Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Sunday, September 28, 2008
home turf
Arrived to JFK this afternoon at 7 pm. Conor's dad graciously picked us up AND supplied us with a huge tray of baked ziti for an already-prepared dinner. We crashed, unpacked, and watched my favorite, The Wire. Wish that we were still eating squid and walking around ruins, but am happy to be back and excited to go to work tomorrow. We are both feeling rested and ready to go. Will post photo link as soon as we get them up (hopefully tomorrow or Tuesday).
Lastly, meant to mention how I noticed a difference between the Croatian spoken on the coast (Split, Dubrovnik) and inland. Inland, it sounds much more russianesque/eastern european to the ear (much harder and more noticeable ch's, z's and v'z) and on the coast, it sounds more like italian (softer, and as if it rolled off the tongue a bit easier). I couldn't quite tell if it was because of where the accent was placed on a word, but I definitely noticed a substitution for some words. Instead of "Dovi đenja"when we left a restaurant/caffe bar/tavern in Dubrovnik, we much more often heard "Adio" and even a few times "Ciao." Just an interesting note on how the same language changes depending on what area you are in and possibly the influences of surrounding countries.
okay, good night, photos soon!
Lastly, meant to mention how I noticed a difference between the Croatian spoken on the coast (Split, Dubrovnik) and inland. Inland, it sounds much more russianesque/eastern european to the ear (much harder and more noticeable ch's, z's and v'z) and on the coast, it sounds more like italian (softer, and as if it rolled off the tongue a bit easier). I couldn't quite tell if it was because of where the accent was placed on a word, but I definitely noticed a substitution for some words. Instead of "Dovi đenja"when we left a restaurant/caffe bar/tavern in Dubrovnik, we much more often heard "Adio" and even a few times "Ciao." Just an interesting note on how the same language changes depending on what area you are in and possibly the influences of surrounding countries.
okay, good night, photos soon!
Saturday, September 27, 2008
Dovi đenja Hrvatska
We have just finished our last dinner in Croatia. We ate at the restaurant (Nokturno) in Zagreb we ate at before - simple, cheap, hearty. We are here at the internet cafe and then are going to go check out a festival in the main square (in the past couple hours just walking through the squares, we've seen a man on stilts, a fire-eater and a woman preparing to tightrope walk!
Yesterday was one of our best days in Croatia. We woke up and walked about 25 minutes to the Sv. Jakov (Saint Jacob) beach. We met up with a Kayak tour guide and paddled to the island of Lokrum off the southeastern coast of Dubrovnik. When we got there, we sunbathed on the 'beach', a series of flat and jagged rocks, climbed around the rocks and went for a swim (well...the water was quite cold, so I stood on a rock up to my legs, while Conor actaully went snorkeling and cliff-jumping. To be fair, only a few other people were actually swimming, I wasn't being a huge wuss). Then we walked around the old town, packed and went to dinner at a great restaurant that served traditional Bosnian fare. [edit on Sept 28: Meant to mention that Conor had the gypsy kabob which had like five different chunks of vegetables and five different meats on the stick and I had cevapi, which is kind of like a pita with sausage in it, with a white sheep cheese and onions on the side. It was delicious and there will be photos.] Then we headed to bed. I woke up every hour, terrified we would miss the alarm to wake up for our 4 am taxi to the airport for our 6 am flight. We made it to Zagreb around 7 and to our guestroom (a different one away from the city center) around 8:30. Then we came to the main square, got cappucinos, and checked our e-mail, the Times, and talkingpointsmemo. We wandered around a bit, and then went up the hill to the bakery where we got our original Burek and ordered one last doughy meaty deliciousness. Then we went back to the guestroom and crashed for three hours. That brings us here!
and now, some Ožujusko pivo (a Zagrebačke beer) before taking a tram back to our guestroom. and then back to reality and back home to our dwelling unit, sweet, dwelling unit.
thanks for following -- m
Yesterday was one of our best days in Croatia. We woke up and walked about 25 minutes to the Sv. Jakov (Saint Jacob) beach. We met up with a Kayak tour guide and paddled to the island of Lokrum off the southeastern coast of Dubrovnik. When we got there, we sunbathed on the 'beach', a series of flat and jagged rocks, climbed around the rocks and went for a swim (well...the water was quite cold, so I stood on a rock up to my legs, while Conor actaully went snorkeling and cliff-jumping. To be fair, only a few other people were actually swimming, I wasn't being a huge wuss). Then we walked around the old town, packed and went to dinner at a great restaurant that served traditional Bosnian fare. [edit on Sept 28: Meant to mention that Conor had the gypsy kabob which had like five different chunks of vegetables and five different meats on the stick and I had cevapi, which is kind of like a pita with sausage in it, with a white sheep cheese and onions on the side. It was delicious and there will be photos.] Then we headed to bed. I woke up every hour, terrified we would miss the alarm to wake up for our 4 am taxi to the airport for our 6 am flight. We made it to Zagreb around 7 and to our guestroom (a different one away from the city center) around 8:30. Then we came to the main square, got cappucinos, and checked our e-mail, the Times, and talkingpointsmemo. We wandered around a bit, and then went up the hill to the bakery where we got our original Burek and ordered one last doughy meaty deliciousness. Then we went back to the guestroom and crashed for three hours. That brings us here!
and now, some Ožujusko pivo (a Zagrebačke beer) before taking a tram back to our guestroom. and then back to reality and back home to our dwelling unit, sweet, dwelling unit.
thanks for following -- m
Thursday, September 25, 2008
honestly? really?
I can't help but post this. Who would possibly vote for a ticket with this woman?
A video of Sarah Palin floundering when asked about Russia's proximity to Alaska and why that is valid as foreign policy experience: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4478156n
oy gevalt!
off for gelato now
A video of Sarah Palin floundering when asked about Russia's proximity to Alaska and why that is valid as foreign policy experience: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4478156n
oy gevalt!
off for gelato now
oooohh plodova mora
We just had absolutely delicious seafood at the restaurant by the guest house we are staying at. Not the best we have had (Split holds that prize) but fresh, garlicky, and reasonably priced. We got the seafood platter, with prawns, mussels, shrimp, two whole fish, squid, spinach, and potatoes. With our standard vacation drink (a liter of red wine), it was a fantastic meal. Met an older couple from Wisconsin on a month long trip (the woman on her state, 'it's good country') and spoke to the restaurant owners about Croatian athletes and the difference between the appearance of Zagreb and Dubrovnik natives. Great last seafood dinner. Tomorrow, at a place called Taj Mahal, we have 7 o'clock dinner reservations for traditional Bosnian fare.
Today, we walked around the old town, went to a modest Church across from the Rector's Palace and then visited the Jesuit church here (Ron, we took pictures) which is modeled after the Gesu church in Rome (as many Jesuit churches are). Outside of the Jesuit church, there is a miniature version of Rome's Spanish steps and a market that reminded me of Campo di Fiori. Then we took a nap, because hey, it's vacation. Following, we walked the Dubrovnik city walls, which had great views of the orange-shingled roof houses and the sea. We also ran into the NY couple we met at the zonoba (tavern restaurant) in Split and watched a Split heritage parade with them. Tomorrow, we have plans to kayak and so far, no bad news about the weather from the company, so we are still on!
Until then,
m
Today, we walked around the old town, went to a modest Church across from the Rector's Palace and then visited the Jesuit church here (Ron, we took pictures) which is modeled after the Gesu church in Rome (as many Jesuit churches are). Outside of the Jesuit church, there is a miniature version of Rome's Spanish steps and a market that reminded me of Campo di Fiori. Then we took a nap, because hey, it's vacation. Following, we walked the Dubrovnik city walls, which had great views of the orange-shingled roof houses and the sea. We also ran into the NY couple we met at the zonoba (tavern restaurant) in Split and watched a Split heritage parade with them. Tomorrow, we have plans to kayak and so far, no bad news about the weather from the company, so we are still on!
Until then,
m
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
some visual teasers ---
as requested, some photos of our trip so far (all on flickr when we return):
$2 dollars worth of doughy, meaty goodness (Zagreb)
$2 dollars worth of doughy, meaty goodness (Zagreb)
muggin' in Split (on the rocky beaches in the far west)
the handsome j crew model in Split
mushroom risotto (6 dollars, what a beautiful thing)
Squid in Split (best in the world, one could say)
Hvar Town a little past sunset (using a not breathing Conor's shoulder as my tripod)
Hvar Town on Hvar Island at daybreaka beach day!
Howdy from Dubrovnik!
We just arrived from Dubrovnik by bus and are settling in here. The bus we took was bizarre because it seemed like a coach city-to-city bus, but we quickly found out that it served as both a local bus and a longer-route bus. For instance, we stopped at least 10 times in the first hour. It was as if the local NY bus also continued after 10 stops on Broadway to DC. This wasn't simply picking up travelers and backpackers up from different places all heading to the same destintation - it was taking grandmothers from Split to the next town, then picking up some young teenagers and dropping them off one town later. It took us two and a half hours to go 60 miles. Luckily, the road to Dubrovnik runs parallel with the sea so it was beautiful the entire five hours from Split. We went through Bosnia - Hercegovina for a bit and got our passports checked twice- nothing like a little excitement.
Backtracking...
We had a great meal at Macondo in Hvar Town after I wrote my last post. We started with a lobster risotto, then had a mixed salad. For our entrees, I had fried white fish and Conor had fried squid, fish and prawns. With a good house wine, great ambience and a New York Times recommendation, this was a restaurant I was happy we made a point to go to.
Yesterday, we took an early ferry from Hvar back to Split. We got what has become our favorite Croatian failsafe lunch (burek, a doughy pocket stuffed with flavorful meat for about 2 dollars). After dropping off our bags at the guesthouse and finding that it was decently warm we went to the Bacvice beach near the harbor. It was nice to get in the sun. Afterwards, we hiked up the Marjan Peninsula, a beautiful park on the west side of Split. From the top, there were gorgeous views of Split and it was a decent two hour expedition. Last night, we walked around Diocletian's palace, had some hot chocolate and strawberry gelato and headed back to the guesthouse as if we were pensioners and not 23 year olds.
Today, we'll get a feel for Dubrovnik and in the next days, we'll walk the city walls and go kayaking.
Dovi đenja - maria
We just arrived from Dubrovnik by bus and are settling in here. The bus we took was bizarre because it seemed like a coach city-to-city bus, but we quickly found out that it served as both a local bus and a longer-route bus. For instance, we stopped at least 10 times in the first hour. It was as if the local NY bus also continued after 10 stops on Broadway to DC. This wasn't simply picking up travelers and backpackers up from different places all heading to the same destintation - it was taking grandmothers from Split to the next town, then picking up some young teenagers and dropping them off one town later. It took us two and a half hours to go 60 miles. Luckily, the road to Dubrovnik runs parallel with the sea so it was beautiful the entire five hours from Split. We went through Bosnia - Hercegovina for a bit and got our passports checked twice- nothing like a little excitement.
Backtracking...
We had a great meal at Macondo in Hvar Town after I wrote my last post. We started with a lobster risotto, then had a mixed salad. For our entrees, I had fried white fish and Conor had fried squid, fish and prawns. With a good house wine, great ambience and a New York Times recommendation, this was a restaurant I was happy we made a point to go to.
Yesterday, we took an early ferry from Hvar back to Split. We got what has become our favorite Croatian failsafe lunch (burek, a doughy pocket stuffed with flavorful meat for about 2 dollars). After dropping off our bags at the guesthouse and finding that it was decently warm we went to the Bacvice beach near the harbor. It was nice to get in the sun. Afterwards, we hiked up the Marjan Peninsula, a beautiful park on the west side of Split. From the top, there were gorgeous views of Split and it was a decent two hour expedition. Last night, we walked around Diocletian's palace, had some hot chocolate and strawberry gelato and headed back to the guesthouse as if we were pensioners and not 23 year olds.
Today, we'll get a feel for Dubrovnik and in the next days, we'll walk the city walls and go kayaking.
Dovi đenja - maria
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