I received flowers in Bari. It was La Fete de la femme. I don´t know what that is in Italian, as it was explained to me in French. Apparently, all women get flowers. I received several approving nods from people on the street and the cabbie upon display of the flowers...
So I made it to the ferry last night. It was all I had hoped and dreamed of. When I got on the main deck, one of the crew told me that I could go into the reclining chairs, or up one floor. I looked around, and went to the top floor. Behold, a couch was mine to claim. So I was gently rocked to sleep while sleeping on a couch. The seas were a bit rough around Bari, but calmed down sometime after I drifted off to sleep.
So Croatia is cold. And a bit windy. But beautiful. And wierd keyboards too. There is a castle here. I will go to the symphony tonight. I recommend the place.
I should mention that dogs seem to enjoy a special status in this part of the world. It was not uncommon to find them on the metro in Rome, and to see ¨canine parking˝ spots in front of places. In the current internet cafe, there is a floppy pup with a lead attached to the ownerś chair.
And lastly, I should mention that I picked up The Hitchhiker¨s Guide to the Galaxy. I have read it before, but it seemed like an appropriate choice for the trip...
I have finished The Communist Manifesto and have no idea how the document changed the world. A bit boring, long winded, and with that slimy propaganda feel.
I also read Common Sense by Thomas Paine. The text was instrumental in uniting the colonists against the British, and summarizing the need for war. It was fascinating to read, as it was evident how much this document has shaped our country. His take on government was that it should provide freedom of religion, and protect us from those that do us wrong. Other than that, it should leave us free to be. That attitude is more typical of an Amerian, versus a European, who usually expects government to provide health care, pensions, etc.
There is a lot of meandering in this post, but this is what you get...
10 comments:
AAAhhh yes...Douglas Adams...you have inspired me to reread "Hitchikers..." again!
Cold and crappy weather eh... ask someone about the bora.. they say it gets so bad you lose your mind...
Anyway, was the boat crowded?
I like the fete de la femme thing, that's nice.
/pbz
Boat was very much not crowded. My latest conundrum: Do I stay an extra day in Dubrovnik, and take the ferry to Split on Sunday, or do I just take a bus on Saturday?
The Dubrovnik to Split section is supposed to be the best stretch of coastline to see. But it takes twice as long as the bus, and I have an extra day in Dubrovnik.
At least I have another night to think about it....
My symphony was in the old fort. Very cool to hear music from the time that the fort was in use while sitting in the fort.
Did I mention that there's a cold front headed my way on Monday??!!
From highs of 50° to highs of 30°. Don't worry, it doesn't at all feel like 50°.
i say, if the ferry doesn't go close to the coast, and it's a nice stretch of coast, it would be comparable to taking time and driving up Highway 1 from San Luis Obispo up to Monterrey with all the cool places such as the famous Pismo Beach, San Simeon, and of course, all up and down where elephant seals have their annual orgy, to taking a boat from the same locations and not seeing anything at all ...
how many times can ya say yer gonna go back to Croatia and run the coastline vs. someplace where returning is easier like Eire and the highlands? unless there's more schtuff in Dubrovnik you wanna experience, or you have to do laundry and air dry, or yer butt's too sore from sitting, i'd go w/ the coach ride. it'd be a great opportunity to talk to locals who make the trip, or fellow suckers who heard that the coast was worth the 2x length in time for a coach (; hehe
oh yeah, even if it's not all it's cracked up to be, then exaggerate when ya tell the stories (: the only person who'd know is pete, just make sure he's drunk or he's not there when you do tell the story!! (;
oh yeah, even if it's not all it's cracked up to be, then exaggerate when ya tell the stories (: the only person who'd know is pete, just make sure he's drunk or he's not there when you do tell the story!! (;
I don't know much about the Dubrovnik-Split trip, I have not been that far south on the Croatian coast. I'm a little surprised by your comment that the bus trip is faster. I'd imagine there is a lot less nonsense involved with the boat trip: hop on, hop off. The bus trip might have stops along the way, traffic jams, etc. However, the boat trip might not be scenic at all. You might be too far offshore, or, you might hit fog.
On the whole I think the bus system tends to be occupied by the dregs of society while the boat trip would be a little more peaceful and relaxing. But, if you've done the cross-adriatic, and you'll be doing a coastal ferry off Zadar, maybe you should take a bus just for the sake of having taken a bus.
Then again I'm sure you'll experience the bus system enroute from Zadar/Zagreb/Rijeka up to Slovenia.
If it were me I'd definitely do the boat. But, that's just me.
If more time in Dubrovnik vs. Split figures into it, I might choose to have more time in Dubrovnik instead of Split. You don't hear about people really flocking to Split. I wasn't sure if I understood that more time in one city or the other might be a pertinent factor.
/pbz
PS, thanks for the Athensgram. Here's a Greek joke.
A Greek and Italian were sitting in a Starbucks one day discussing who had the superior culture. Over triple lattes the Greek guy says, "Well, we have the Parthenon."
Arching his eyebrows, the Italian replies, "We have the Coliseum."
The Greek retorts, "We Greeks gave birth to advanced mathematics."
The Italian, nodding agreement, says, "But we built the Roman Empire."
And so on and so on until the Greek comes up with what he thinks will end the discussion. With a flourish of finality he says, "We invented sex!"
The Italian replies, "That is true, but we Italians are the ones who introduced it to women!"
OK. So I took the boat. It was really nice. It came down to the fact that I would be able to get up and wander around, take a nap, or use the bathrooms at will.
I'd say that it was worth it. I was warm for the entire trip. Not a bad deal...
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