The next stop on our adventure brought us to Croatia, first the coast to Dubrovnik and then to Zagreb after returning to Bosnia. Since my very trip to the Mediterranean 13 years ago I had wanted to visit Dubrovnik. The postcards and photo’s that I saw of this perfect looking city, and finally after my eighth trip to Europe I was on my way to it, this time my bag was missing a bottle of wine and in it’s place was a bundle of diapers.
I may or may not have mentioned in earlier blog posts but we rented a car from Sarajevo. I really enjoyed the rental process in Bosnia. We asked the hotel about renting a car and they said, sure we can get you a car, we said great. They made a few calls and then relayed the message that we can get a car, with car seats, insurance and a four door for 40 EU a day. I mentioned that the price a bit steep but I don’t feel like shopping a round so we’ll take it. Two days later a guy shows up and shows me the car and a few car seats. As I was loading the car and putting in the seats I mentioned to him that one of the car seats was too big for Keir and he said no problem and within ten minutes his friend showed up in car with his wife and kid, took the kid out, and gave us the seat…his own families seat. Not only that, it was his own car we were using.
After so many long bus and train rides, it was so fantastic to drive. I will admit though, driving in Eastern Europe is much different than Canada or the US. The roads are tight and people drive …hmmm…differently. The line in the middle of the road is purely a guide and most cars drive with one set of tires on or over it, making the turns pretty hairy. The drive though, aside from a few close calls was easily one of the most stunning drives in the world.
Dubrovnik was everything I imagined and wondered it would be. Rocky cliffs, golden sunsets, and this imposing and aesthetic fortress perched on the sea. It was so refreshing as well to drive from the mountains from which the weather had been wet and the sky dark and reach the coast with the clouds disappearing and the sun setting with a golden sky.
We again used tripadvisor and managed to rent an amazing apartment called Villa Elly which was wonderful and close to the fortress and it had a great big couch which the kids took full advantage of and enjoyed some bouncing on.haha
What we enjoyed the most about Dubrovnik was it’s open space and lack of vehicles inside the old walls. Traveling with children always reminds you how much they want to run, and you spend much of your day preventing them from darting in front of vehicles or traffic. There is no question we spent much of the day chasing Wynter, but at least we weren’t concerned that she would get squashed in there. With that being said, most of the sights we saw were as we ran by them chasing a giggling little brat. I’m considering mounting a camera to a small hat for Wynter and just letting her go to work for me.
This was truly a beautiful city and I really hope my photos give it justice.
Enjoy and have a great mothers day.
I love you mom and I love the mother of my little brats, Colleen.
Carey
And of course if you haven’t seen the video highlights from our trip please take a peek at it below.
Backpacking through Europe with Children from Carey Nash on Vimeo.
http://www.careynash.com
A two month trip with two children as we backpacked through Eastern and Western Europe.
