Day 1 - Sunday 9/7/14 – Dubrovnik Croatia and boarding the Sea Cloud

The Sea Cloud in full sail

We arrived in Rome at 7:45 and wandered around the terminals until we found our gate to Dubrovnik.  It was a much loser set-up than we are used to.  There were 4 gates in our area, and lines formed at will crossing each other and rather confusing.

The plane to Dubrovnik was delayed getting in which caused us some concern as we were meeting a group that landed only 5 minutes later than we were supposed to.  We finally got on buses to the plane and took off 45 minutes late.  It was only an hour and a half flight to Dubrovnik.  Our luggage made it with us which was a great relief.  One couple on the ship had their luggage lost somewhere around Amsterdam.  They are a nice couple, so that is a sad thing.  The airline is still looking for it, but the Sea Cloud staff has offered to do laundry for them every night, and they will go shopping in Hvar tomorrow.

There were only 6 people waiting on us on the van, and they had only been waiting for under 10 minutes.  We were driven to the Grand Hotel Argentina where we met up with all of the other folks on the trip.  After a half hour to clean up and relax, we all got on a super big bus to take a tour before we boarded the Sea Cloud.

The bus took us to a 300 year old olive mill in the village of Orasac.  The building was a beautiful old building, and an older member of the family showed us the workings of the mill.  The whole olives (70% black and 30% green) pits and all are put into a grinder powered by a pretty old white horse.  Yes, the horse put on a demo!!

Once the olives are a paste, they are put into large circular coconut frond bags and put into the olive press.  All of this is done in the old way and very impressive. 

After the demo, we went out back to tables and were served wine, a salad of home-grown tomatoes, arugula, and olives.  Also served were a plate of cured ham and bacon, goat cheese, and a neat pickled thing called a samphire which I will have to look up.  It was all delicious especially since we really hadn't had anything to eat all day.

Finally we took the bus down and boarded the Sea Cloud.  Our passports were taken so the staff can take care of immigration at all the other countries we enter.  Our room is really tiny with 2 twin beds, a desk, nightstand, beautiful bathroom with gold trim.  The reason our room is so small is because there is a rectangular section of the room finished just like the rest of the room.  We had to ask what it was.  We were finally told it was an escape hatch for the crew down below.  The interior supposedly has a ladder and an ax.  Not sure if we believe that.

After everyone got in their cabins, we had the mandatory safety/orientation meeting on the Lido Deck (bar, sitting area).  We got underway by engine at 5:30.  Everyone kind of did their own thing after that until dinner at 7:30.

It was a casual dress dinner in the formal dining room.  We started off with a mixed green salad with pine nuts, olives and buffalo mozzarella.  Lots of wine flowed freely throughout the meal.  Then we had poached black halibut with tagliatelle and tomato ragout.  Dessert was a raspberry parfait with crispy fluff pastry and raspberry coulis.  We were stuffed.

Day 2 - Monday 9/8/14 – Hvar Croatia

Our new Brit friends at Nonica Bakery

I slept like a log last night and didn't feel any rocking or rolling at all.  The ship goes quite smoothly.

My alarm went off at 6:30, and I crawled out, showered, and we went to breakfast at 7:15.  It was a beautiful breakfast buffet with a huge assortment of cereals (cold and hot), meat/cheese platter, gorgeous fruit.  The hot items were wonderful scrambled eggs, bacon, potato cakes, and the most awesome broiled tomato with cheese.  The tomato was my favorite thing.  The specialty this morning was a make your own omelet.  The honeydew melon was the best melon I have had in decades.

After breakfast we had a briefing on the day's activities.  Since there was to be no wind in the morning, we tendered in to Hvar in the lifeboats.  We were split into two groups and our group was led by a local female guide and Petra, another local guide.  We were given whisper headsets which we will keep for the duration of the cruise.  The guide speaks into a microphone which comes into our headset up to about 50 feet away. 

First we went to the Franciscan Monastery.  This was built in 1465 and only two monks still live there.  The big draw is a fresco of the Last Supper done in the 17th century.  Strangely we were told that no photos could be taken of it, but I found hundreds of photos (and photos of tourists taking photos) of this fresco.  There was a lovely 400 year old cyprus tree in the garden.

I wanted to see the baroque rood and stone rood screens in the church, but our guide didn't seem to be heading in that direction, so I asked Petra who was hanging around on the outskirts of our group, and she took me in.  I did get some beautiful photos of that interior.  No one else went in, so I am keeping quiet about that!

From there we walked to the main square and went into the Arsenal which did not hold ammunition but was a ship repair building.  They do have an old theater on the second floor which was built in 1612.  It is in major disrepair, but Hvar does not have the funds to finish it.

We then walked around the narrow side streets off the plaza looking at old buildings.  A cool plant that grows all over Hvar is capers.  We finished off with a walk in St Stephen's Cathedral which has 11 gorgeous altars. We weren't allowed to take photos, but it was great.

Then our official tour was over.  Stan and Marilyn joined us to wander through the farmer's market.  No wonder our produce is so good on the ship.  What we saw was beautiful!!

Stan and Marilyn wanted to go with us to Nonica Bakery (on my list).  After asking around, we found it, and Marilyn and I went in.  I had a list of things I wanted, and the counter lady was delightful and helped me find a few things.  The first were two bags of tiny cookies:  Medenjok, a ginger cookie, and Smokvenjok - a fig ginger cookie.  I also got some brustuloni Menduli (sugared almonds) in a package.  To eat on site, I got forski koloc - a cinnamon cookie - and cviti - a crisp cookie.  I also ordered Hvar white coffee.  I pronounced it in Croatian, and the counter girl was really tickled.  We took it all outside, but the Stan and Marilyn didn't eat much and soon left to go back to the ship.

A lovely British couple from Nottingham came and sat next to us (Stuart and Kathryn).  She was looking for a cappuccino and I recommended the white coffee.  Stuart got a beer, so Bill ordered one, too, and paid for the Brit's drinks.  I shared my cookies and we had a lovely chat.  Then it was time to head back to the tender and check out a couple of souvenir stands.

As I was looking at a lavender stand, Stuart came rushing up to me saying I had left my bag of cookies, and he gave them to me!  How sweet!!

We got back on ship at 12:45.  The buffet lunch was up and running on the Lido Deck (bar and gathering place right over our cabin).  Lunch was just as awesome as breakfast - spicy beef salad in a tiny cup (finely diced beef, chilies, olives, lettuce), ricotta balls with a basil cream sauce, Fisherman's Platter (fish, calamari, large fresh capers, caviar), salads (carrots with fennel, red cabbage with raisins, glass noodles with sesame, green salad), pumpkin soup (wonderful!), grill fresh red snapper and steamed greens, pork tenderloin with fresh green beans, lavender panna cotta topped with an apricot ragout, fresh fruit and cheese.

Then it was time to go raise the sails for the afternoon sail.  The sail team consists of 18 guys/girls who climb up to release the sails.  Then they come down and pull on ropes and lines (5 miles of lines) to haul up the sails in the order dictated by the wind.  It was pretty impressive.  I got part of it on my GoPro, but then I forgot to start it again when the sails were up. 

At 3:30 one of the staff gave a lecture on the Fourth Crusade.  Bill went, and I passed.  I did play with the GoPro, taking a tour of our deck.  At 4, they set out tea - cookies, brownies, half sandwiches, ice cream and toppings.    I couldn't eat a thing since I was still stuffed from lunch!  We just hung out until 6 when the crew clamored up the rigging to put the sails up.  I did get some photos of them way up high.

Then it was a quick shower for the captain's welcome dinner preceded by the cocktail hour at 6:30.  There was a wide variety of dress which was interesting.  We were given champagne when we arrived at the bar/Lido deck.  Little salmon sandwiches and black and red caviar on toast were passed by the crew in their dress uniforms.  At 7:15 the captain gave his little welcome speech and introduced his officers.  He is Russian as are many of his staff.  The seamen (and 2 female seamen) are mostly Filipino.

At 7:30 we went to the elegantly appointed dining room where we consumed another good 4 course dinner.  The appetizer was 'Variation of sea water trout with cucumber wasabi and pumpernickel.'  This was a couple of tiny slices of trout with an herbed cucumber foam and a smear of wasabi.  We were served 2 entrees one after the other.  The first was a scallop on a circle of herbed cous cous.  The second entree was pink roasted veal tenderloin with smoked mashed potatoes, green asparagus, and a carrot puree.  Dessert was an interesting pistachio cake with a pistachio flan.  On the side were diced strawberries and a mint sorbet that was more intense than expected but quite good.  The wine (red or white) flowed freely.  The servers are more than attentive but rather unobtrusive.

We had a single seat left, so the ship's doctor, Thomas (German), was seated in the front, and we got his friend Krstan.  Krstan is an architect and was great fun and a good sport with all the questions our table threw at him.

After a long dinner, we went out to see the full moon on the water.  It is gorgeous out tonight and still quite smooth.

Day 3 - Tuesday 9/9/14 – Korcula Croatia

Moreska Performance

The alarm went off at 7:30.  Bill was already out getting coffee.  I threw on some clothes and went for breakfast at 7:45.  It was the same abundant food as yesterday, but today's special was waffles.  I had the scrambled eggs, bacon, broiled tomato with cheese, and fresh mixed fruit.  Bill had the waffle and pronounced it great.

At 8:30 they raised the sails.  The interesting part of that was the Mediterranean horseshoe bats that came flying out. Apparently they like taking refuge in the sails at night.  That was a strange sight to see.

We just hung out around the ship until 10:15 when Petra Nosetic gave a 45 minute talk on the history of Croatia.  It was not that interesting to me, but I like Petra so I went.  She did a good job.

At 11 we went to the lounge to buy Sea Cloud items.  I got a neat t-shirt with a graphic Sea Cloud on the front.  Bill got a ball cap.  The wind died down, so they hauled in the sails at noon.  We have one old dude that thinks he knows everything and was trying to direct the riggers on missed items.  His name is Kim Morris, and he has something negative to say about everything.

Lunch was at 12:30 - a buffet on the Lido Deck - Caesar salad with the giant capers made by the hotel manager Simon, Smoked fish puree in a cucumber cup topped with caviar, salads (Tomato and mozzarella, broccoli with almonds, red bean with ham, sweet corn with local sausage, garden greens with choice of dressing), Carrot soup with ginger, whole roast beef with bearnaise sauce, grilled Dorado, braised white cabbage, sweet potatoes, roasted zucchini, tiramisu with fruit sticks, fresh fruit and cheese selection.

After lunch I just walked around the ship chatting with people while Bill napped.  The tenders took off at 3:30 to go in to Korcula's old town.  We had Petra as our guide.  We do split into two groups for the various excursions.  We had to walk around the old town walls to the land gate.  Petra gave a lot of interesting information on the gate, St Michael's Church.

It was really quite warm for most of the tour.  We first went in to the Bishop's Treasury where a lot of antiques from the area are kept.  The only thing that really intrigued me was a very old clock.  Then we went next door to St Mark's Cathedral, the main church of the old town.  It was absolutely beautiful with a huge Tintoretto painting over the main altar. 

We did walk by the supposed birthplace of Marco Polo, but that is open for debate. As we walked down one of the beautiful side streets of the town I saw one of the open bridges that connect homes over the side street.  We walked to the Tower of All Saints (one of six towers along the city walls). 

Then it was back into the side streets to the Church and Brotherhood of all Saints.  This had some interesting huge 7' tall candles that are carried by members of the Brotherhood once a year in a parade.  The All Saints Church was a small one.  As we left there we walked down Philosopher's Street - the only street in old town that doesn't have any stairs.

By then it was 5:15, and we only had a half hour before we had to meet up for the Moreska dance performance.  So Petra had time to lead me to the Cukarin Bakery.  I had several local cookies to get including the Marco Polo Bomb, Amareta, Klasun, and Cukarin.  We haven't tried any yet, but it should be fun.

At 6 we went in to the Summer Theater, an open air theater just inside the city walls.    There we had a full-blown private performance of the Moreska - a dance that has been performed in Korcula for over 300 years.  It is the Black King/bad guy who has stolen the Red King's fiance and all of their soldiers fight using two swords, all to the accompaniment of a teen-age orchestra.  It was quite fun, and I have a great movie of it.

After all of this, we took the tenders back to the ship at 6:45 for dinner at 7:30.  More food.  An interesting note:  we were given ship cards (like credit cards) that are swiped as we leave the ship and then swiped again when we return.  That is how they keep track of us.

Dinner tonight was another buffet - local prawns with garlic mayo, marinated chicken breast with olives, grilled pineapple with a cream chili sauce, salads (diced tomatoes with parmesan, beet root with horse radish, cauliflower with saffron, garden greens), Crispy suckling pig (yes, a whole suckling pig carved to order), Yellow fin tuna (at least 5 feet long and whole) fixed grilled or as sashimi, local BBQ sausage, roasted pumpkin, corn on the cob, mixed fresh vegetables, flamed (in rum) fresh fruit with either homemade chocolate or vanilla ice cream.

We sat outside watching the full moon for a while.