I zipped up to the supermarket and fruit & veg market for a fridge restock in readiness for nights at anchor. Once back on board, we left harbour and headed north past Dubrovnik. We had heard about all the islands off the coast of Croatia, but hearing about them and seeing them are two different things! There are dozens and dozens of islands, all with inlets and coves to explore, and the sea conditions were perfect as we made our way to Mljet. We had also heard about the habit of pulling into a cove and being offered lazy lines by restaurateurs, and sure enough, when we got to our destination, we were immediately offered a mooring on the quayside lined with restaurants. The deal is that if you take the line, you eat at the restaurant, so it was a relief to discover that we had chosen well, and the restaurant we moored up to was probably the best in the village!
Mljet was lovely and is already earmarked as a place to return to, but we wanted to explore further with guests on board, and the next day our destination was the island of Korcula, where we anchored off in a wide bay and spent the afternoon swimming, eating and sunbathing. And maybe drinking a little wine. In the evening we went into Korcula Town which we had been told was lovely and sure enough, it lived up to expectations - another ancient, walled town, oozing with character. We ate dinner outside the walled town, in another new restaurant, and again we had a fabulous meal, after which we decided we ought to at least have a look at the town centre. As we walked across the bridge and under an arched gate in the moonlight, our feet treading on stones worn smooth by centuries of footsteps, the town bells chimed for midnight and it was a magical, memorable experience.
The morning brought us back down to earth! As we came to pull out of our mooring we had been warned to drop back properly before engaging the engines, for fear of getting one of the ropes tangled. What the marina staff had failed to tell us was that the rope was actually already caught around the prop, and must have been since we arrived as they had given us the wrong lazy lines...cue another diver and a long delay as the whole fiasco was sorted out. By the time we left Korcula (with the marina having admitted it was their fault) it was early afternoon and the day was baking hot. We had another glorious trip up to an island whose name I can't even remember, just south of Hvar. We dropped anchor in a secluded inlet and then Frank decided we should follow local practice and drop a line back to shore and attach it to a tree. No prizes for guessing who had to swim ashore, which turned out to be a much greater distance than originally anticipated, and it wasn't until three ropes were tied together that our line finally reached the chosen tree! Still, it was worth it for the fantastic anchorage, a great barbeque and the glorious evening we spent under the stars. When I went back for the rope prior to our departure the following day, I kept hold of it after untying from the tree, and thoroughly enjoyed being pulled rapidly across the water and back to Zaffina! Not quite waterskiing, but fun nevertheless!
Our next anchorage was quite a contrast, in a busy bay where all size and manner of boats were moored. Again the weather was beautiful and the water warm, and the time passed all too quickly. In the morning we passed close to Hvar Town as we moved back southwards, and immediately promised ourselves that we will make a visit later in the season as it looked lovely. However, time was running out for our guests, and we had to get back down to Dubrovnik, a four hour trip away. The sea conditions were exceptional - some of the best we've ever experienced, and Zaffina glided across water which barely had a ripple in it. Before we reached the town, we stopped at another small island and chose a bay in which to drop the hook for the afternoon. It was another great choice, and just a stone's throw from Dubrovnik but only a couple of other boats shared the anchorage so we had a peaceful afternoon in the sun. The water, by the way, is deliciously warm but still refreshing.
Early evening saw us heading up to the Dubrovnik Marina, and yesterday we decided the explore the town itself. Dubrovnik is fabulous; if you haven't been here, then put it on your list of places you must visit. The temperature was 36C in the shade, so sightseeing was pretty exhausting but worth it. We had seen plenty of pictures of the town but nothing quite prepares you for the impact it makes, and we wandered around marvelling at the beauty of it. After returning to the marina for a swim in the pool, we got a taxi back into Dubrovnik (it's about 10 mins away by car) and ate at a stunning restaurant overlooking the sea. It was a memorable last night for our guests and again, the evening air rang with laughter.
And today? Well today is quiet. Everyone has gone except for Frank and me, the boat has been cleaned externally and the fourth batch of washing is in the machine! It's very hot and I think that very shortly the pool is going to prove an irresistible attraction!
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