On to Croatia

Now this may go without saying but in Germany and Croatia it is near impossible to stick to a carb free or vegetarian diet. If you're vegetarian, hopefully you at least eat fish and seafood because then you can still survive in Croatia. Otherwise, it's possible you will starve.

We headed out to the train station to pick up our train that would take us to Cologne where we would catch our flight to Dubrovnik, Croatia. We grabbed breakfast at one of the kiosks where there is a choice of breakfast rolls, breads, danishes, or lunch versions of the same. I'm rarely in an area that has an efficient train system so there's something I really enjoy about big train stations. There's the hustle and bustle but there's also a place like Frankfurt's (and others in Europe) that have these glass and iron ceilings that create such a cool light in the space.

Our trip on the rails was quick and uneventful with a nice view of the landscape as we rushed by. We arrived in Cologne and picked up our German Wings flight which was a short hop to Dubrovnik. German Wings is a smaller sister airline of Lufthansa and they offer cheaper short flights where you can purchase a little 'picnic lunch' during your flight if you choose.

We arrived in Croatia around dinner time so once we got our rental car, we drove down the coast to our family friend's place in a little town called Zaton. The car rental guy handed us a brand new automatic Mercedes for the same price as a Fiat Punto. Awesome.

We were greeted by Pero, the son, and his father, Mato, who spends most of his summer in Zaton though both reside in California most of the year. Pero is in his mid-twenties and loves to spend his days sleeping in then out drinking with his friends until late at night. We ate at this little restaurant on the water, Konoba Gusar in Zaton where we enjoyed perfectly grilled little squid, octopus salad, cevapcici (Croatian sausages) and fries. Everything was delicious and we were so happy to be back.

Now because we were Pero, he planned on going out and so we decided to rally. We headed into Old Town Dubrovnik or Stari Grad with his friend, Philip. This town is enveloped behind an ancient castle wall and there is plenty to see during the day including scaling and walking the entire wall. But at night, it is one of the most beautiful places with the lights shining off the polished stone floor. Over the hundreds of years, shoes and feet have smoothed down the stone into glass so at night, the floor looks freshly washed down, gleaming.

We started the evening in a square where there are 3 bars who share open patio seating. There is Kase, Mirage, and Jazz Caffe. You pick a table anywhere you like and eventually a waiter comes to take your order. But there's a trick to ordering.

Because Dubrovnik is a huge tourist attraction and has a pretty decent nightlife, everything there is more expensive. And when you order a drink, let's say a vodka and 7up, they will charge you for the shot of vodka as well as the individual bottle of 7up, even though they WON'T bring you the bottle unless you ask for it. They charge per item in the drink. So that means if you order a Long Island Iced Tea, they charge for every ingredient, not for the drink as a whole.

With that said, should you order a vodka and 7up, order shots (best to go to the bar and watch them pour if you like a particular type of vodka in case they choose to pour you a cheaper version) and order bottles of 7up instead. You'll come to discover you can get at least 2 drinks out of that 7up.

So after that drink and lesson, we headed over to Casablanca Bar which is located up one of the long stairways to the right of the main walk. People either cram into the tiny bar spaces or hang along the stairs outside. People are friendly and the only time there is a fight is if some rowdy, drunk tourist gets out of hand. And when that happens, the Croatian men there put an end to it quickly. We met a few new friends there, Angela and Tom, who live very close to us back home! I cannot believe how many people from the Bay Area have family in Croatia. It's astounding.

Angela and Tom happened to be traveling with a little niece who is 18 years old and very naive. Guys recognizing that she is young and American were saying very flattering things and she was believing it all. Angela and Tom were trying to teach her about recognizing when guys are saying things in hopes of getting something else in exchange. At one point, she came up to tell them that she was going with a guy to get cigarettes. The guy was the waiter from their dinner that evening. They wandered off and after awhile, hadn't returned. Pero went off with Tom to search for them since the niece didn't have a cell phone. Not the kind of drama you want on a vacation and thankfully, they were putting her on a plane first thing the next morning.

After awhile, Tom and Pero returned, unsuccessful. Angela inquired with the bar if they carried cigarettes and it turned out they did. Now, the couple was in protection mode. The niece finally returned with the guy, unharmed but a little shook up. Angela scolded her first, then scolded the guy. He innocently said he didn't do anything and it wasn't any big deal. The only smart move was that he cleared out soon after. She said the guy convinced her to get in the car with him to get cigarettes and stopped somewhere saying he wanted to have sex with her. Fortunately, she had the sense to get out of the car and didn't get back in until he agreed to take her back. At that point, Tom was ready to kill this guy. We ended the night shortly after that excitement and parted ways. We ended the night with a midnight snack of burek, a tasty bakery item that is usually seasoned meat, cheese or spinach wrapped in a soft phyllo dough and then coiled up like a long cinnamon bun, then baked. Yogurt for dipping is optional. It's great drunk food.