EXIT 2025 is bearing down upon us, and it feels like yesterday when we attended our first show 2+ years ago. Where has the time gone?
How has your summer been so far? Ours has been hot, hot and hotter, and it is just July š When you last joined this blog, we had recently travelled to Bosnia and Montenegro and enjoyed a pleasant time with Melody. Our plans were to stay at home until August when we travel to Scotland, but life and opportunity has a way of intervening in most unexpected ways.
One of the many joys of living in Serbia is our proximity to the rest of Europe, and specifically the Croatian coast. We were trapped, the mercury rising, everyone hiding from the heat, and desperate for some relief. Next thing you know, I am calling several Croatian Cruise operators inquiring about last minute deals. It is amazing the discounts to be had if you can travel with 48 hours’ notice and flexible regarding cabins. Thus! A 7-day Croatian cruise voyage began.
Romantic Star
We booked passage with Sail Croatia on the Romantic Star in a below-deck cabin. Wait Joel, you stayed below decks; wasn’t it dark and cramped? Actually, it was dark, by choice, blessedly cool, and no it was not cramped. Croatian Cruises are a bit different than typical cruise lines, in that you stay ashore overnight instead of departing by 17:00. By remaining overnight, guests enjoy more of the local nightlife, try regional cuisine, and are there is no rush to return. Personally, I like this approach as it ensures the local economy benefits from the cruise tourism. A typical day starts with a sail-away at 06:00, Breakfast, followed by a swim-stop, then lunch and finally docking in port. We debarked and ended in Dubrovnik, and visited seven small cities; each similar and different. Sail Croatia operates ships that host a maximum of 36 guests, so you are never crowded, and most importantly able to dock right in the cities versus having to use the cruise ports (except Dubrovnik where you have to taxi in – boo Dubrovnik).
Back to why we selected a below deck cabin. On mega cruise ships a window or balcony is essential if you want to avoid the crowds. Smaller, coastal ships are intimate (35 guests or less) and when you dock, ships from the same company stack-up, so your window / balcony is only 3 meters from the next ship. Talk about a lack of privacy! When underway everyone is on the upper decks enjoying the views and when in port you immediately close the cabin blinds. Also, the ship stacking means you walk through multiple ships to “go ashore.” Therefore, if you are considering a small-ship cruise, save the money as you will hardly use your balcony / window.
Scenery
Croatia’s coastline and sea-side cities are ridiculously beautiful. Our favorite by far is KorÄula due to its breezy nature and its quaint village. Sure Split and Dubrovnik are great, and if you are a “Game of Thrones” fan, you can’t beat Dubrovnik but honestly, way too many tourists talking too loudly; yes, we Americans and Australians are guilty.
Adriatic Sea is Gorgeous
Imagine a pristine body of water with azure blues, light blues and even periwinkle colors, and you still are not doing justice to the Adriatic. Every swim stop offered a new rainbow of hues and colors to enjoy. The water is very salty and clear. You can easily see 10 meters or more, and best of all, the temperature was perfect for swimming and floating at 24C or 75F. This is a mashup of the various swim stops in between ports.
Shipmates
Small ship cruising is a blessing, and a curse depending on the people you are sailing with and their dispositions. We were very fortunate and enjoyed the fine company of people from Australia, the UK, India, Canada and the United States. By and large, everyone got along well, except this one time when the topic of Donald Trump came up, and we all quickly agreed to avoid political discussions thereafter. Port stops became Pub Crawls and we have never spent so much time with new friends than on this cruise. A lot of the success has to do with the people and also the fact that the cruise was only 50% full, so we were all able to dine at two tables and this fostered camaraderie amongst all.
Food and Ambience
We ate a ton of incredibly fresh and delicious seafood and some very tasty cured meats. Pure meat dishes were a mixed bag and way too heavy for the heat. One of the stops was at a vineyard that served a Peka (ours was meat but can also be seafood). Take a large iron pot, fill it with lamb, veal, pork, chicken and vegetables. Slow cook for hours over coals, and you have Peka. The meat is extremely tender and juicy, but I will say very heavy. It was as questionable choice for a hot evening, and one thing I didn’t like was the fat. I know, Balkans love fat, and I do as well, but not in summer heat. I am being a bit petty, but seriously, seafood Peka would have been a better choice.
Final Thoughts
Exit 2025 is almost here and sadly this might be the last EXIT festival in Serbia, due to the ongoing standoff between the students and leading party over the November train station tragedy. I really hope the two groups can achieve a compromise, as losing EXIT will both be a cultural and economic blow for the city. Will have to wait and see.
If anyone wants to see a fun summer movie, I can wholly recommend F1 staring Brad Pit. The dude just does not age and is one of the last great movie stars. The movie itself is about Formula 1 racing and is well shot, doesn’t preach and provides mindless thrills. If you want some mindless fun, then go see it.
We will be staying local for a while and then head to Scotland in August. Another exciting trip featuring castles and of course The Highlands.
I leave you with a picture that perfectly sums up what a vacation is all about.
