It was a pretty early start to the day. We grabbed some brekky to go from a grocery store right next to our hotel and got on the road.
Leaving Zagreb, we headed northwest-ish toward Rijeka (ree-ay-kuh). The drive was incredible. A chunk of the drive reminded us both of the North Shore of Minnesota — lots of steep hills, topped with beautiful pine trees, which would occasionally be split by a road, where you could see the rocky terrain. The road we were driving literally went through mountains, and it was like an amazing treat once you’d get through because you’d come across something new. After going through the “North Shore,” we ventured into the Colorado Rockies and then California wine country, There, we pulled off and stretched our legs in Rijeka. It’s a main port city for shipping goods and getting to the many islands off the coast. It was pretty, but we were more interested in getting to Rovinj (roh-vinge).
Rovinj was gorgeous. It reminded me of Mykonos and the Cinque Terre, which kinda
makes sense, given it’s so close to Italy. The buildings were all old, but colored in pinks, whites, and golds, all topped with bright red clay rooftops. Many had brightly colored shutters – green, blue, red. All the streets are this smooth, ivory-colored cobblestone. I kept thinking how I’d probably slip and bust my ass if I was there when it rained – they were slick enough dry!
Wandering around this city was easy. We first walked out on a pier to look at the marina. On our way back, there was a little section where I could go hop into the water and get my feet wet. When I got there, I was completely amazed to see all the sea glass, which is glass from broken bottles that washes up on shore, but over time gets a dull, smooth texture. People in the States pay big money for it. I took out as much as I could fit in my hand, and it was maybe 1/100th of what was there. I’ll need to find something to do with it when I get home.
Rovinj is a small city, so after a couple hours (and lunch), we decided to head to our resort, which was on the way to our next destination. The resort is very nice, but it’s clearly a family resort. It’s definitely a bit too busy with kids for my blood, but it’s still nice. Even though it was drizzling, we headed immediately to the salt water pool. We then headed down to the beach we’d read so much about. Talk about being blown away! Anything and everything is there. There was this crazy hilarious floatation device, probably a good 100 feet long by 50 feet wide. It had a climbing wall, trampoline, slides. It was gloomy, so only a couple kids were on it, so Phil and I took a dive into the Adriatic Sea and played on that thing. Playing is subjective, we more or less waddled and toppled on it like beached whales, but oh well. We laughed a lot.
We then noticed some cabanas for rent. Fingers crossed that the weather pans out and it won’t rain, as expected. I was hoping for one beach day to relax while I was here.
Afterward, we showered and headed over to dinner at the resort since it was included. It was…interesting. If you know me, I’m not too picky and can usually find something to enjoy. I’ll put it to you this way, I enjoyed the red and green cabbage. And…that’s about it.
If the weather is crap in the morning, we’ll just head over to Trieste, Italy and then probably head back to Munich earlier than expected. Phil is officially rolling his eyes now every time I say, “I just want to get some Doner before I leave!” It’s a popular middle eastern food the Germans eat. I had it last time I was in Munich, and I need to get some in my belly before coming home!
Not gonna lie, I’m missing my bed. Oh, and my knees are slowly (but surely) feeling better. Still a bit creaky, but better.
Cecilia the TravelGurl 