A Little Humor

 

A Little Humor.  Check out the photos for Croatia’s version of off-street parking; makes using the sidewalk a challenge, especially when you come upon the dumpsters on the sidewalk too!   

Copy and paste the picasaweb address in your internet browser to see the photos.

https://picasaweb.google.com/100390625521976559356/AptInPula#5589511081829952978

The apt. building was built in the 1960’s.  The electrical outlets in our apt. are few – so we rigged up a way to keep more than one kitchen appliance plugged in at a time – but can only use one at a time or the breaker switches pop!  Plugging and unplugging all the time seemed dangerous because the wall outlet is loose and the voltage here is 240, not 110 like in the US.  So far, so good; but we’re keeping our fingers crossed anyway! 

Going to the Cinema.  Sometimes the local Cinema shows movies in English with Croatian subtitles.  It’s a good way to see the Croatian language while hearing the English.  We can recognize some of the words!  Saying them is another matter!  The best part is we don’t have to sit through commercials before the movie begins and it costs less than in the US.   Shhhhh . . . don’t tell them!

 

Brijuni Islands

Thursday through Saturday, March 24-26, 2001.  We’ve had a busy few days here.  Steve was involved in a conference at the university here and all the social events that went along with it.  The dinners in the evening were really special and the trip to Brijuni Island on Saturday was very nice too.

We can now say we’ve been to Great Brijuni Island!  (Everyone keeps asking us that here.)  It’s one of the 1244 islands of Croatia.  Little Brijuni Island is only available in the summer months.  We went with a group from the conference which turned out to be a good thing – the tour of the island was in English.  Hooray!  We could understand what was being said!  

English was the common language at the conference so that was good for us too.  We met interesting people from Italy, Germany, Estonia, Iran, the UK and of course Croatia; lots of great conversations going on during the dinners and the trip to Brijuni Island.

We took a ferry to the island and when we saw it, well, let’s just say we weren’t sure we’d be getting back to the mainland – or even to the island!  The boat had way too many people on it, standing room only.  We were happy to learn the island was only 15 minutes away.  Obviously the boat made it without sinking but we had our doubts that it would.

Marshall Tito resided on Great Brijuni Island when he was the president of Yugoslavia and heads of states from all over the world visited him on this island.  The island is also famous for the Roman ruins you can still see there.   The Romans quarried the limestone and basically stripped the island of its trees.  There is also a 1600 year old olive tree that was struck by lightning and is still producing olives!

A very rich Austro-Hungarian bought the island and spent a fortune fixing it up.  By the time he bought the island it was covered in swamps (due to lack of trees and clay soil) and full of mosquitoes carrying malaria.  He drained the swamps, planted a tremendous amount of vegetation, and got a scientist to come to the island and this man (Koch) developed the use of quinine to cure malaria.  A few years later Koch received the Nobel prize in medicine for something else, I can’t remember what!  Guess it’s true – the mind is the first thing to go as you age!  The island became THE place to vacation for the aristocracy of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. 

Marshall Tito also made improvements to the island and now it’s a national park with a wildlife preserve on it.  No one lives at the island and the 2 hotels are only open in the summertime.

Go to the website listed below to see the photos of Brijuni Island. 

https://picasaweb.google.com/100390625521976559356/BrijuniIslands#

Rovinj, Croatia, March 2011

March 19, 2011.  Saturday.  Rovinj.  It was sunny in Pula and an hour later in Rovinj it was not!  Rovinj is a picturesque small coastal town north of Pula with a harbor and old, narrow, stepped streets.  Tip of the Day:  park and walk around and enjoy the atmosphere of this old and vibrant town, even in March before the tourist season actually begins.  The most notable architectural feature of this town is the church at the top of the hill with a very tall bell tower that can be seen from almost everywhere in Rovinj.  The Church of St Euphemia’s bell tower was modeled after St Mark's in Venice. The church is dedicated to St Euphemia and contains the tomb of this Christian martyr who, according to legend, mysteriously appeared offshore one dark and stormy night.  All along the steep winding streets you can see pastel colored houses clustered together with houses that have not been painted in these romantic colors.

A few of the 1,244 islands of Croatia can be seen from Rovinj.  The Brijuni Islands are nearby and are famous for the Brijuni National Park, with Mediterranean vegetation and cultural heritage from Roman and Byzantine times.  When Josip Broz Tito was President of Yugoslavia, his official residence was on Great Brijuni Island.  In earlier times, Roman emperors had their summer residences here. 

We had a wonderful seafood lunch that came with so much food, it quickly became our dinner!  Two different fish, mussels, octopus, squid, and small lobsters, all grilled using olive oil.  The small lobsters were probably not grilled but boiled in water.  We should have taken a picture of the platter when it arrived – we can’t believe we ate the whole thing!!!  And weren’t hungry again until around 9:00 PM when we each had a small PBJ sandwich. 

Just click on the following link to see my photos of Rovinj.

https://picasaweb.google.com/100390625521976559356/RovinjCroatiaMarch2011#

Next weekend we hope to take a ferry to Brijuni National Park.  We also hope it's sunny and warm by then.

Japan

"Do Your Best Japan"  A group of middle school students in Japan made posters with this simple but heartfelt statement on them.   Hearts all over the world, including mine, are aching for Japan and her people throughout the awful disasters that have hit them.

Please pray for Japan and her people.

"For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."  Isaiah 55:9

Photos of Roman Ruins in Pula, Croatia

Try this link:
https://picasaweb.google.com/100390625521976559356

Photos

Photos are now at https://picasaweb.google.com/  

Have to get offline now.  Someone else needs to get online.

Not sure once you get to picasaweb where you go -- pixbysmith or Carol Smith or Life Through American Eyes.

Good Luck!

Photos

Most of the photos that I uploaded and saved to my blog aren't appearing in the blog.  I think there are 4-5 on the blog.  Guess I'll try putting my photos into Picasa web albums again.   It looks like there's an "easy" interface between Picasa and blogspot.   That will be my project for tomorrow!

Another Road Trip -- Sort Of...

Monday, March 14, 2011.   The Croatian language has its roots in the Latin language – same roots as the English language.  So, my question is: “Why is it so difficult to learn Croatian?”  I’ve learned several phrases, which is nice – but not very helpful!  I can’t understand anything anyone says to me.  Even with learning the numbers, I still don’t understand how much anything is when it’s all verbal.  If there’s a sign, then I’m okay and can hand over the correct amount of bills and coins.  Again, nice, but there is so much more to learn…

I am rediscovering that traveling in a non-English speaking country is a very humbling experience.  And doesn’t get easier as you get older!  Although since my last trip to Europe, I’m a little more relaxed about some things.  Somehow, everything will work out for us.

 

But when we’re on the highways – that’s another story.  It’s hard to be relaxed on these roads while trying to read road signs and the maps too.  The GPS that came with our rental car doesn’t have Croatia on it and that was a big surprise to us.  We haven’t been able to download a road map of Croatia for our GPS from here.  For some reason the transaction won’t go through.  We sure wished we’d done this at home before we got here!  We just assumed the GPS that came with the rental car would have Croatia on it, which is why we didn’t update our GPS at home.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011.  Yesterday we tried to drive up the coast road to another town that has beautiful views of the sea and a wonderful old cathedral.  The road map shows the coastal road going all the way to this town – honest, it does!  But about half-way there, the road ended.  So we had to turn around and go almost all the way back to where we started.  We were pretty disgusted by all this and just came back the apt.  It was a cloudy day so the views wouldn’t have been that good anyway.  But I am good at rationalizing my decisions! 

We love Skype!  We called the credit card company, they put us on a conference call with TomTom GPS.   The TomTom website would not let the transaction go through for some reason for our purchase of an Eastern Europe map.  Well, we’re not impressed with TomTom Technical Support.  They were unable to figure out how to make this transaction go through.  We are impressed with the credit card company.  They stayed on the line and spent over half an hour trying to help us.  We changed our address to the one here in Pula but that didn’t help.  Then changed it back to the US address.  Still didn’t work.  Frustration was oozing out of us!  We’d tried several different credit cards and on 3 different days.  So – this frustration has been building for a few weeks now.  We said good-bye to our credit card helper and thanked him for his efforts.

After walking off some of our frustration we returned to the internet to try again.  This time we accidentally picked a TomTom website in the UK.  Well, what did we have to lose?  We tried ordering from this site and it worked!!!  Oh, happy day!!!  Of course, our TomTom didn’t have enough room for this map and we had to delete our US maps.  There’s always a catch…but we’re just so glad we were finally able to get this map of Eastern Europe.  Now, we finally get to plan some trips.  Some will be day trips to places nearby, others will be to other countries.   Let the fun begin!

Help

Anyone know how to change the template?  I'd like one that allows me to add photos within posts instead of only at the very end of the blog.

There are a few photos at the end of this blog.  I'm waiting to add more, trying to get a different template.

Beginning to Explore

SATURDAY AND SUNDAY, MARCH 5-6, 2011.  It’s only been a week since we left home, and feels much longer to me.  No travel plans for the weekend.  We really need to catch up on several nights of lost sleep. 

The bora wind is still gone.  It’s a little windy, but nothing like the first day we were here so we are thankful for that. 

After a leisurely breakfast, we took our map of Pula and began to explore our new world.  The main objective was to find the bank we had to use per the Embassy’s instructions.  How delighted we were to so easily find the bank.  Sometimes maps can be your friend.  It’s the little things that help make our day a good day!  We were placed with someone at the bank who had excellent English and managed to open an account without any problems.  Now, let’s see where the PIN notification is sent.  It’s supposed to be sent to our Pula address, not our Oklahoma address.  Once we get the PIN, we go back to the bank to pick up the bank cards. 

On our way to the bank, we stumbled upon . . . McDonald’s!  Again, it’s the little things that make your day.  We don’t plan on going to McDonald’s very often, but it is nice to see something familiar from back home and to know it’s there.

We found several grocers, a huge farmer’s market, post office, many banks and bakeries and restaurants and coffee bars, several smaller grocers, clothing stores, perfume stores, jewelry stores, etc.  Our apt. is near the city center so we are able to walk to everything we need.  Steve can even walk to work. 

Steve managed to get several hours of work done at the apt.  So he’s feeling better about the upcoming week.

MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2011.  Spent the day “taking it easy,” and working on the computer.  Shopped for a few things for the apt. and had a delicious lunch at a nearby restaurant, Vodnjanka.  Steve had grilled squid (He’s more adventurous in his food choices than I am.)  I chose ravioli with Istrian cattle.  It turned out to be ravioli stuffed with cheese surrounded with very tender beef chunks and lots of gravy.  We both enjoyed our meal.  We also ordered a salad.  We’ve already learned that you only need to order one salad or one side dish of vegetables.  It’s plenty for 2 and it’s okay to share!

Pula is on the Istria peninsula of Croatia and this area is noted for several special foods and wines so we’re looking forward to checking it all out!

Steve worked on things for the university and I began typing this travel log.  Whew!  I’m finally caught up with my travel journal.  Now to find a place to post it on the web.  

The apt. has an internet connection but it’s not wireless so only one of us can use it at a time.  And it’s a little moody…disconnects for no reason and have to reset the modem and begin the log on procedure all over.  We’re happy we’ve figured out this peculiarity and are able to use the internet at “home.”

TUESDAY, MARCH 8, 2011.  Steve is at the university this morning and I’m figuring out the washing machine.  So many choices, and all in Croatian!  But it looks like everything is working as it should.  No dryer so just have use the clothes rack to air dry everything.  That means I can only do one load a day instead of getting it all done at once.  The washing machine takes over an hour to wash one load, and everything looks clean – so it’s all good!  Not sure how it will all work when I wash the sheets – the drying rack isn’t that big…

Television:  Yes, there is satellite TV at the apt.  And, yes, all the stations except one are not in English.  CNN International is in English so at least we’ll be able to keep up with what’s going on in the world.  Lots of German and Austrian stations along with the Croatian ones.  A few radio stations from the satellite play songs, one in English but all the talk is in a different language.  So, we have music and news to entertain us when we’re at the apt.!

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9, 2011.  Sunny and 46 degrees at 2:00 PM.  Cold wind but not as bad as the bora our first day here.  Just went to the market and got a few fruits and veggies for the next few days here at the apt.  Working on laundry again; will probably have to do a load several days in a row to keep us in clean clothes.  Each load has to be air dried.  Not looking forward to washing the sheets and towels; will have to figure out some way to “hang” the sheets to dry!  No room on the drying rack for sheets.

THURSDAY, MARCH 10, 2011.  Today is our 32^nd Anniversary.  Hooray for us!  We celebrated by going to the Kantina Bar and Restaurant for dinner.  The bar is on the street level and the restaurant has a modern atmosphere in the old cellar of the Austro-Hungarian villa from the 19^th century in the middle of the city center.  Really neat stone walls and arches with modern dining furniture with table clothes, etc. We both enjoyed our meals and the setting.

FRIDAY, MARCH 11, 2011.   I spent today at the apt. catching up on laundry and ironing – just being lazy and not going out today.

SATURDAY, MARCH 12, 2011.  Today we went exploring again around the city center.  We found another bakery (pekara) and bought a delicious looking loaf of dark bread – we’re hoping it will be lower in carbs than white bread; also went to a different neighborhood grocery story and was pleasantly surprised at the variety here too.  Took our “loot” back to the apt., grabbed the camera and off we went to the city center.  Our goal today was to find the cinema and return to the Roman Amphitheater and go inside it today.  Got lucky and found the cinema without any problems.  They do show American films along with films in other languages so we are happy about that!  Got a slice of pizza and a sandwich at a bakery, ate them in a sunny spot and then on to the Amphitheater.  

Through the eyes of a Christian American:  I have to admit it was kind of weird going into this huge, ancient structure knowing gladiators and Christians were killed here.  This Amphitheater in Pula was built when Jesus was living here on earth…just to put this into perspective.  It’s amazing that the structures built so long ago by the Romans are still standing and being used today.  This one has added a light and sound system and is used for outdoor concerts.  Sting has performed here.

At the Green Market, we bought some fresh fruit and veggies.  They sure taste very fresh here and we enjoy them a lot.  The market is open every day and really busy on Saturday.  Not sure if it’s open on Sunday.  All along the city center are coffee bars and small eateries.  Most people sit outside to drink their coffee.  It’s nice in the sun but still a little cool if you can’t find a sunny table.

We’ve been walking and gawking for several hours now.  It’s time for a coffee break at one of those sunny tables and then back to the apt.  Our feet are tired!  And Steve has some work to do.

Getting Settled...Sort Of...

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 2011.  We’ve only been in Pula for one day and have to leave to go to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia.  We love our maps now; haven’t been able to find a GPS with Croatia on it.  But we’re not looking forward to another road trip only one day after finally getting here.  Steve has an orientation (along with the other Fulbright Scholars) at the US Embassy in Zagreb that he is required to attend, along with a reception in the evening at the Ambassador’s house.  I get to stay at the hotel or find some way to entertain myself.  That won’t be hard in a big city like Zagreb!

But first, we need to get there.  Always a challenge when highway signs are in a language other than the one you know.  The conditions on the highway are getting bad and we’re wishing we had our 4-wheel drive vehicle now:  black ice, snow, bora winds – not much fun now.  Only a few other vehicles are on the road with us.  Where did everyone go?  After arriving in Zagreb, we learned the highway we were traveling on was closed!!!  But we couldn’t read the sign so we didn’t know.  Fortunately, we made it safely to Zagreb, even on a closed highway.  All those years of driving in the snow and ice in New York, Michigan, and Maryland finally paid off!

Our first stop in Zagreb was the US Embassy.  We were looking forward to picking up my lost suitcase and the 4 boxes of academic materials the State Dept. allowed Steve to ship here.  Unfortunately, I would still have no clean clothes to wear or mousse to fix my hair.  Someone at the Embassy sent my suitcase to Pula, even though they knew we were on our way to Zagreb to pick it up.  I had been a “good sport” so far about my suitcase, but this was getting ridiculous.  Well, there was absolutely nothing I could do to change things, so, time to accept things as they are and carry on and get used to wearing wrinkled clothes. 

THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2011.  Steve survived the orientation and the reception without me and I survived on the cold streets of Zagreb.  It really was too cold to go very far but I did venture out to look at the historic buildings nearby and to try to buy some lunch.    No luck with the lunch.   Every place I stopped did not accept credit cards and only took kuna (Croatian money) and all I had with me was Euros (and US dollars).  I wasn’t really hungry anyway.  The hotel had a very complete and delicious breakfast buffet and you could also add to the buffet by ordering from the menu for eggs, French toast, etc. too.  I didn’t get hungry till dinner time! 

We had dinner at Le Bistro in the Regent Hotel Esplanade.  This is the hotel the Embassy “made” us stay at and is the same hotel that people used to stay in on their journey with the Orient Express.  When the Orient Express came through Zagreb, people would get off at this hotel to be pampered for awhile before getting back on the train.  And what a luxurious hotel it is!  The room was almost the size of our apt.!  And the towels and robes and slippers and heat…oh my, I’m getting spoiled.  Back to the food – again, I’m getting spoiled.  Everything was so good and presented so artistically.  I may never want to cook again!

FRIDAY, MARCH 4, 2011.  Time to say good-bye to luxury and return to real life.  The drive back to Pula was not as eventful as the drive to Zagreb.  No closed roads and no getting lost.  Now, I ask you:  Where’s the fun in that?  Although, when we arrived once again in Pula, we did have some trouble finding our apt.  But not as much as the night we first arrived. 

Our first stop in Pula was actually the grocery store and then the University to pick up my suitcase from Steve’s office.  I can’t believe I finally have my suitcase.  Yippee!!!  Can’t wait to get back to the apt. and get unpacked and finally completely settle in.

And the bora wind is gone so it doesn’t feel so cold, especially with the sun shining.  How good it feels.

Oh no!  Steve was unpacking his boxes of academic materials as I unpacked my suitcase and discovered his dongle was missing!!!  Dongle – Look it up!!!  One of the boxes had kind of fallen apart and the dongle must have fallen out somewhere along the journey.