Let’s Split!

Well we finally left Spain and spent 2 nights in beautiful Assisi before landing on Pam and Mike’s doorstep in Le Marche.

As usual they showed us wonderful warm hospitality and fed us very well. On our last night we went to a tiny local restaurant and had one of the best meals of our trip. A five course extravaganza, 2 of which involved truffles. The flavours were divine and I felt that we really got to understand why truffles are so revered.

We boarded the ferry for Split in Ancona. A word of warning for anyone contemplating this: Don’t arrive early! You’ll be squeezed into a dodgy spot at the back. We argued about our position but were forced to concede and ended up sustaining some damage to Boris. We didn’t notice it until too late.

Anyway, Split was wonderful. The old town is a riot of narrow alleyways, arches, tunnels, churches and sunny squares, all squeezed into the original walls of Diocletian’s Palace. It’s tiny and fascinating.

 

Split

Diocletian's Palace Walls

From the Campsite

We met Jimmy in the campsite who gave us some wonderful advice re avoiding Bosnia (and the brutish border guards) and seeing some spectacular scenery – thanks Jimmy. This led us to Pleljesac – which on first glance looks like an island but is actually a peninsular. It’s a really good way to avoid the bit of coast that belongs to Bosnia.

It also has the added bonus of being the wine growing area – and it’s incredibly beautiful. From there we drove to Dubrovnik and as expected the coastal scenery was breath-taking. Pick any superlative you like – you’ll be right!

 

Beautiful Coast

We loved Dubrovnik, with its spectacular setting. The main street is wide and beautifully proportioned, in contrast to the side streets which are very steep and narrow.

Dubrovnik

Main Street

Sunset

Dubrovnik

The forecast however, was poor so we headed south into Montenegro to find somewhere to hunker down. We drove around the stunning Bay of Kotor to the pretty walled town of Kotor, with its spectacular backdrop of mountains and fortifications. We booked into a quaint hotel for a much needed shower and hair wash. We hadn’t had a bathroom since Split (long story). Next morning the predicted rain came down by the bucketful. We drove through driving rain and howling winds. Cliffs became waterfalls, roads turned in rivers, the sea to mud.

 

Kotor

Anyway we found a funny little campsite to sit it out, with the wind howling like mad and Boris rocking like a bucking bronco. The gin bottle came out early yesterday.

So now we are waiting for the wind to die down (at least the rain has stopped) and tomorrow we’ll head for the hills and check out some of the famous Montenegro monasteries.

 

Montenegro Coast