Kayaking in Croatia

Friday July 9th
We woke up a little later than planned and went out for the day around 1pm. When we got off of the bus, there were some guys in bright yellow shirts that said, “Ask Us About Kayaking”. We asked! Usually, they take big group of about 30 people kayaking, but we did a little talking and negotiating and got a group of 10 for less! I don’t know how that worked out so well! We walked down an alley and around some buildings and then saw this beautiful cove with a little umbrella stand and kayaks. Our guide was named Bruno and he was from Split. We asked him if Bruno was a common name and he said no, but we met 3 more! It was 2 people to a kayak and Shea and I were together. We started kayaking around the Old City walls and through rocks and cliffs. It was the most beautiful scene, just like a post card! We kayaked out to an island called Lokrum, and went all the way around it. It was about 5 miles of kayaking and I was definitely sore the next day! When we went by the island, we could see people hanging out, swimming, and jumping off cliffs. We went through some small passages around the edges of Lokrum and accidentally went by a nude beach that was full of old people, big mistake. Then we stopped at a little cove when we got back to Croatia and got out, walked around in a cave, and ate yummy bruschetta sandwiches! Some of the girls in the group went snorkeling but there were no fish so I just swam and sat on the rock staring at the amazing views! After that, we kayaked back to where we started, going along the coast and watching more people cliff jump and swim. What was fun about this was that we had a small group, the weather was perfect, it was relaxing, and we didn’t go back the way we came! I’m so glad that we did this and it was a dream come true. Kayaking around a Croatian island and swimming, how amazing does that sound?! It took about 4 hours (felt like forever, thankfully) and was well worth it! We got ice cream after, hoped on the bus, and went back to the ship to get ready for dinner and another night out!

There was a restaurant that everyone recommended (I forgot the name), so Shea, 2 girls from Baylor, and I went to go find it! It was on the Old City Port and the line was really long so we knew it was good. It didn’t take that long to get a table, to my surprise, and the service was great! There were tables everywhere and huge umbrellas covering the whole place, probably about the half the size of a football field. I noticed I compare everything in size to a football field. There was live music around the corner that we could hear, but couldn’t see. I ordered he seafood risotto, which everyone recommends, and it was extraordinary! It was kind of like rice that wasn’t fully cooked, chewy-ish (the way I love it) and a really yummy sauce with all kinds of sea creatures (cuddle fish, oysters, shrimp, scallops, squid). After hanging out and enjoying the views/people watching, we started to walk around and see what we were going to do tonight. As we were walking out of the restaurant, I was telling Shea how I wish we could find the people we met last night so we could all hang out again because it was so fun. As I was saying that and we were turning the corner, there was Tom and our new friends just standing there! It was the weirdest coincidence! Then, we saw these two guys from the ship who are really funny and goofy, Ben and Jerome, so that made the night even better. We all walked to an Irish Pub and were just listening to music and watching people walk by. We stayed there for about 2 hours and I talked to my mom for a while and caught up! After that, Payton and Banks (the two guys from Whitehouse) showed us the random villa that they found and rented. It was literally next door to this Irish Pub and in the middle of the Old City! It was about a 4 flight hike (steepest steps I’ve ever seen) to get to their villa. When we walked in, it was huge! It had all new furniture, a new kitchen, huge rooms, and a massive TV. All of the furniture was white with bright orange leather couches and the kitchen was all black. There were glass chandeliers hanging everywhere with really modern, colorful paintings. I don’t know how these guys found this amazing place! We all hung out there on the top patio that overlooked all of the Old City, it was beautiful and especially at night because all of the city lights were on and you could see the starts too!

After hanging out there for a while, we all decided to go to Fuego again because no Semester at Sea people would be overcrowding it since everyone was there the night before. When we went, it was less crowded, and actually more fun because there was room to walk around and see everyone (plus it was much cooler). After Fuego, we walked back to Bank’s villa and he discovered these delicious cookies at a supermarket called Petite Beurre, butter biscuits. The next day Shea and I bought some to put on the ship and eat on the way to Greece, haha. Around 5 am we went back to the ship (sounds late but we are all getting used to this! Everyone in Europe doesn’t go out until 12 so it makes sense).

Things about Dubrovnik:
You have to come here at least once :)
You have to ask where the trashcan is, it’s impossible to find one, which is surprising because the city is so clean.
Everyone wears blue and white stripped shirts, we saw ten in 5 minutes.
Not only are there cats everywhere, just like other countries, but there are kittens everywhere too!
Most everyone speaks good English and treat us well.
It is much nicer, cleaner, no homeless people, and SO easy to get around in.