Food, glorious food.

Turkish tea ("chai") which is THE symbol of Turkish hospitality. Everywhere you go - stores, hotels, restaurants - you're offered a serving and very often, for free. It's usually served as shown in the photo - in a very distinctively shaped glass, placed atop a ceramic saucer with a small teaspoon to stir in two cubes of sugar.

T

o say we ate well on this trip is an understatement. The truth is we ate like pigs....devouring each meal as if it was our last and we loved every single bite. In Turkey, we had an enormous variety of yummy foods to choose from - everything from meat kebabs and stews to seafood cooked in a variety of ways. There were plenty of desserts to satisfy our sweet tooth - from lokum (Turkish delight) to baklava to ice cream.

The Pearl of the Adriatic. Dubrovnik.

W

hat I will always remember about Dubrovnik is the stark visual contrast of rust colored terra cotta roofs set against the turquoise colored waters of the Adriatic. The cloudless blue sky simply accentuated the beautiful views!

Our first full and only day in Dubrovnik started with a walk along the top of the walls that surround the old city. From that vantage view, we had wonderful vistas of the medieval city and the surrounding waters.

Last views of Trogir, first views of Dubrovnik.

T

oday is the day that we left Trogir and headed down the Dalmatian coast to Dubrovnik. It will also always be remembered as the day that Lei got relieved of her duties as "clock keeper". We had an early morning departure - catching the 5:45am bus. As with all the other travel days. Lei awoke about an hour and a half before me to prep herself for the day and to do her last minute packing.

Šibenik.

Š

ibenik. Definitely not a tourist hotspot. It lacks the name recognition of Dubrovnik, the charm of Trogir and the hustle and bustle of Split. Georgraphically located where the Krka River flows into the Adriatic Sea, it was our destination this afternoon.

We arrived into Šibenik from Stradin. When we returned to Stradin from Krka National Park, we headed straight for the Tourist Information center. Earlier that day, the receptionist there had tried to call to book a taxi for us. Then, she did not have any luck getting through to the taxi service so we thought we would have her try again. She did and still not have any luck - the phone just rang and rang. She sent us around the corner to the ferry dock. There, we walked into the office of the local boating club. We explained our situation to the woman sitting behind the counter. She picked the phone and tried calling for a taxi. Again, no luck.

Into the Green. Krka National Park.

T

oday is all about the color green. I love visiting National Parks. These are the places on earth that each country has decided is worthy of protection; they are the places that represent the best of Mother Nature. Some places are so unique - like Cappadocia, Turkey - that they are even designated as UNESCO World Heritage sites. As my daily surroundings are defined by concrete and metal, the more I want to seek out nature refuges when I travel. I have a strong need to feel, breathe and smell the earth.

Hvar Town....at last.

O

ur second full day in Croatia began with an early morning rise. I can't remember if we even ate breakfast or not but we had to scoot from hotel to bus station. We were headed to Hvar Island and the teeny village of Hvar Town. Thanks to help from the travel agency adjoining the Hotel Sikaa, we knew we had to catch the intercity bus from Trogir to Split. Unlike City Bus 37, the intercity bus would drop us off at the main dock in Split. From there, we would have to catch the ferry over to Hvar Island - about an hour long ride. The first stop of the day would be Stari Grad and from there, we would head to Hvar Town. That was the plan :-)

Hvar Town or bust.....with a stop in Stari Grad along the way.

S

ometimes what's most memorable about a trip is not the destination but getting there. This posting is all about the adventure of a journey. Our destination for the day - Hvar Town, located on the island of Hvar. Travel route - bus from Trogir to Split, ferry from Split to Hvar, bus from ferry landing to Hvar Town.

The night before, yours truly had read in the Lonely Planet guidebook that the little hamlet of Stari Grad, located on the island of Hvar was worth a visit. So the plan was to visit Stari Grad and then head to Hvar Town afterwards.

When we got off the ferry from Split, Lei, Doug and I confidently headed up the road towards Stari Grad - completely missing the bus to Hvar Town. Who knew we missed THE one and only bus to Hvar Town. Never mind, Stari Grad is suppose to be quaint so that's where we were determined to go. Poor Doug who had no specific travel itinerary in mind ....got dragged along by two crazy women who had absolutely no idea where they were going!

Split. The home of Diocletian.

O

ur first full day in Croatia was spent in Split - home to the palace of the former Roman Emperor, Diocletian.

The day started with breakfast at the hotel followed by a short walk to the bus station. There we waited for Bus 37 which we knew would take us to Split.  












We settled into our seats and enjoyed the local ride - we stopped to pick up passengers all along the way. Soon enough, city landscape of Split came into view. The bus pulled into the bus station and we got off. Now came the challenge was to try and figure out which way to go. We started walking, following the crowd and at the same making a mental note of places and streets we passed along the way - those memories would serve as "breadcrumbs" so we would know how to get back to the bus station later in the day!

Trogir. Oh so quaint.

T

rogir ("Tro-geer"). What a c-u-t-e little town! We had planned a 3 day, 4 night stay in Trogir as it was to be our home base for our visit to this part of the Dalmatian coast. The photos in this posting are a compilation of the shots we took over our entire stay in Trogir.

Dubrovnik, Croatia.

N

icknamed the "Pearl of the Adriatic" by Lord Byron, Dubrovnik will be our last and final destination on our trip through Turkey and Croatia. I know that by the time I arrive in Dubrovnik I will have very mixed feelings - excited at finally being able to experience all that I seen and read in the guidebooks and on the web and sadness that my trip will soon come to an end.

Serbia vs. Croatia. Round Two?

S

erbia's Neighbors Recognize Kosovo. That was headline news today.

The Balkan nations were borne of the disintegration of Yugoslavia. In 1991, Croatia broke free and immediately plunged into war with rebel Serbs who wanted to create "Greater Serbia" from Croatian and Bosnian and Herzegovian territory. The war came to an end in 1995 with a Croatian victory and the signing of the Dayton Agreement. Although the two countries have greatly improved relations since, animosity between Serbia and Croatia has lingered.

Backed by the US Government and in defiance of Serbia and Russia, Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia on February 18, 2008. Today, Croatia, Bulgaria and Hungary officially recognized the newly independent nation. France, the UK, Germany and Italy have also pledged their support.

I, Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus (A.D. 236-316)

Was the last Emperor of the united Roman Empire. Born around the year A.D. 236, on the Dalmatian coast, I was originally named Diocles and was of humble birth.

As a young man, I sought my fortune in the army - showing myself to be a shrewd, able, and ambitious individual. Rising quickly through the military ranks, I received the title of "Duke of Moesia" (an area on the banks of the lower Danube River) along with responsibility for border defense. In A.D. 282, the legions of the upper Danube proclaimed Carus as emperor and under the new emperor I was promoted to Count of the Domestics, the commander of the cavalry arm of the imperial bodyguard.

In A.D. 284, in the midst of a campaign against the Persians, Carus was killed leaving the empire in the hands of his two young sons, Numerian in the east and Carinus in the west. Soon thereafter, Numerian died under mysterious circumstances near Nicomedia, and I was acclaimed emperor in his place. In 285 Carinus was killed in a battle near Belgrade, and I was declared emperor of the entire empire by the Danubian Legions. I took the name Diocletian upon ascending the throne.

Trogir. A Medieval gem.

C

roatia. A country that did not even exist when I was born and up until very recently, was hidden from the world behind the Iron Curtain. I now have a wonderful opportunity to visit it.

Our plan is to fly from Istanbul to Split, Croatia and from there, hop a local bus to the town of Trogir (pronounced "Tro-jeer") which sits alongside the stunningly beautiful coastline of the Adriatic Sea.

We will be using Trogir as our home base to see the central Dalmatian coast - including the larger, port city of Split.

Of new liras and kunas.

Iam fascinated with currency. Over the years, I have collected bills and coins from all the countries I've ever been to. It's not just that foreign currency bills are more colorful than US "greenbacks" but because they often reflect the country's history which are very often much more tumultuous than US history. Current day Turkish currency reflects recent economic strife and Croatian currency, recent political strife.

Planning Queens.

No kidding. It took Lei and I about 15 minutes to come up with the start and end dates for our trip, a preliminary list of the places we want to go to and even a rough idea of the things we want to do e.g., hot air balloon over Cappadocia, shopping in the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul.

Memories of Moscow - Red Square and the Kremlin.

When Lei and I were trying to decide on where to go in 2008, Lei mentioned that she would like to travel to Russia. Back in 1996, I had a work assignment that took me to Moscow, Russia. When I got home from work that night, I pulled out the photos of my trip to Moscow, my journal and was overcome by a flood of fond memories!

Going, not going?

Turkey is the only country in the world that straddles two continents - Europe to the west and Asia to the east. It also shares its southern and eastern borders with Syria, Iraq and Iran - three countries that most of us associate with terrorist violence.

Where are we going next?

T

he voice at the other end of the phone line belonged to my friend Lei. We travelled together through Egypt and Jordan in early 2007 and we got along so well on that trip that we decided that we would continue to travel together when opportunities presented themselves.