Guest Bloggers: Heather and Mer, Days 7 and 8

While John and Joanna ran some errands and focused on returning the car, we were considerably less productive. We'd had enough history; we'd had enough of walking tours. What we really wanted was to lounge by the pool at Le Meridien. And that's exactly what we did... all day. With the exception of a brief intermission to get pedicures at the hotel spa. Some people may look at pedicures as a silly waste of time; these were probably the most necessary pedis anyone has ever recieved. The people of Croatia thanked us.

A little tired, we decide to stop at a cafe on the Riva for capuccinos. While we sat on the outdoor veranda, Mer realized (shockingly) that she needed to visit the restroom. For those who haven't traveled with her before, it should be noted that frequent pee breaks are part of the itinerary. Anyway, upon her return to the table, a little old Croatian lady accosted her. We *think* she was asking for help up the stairs. But the language barrier was far and wide. Mer gets her up the stairs and resumes the search for the restroom. Meanwhile, the little old croatian lady makes her way to Heather who is still peacefully sipping cappuccino. The woman begins gesturing and speaking loudly in what we can only assume to be her native language. Heather is convinced that this woman was either cursing her or telling her that she liked her hair. It's a crapshoot.

Eventually we had to tear ourselves away from the pool for the ferry to Hvar. At the ferry we met back up with John, Joanna and Bob. Our first night in Hvar we were delighted to find that our hotel had a roofdeck with gorgeous views as well as a wine bar. Overcome with inspiration to adopt a real authentic croatian lifestyle we ate dinner at a small family restaurant on the hillside near the fortress. There were highs (stuffed peppers and cheese plate) and lows (everything else). But most importantly, Bob and John tried their homemade spirits much to the entertainment of the rest of us. We literally saw new chest hairs grow after they took their shots. John may no longer have any taste buds. The key takeaway is that the Croatian-food-turned-Italian-to-please-tourists is much better than the real deal.

The next day, we hiked up to the fortress. Key highlights include John getting reacquainted with nature and hiking as well as spectacular views of Hvar and the adriatic. It was beautiful. We also walked around to another part of the island to enjoy the beach. Sure, it would have been more enjoyable with far fewer children. Even the topless women couldn't get John to stay longer than a half hour before getting bored.

We made our way back to the hotel to change and had a pre-dinner cocktail at the famous Carpe Diem. Dinner was eaten at a waterfront seafood restaurant and followed by a Mozart concert in the cloister of the monastery. Surprisingly this sounded cooler than it ended up actually being. Or maybe that's not so suprising to you readers.

As always, drinks followed.