From Where You'd Rather Be

Croatia

The idea of a holiday which involved only me seemed baffling after living the family life for the past 3 months or so. I was excited to be able to indulge in 'me-time' but also knew that I may find such self-indulgence hard to come by as I would be meeting my friends T and B upon arrival. We had decided that we would travel to Croatia for 10 days or so to see a bit of Europe and be back on a coastline-something we missed alot when in London.

T and B left a couple of days earlier as they did not have work commitments and I flew into Split (Croatia) on my own. I had been so excited to go away but in the last couple of weeks had met a boy M and so was now wishing that I wasn't. But I knew he'd be waiting for me when i came back, i was only going away for 10 days after all and how amazing to get the chance to visit Croatia!!!!

Leaving London when the sun hadn't risen in the freezing cold had me convinced that there was no way in the world that by that afternoon i would be lying on a beach somewhere lazily sunbaking the hours away. But sure enough by the end of that day I was with T and B, quickly getting rid of my Winter outfit and in my bikini soaking in the heat- jumping off rocks along the coastline into the warm Adriatic Sea, feeling an amazing sense of freedom at being able to lead the family life but enjoy guilt-free escapes with friends from time-to-time- essentially taking a holiday from a holiday:)We spent that day in Split and then took the public ferry that afternoon to the island of Brac where T and B had found an easy-going and relaxed hostel which had more staff than backpackers as the peak season was now over. The next day we hired two scooters and spent the day exploring the island-eventually reaching Rat Beach, a breathtaking beach that forms a white sandy/pebbly peak on one side of the island. The day after that we took a public ferry back to Split where we looked around the markets before catching another ferry to Hvar-known as the party isalnd. Unfortunately for us the peak season meant that there wasn't really a party-but fortunately we were there to chill and we were very happy to wine and dine just the three of us. By this time in the holiday I had lost count of the number of gelato cones I had consumed as each scoop was worth about $AU1 and the flavours were irresistable. The bakery goods were enjoyable too, but didn't compare to those from France. Generally however the food was a disapointment. We hired a boat for one of the days and took it around the mini islands of Hvar, stopping on a deserted strip and lazing like lizards on the rocks for the rest of the afternoon. Next island was Kortula-our favourite-this island had an amazing atmosphere and we explored the sights-including the place where Marco Polo had grown up. We took two day trips to one of the 'must-see sandy beaches' but after growing up seeing the beaches of Sydney it was an understatement to say we were slightly dissapointed with what we saw. It seemed that beaches in Croatia could not be sandy. They were either rocks, small pebbles, or simply white large rock faces along the edge of the coastline. After that we travelled to Dubrovnik where I explored the city wall and watched in awe over the entire city with it's bustling crowds, stone architecture and vast view of the horizon. We spent most of our time in Dubrovnik at a bar which hangs on the edge of the city wall, next to the coastline, hanging as if mid-air with a perfect view of the entire jewelled setting of the Adriatic Sea. The heat was intense. Iced coffee had never looked so good. The weather was picture perfect and we drank, sunbaked and jumped off a cliff higher than the jump at Jump Rock at Manly, Sydney. Here we met up with one of B's work colleagues from Sydney and his friend. T then headed back to Split as that was where his flight was departing from and B and i stayed an extra night enjoying the evening atmosphere in the very European cobbled plazas soaked in the warmth of the yellow lights from the many restaurants and souvenir shops throughout the town. By this stage I was ready to be back in London, because although the weather would be missed-the many rooms of Croatian's we had rented out did not compare to the luxury lifestyle that awaited me in my London home...plus there was a romance to pursue!