Should We Stay or Should We Go

  Photo by Mingwei Lim on Unsplash We're coming to the end of our Adriatic cruise, and after four consecutive days of visiting ports, I'm beginning to appreciate the value of a sea day. Don't get me wrong. We've enjoyed exploring the places we've visited, and each has had its own character and history. But when you're visiting one beautiful old town after another, with narrow streets, historic buildings, churches and squares, some of the experiences inevitably begin to blend together. By the fourth day, it has become a bit of a blur. When we plan a trip like this, we're excited about all the places we'll get to see. Each port offers something new, and we want to make the most of our time there. We head ashore, explore the town, take in the sights and try to absorb as much as we can before it's time to return to the ship. Then we do it all over again the next day. The trouble is that there's only so much sightseeing you can take in before i...

Our next port of call was Corfu, and this was another first for us. After three days in a row of getting off the ship and exploring old towns, we were ready to change things up a bit. Our original plan was to head to the beach and enjoy a relaxing day. That sounded pretty good to us. But when we got up that morning, it was drizzly, and the forecast was calling for rain throughout the day. A beach day wasn't looking quite so appealing anymore, so we decided we'd be better off going back to Plan A and exploring the Old Town. We opted for a slower start and eventually made our way to the New Fortress. It was interesting to walk through, but there was very little information explaining what we were looking at or telling us about its history. We wandered around for a while, but left without really knowing much about the place we'd just explored. Later in the day, when we were back on the ship, I did a little reading about the New Fortress. I learned that it was built by the ...

We had been to Dubrovnik once before, about 15 years ago, and it was around the same time of year. Maybe our minds forget the things we don't want to remember, but I don't remember it being anywhere near this crowded last time. And this wasn't even high season. Our day started with a city bus into the Old Town, and it was standing room only. By the time we arrived, we had already had our first taste of what the day was going to be like. There were people everywhere, and from the moment we entered the Old Town, we were fighting the crowds. Our first stop was the city walls. We walked the entire way around, which should have been a wonderful opportunity to take in the views and enjoy the history of this incredibly well-preserved medieval city. It was, except that we were constantly trying to get around people. Every time someone stopped to take a photo, a line of people would quickly form behind them. We found ourselves doing the same thing, looking for a spot where we co...

We were up early again, just as the sun was beginning to rise. Our ship was making its way toward Kotor, and we had been told the sail into the bay was something we shouldn't miss. They were right. For an hour and a half, we watched the scenery change as we made our way through the Bay of Kotor. The farther we sailed into the bay, the more impressive it became. The mountains rose steeply on either side of us, with little villages dotting along the shoreline.  The water was incredibly calm, and it was so peaceful while everyone just took it all in. The scenery was absolutely breathtaking.  B y the time we reached Kotor, we already felt like the sail into the bay had been part of the experience, not just the way we got there. Our ship was docked right at the pier beside the Old Town, so once we were cleared to disembark, we were able to walk straight into Kotor’s historic centre. Kotor is a medieval walled town tucked between the mountains and the bay, but its story goes back m...

Photo by mana5280 on Unsplash Our first port of call was Split, Croatia. None of us had been here before, so we arrived without any real expectations of what we would find. I woke up just as we were making our way into Split. The sun was beginning to rise over the hills, casting a beautiful glow across the city. The ship moved quietly and slowly toward the port, and I stood on our balcony watching the town begin to awaken from its slumber. There was something lovely about seeing Split this way, before the streets became busy and the day really got underway. It was a peaceful introduction to a city that we were about to spend the day exploring. Once we were off the ship, we walked toward the old town. Split has a fascinating history, with much of the historic centre built within and around the remains of Diocletian’s Palace. The palace was built around the beginning of the fourth century for the Roman Emperor Diocletian, who chose this spot on the Adriatic as his retirement home. To...