In Split we rented a car and ventured out to a national park and see the waterfalls. It took about an hour to get there and the drive was pretty easy. Then we walked around and saw some amazing scenery. We’d hoped to swim at the base of the falls, but they recently banned that, so we weren’t able to. Still, the pictures and views were incredible! These pictures don’t do it justice.
Hvar was a day to relax. Our friends had family here that they wanted to visit, so they arranged a private speedboat to take them to a nearby island to visit for the day.
Kenzie and I decided it would be a good day to take a quick look around town and then head back to the ship to catch up doing a lot of nothing.
We saw something while wandering the harbor that cracked us both up. All of these ports have been full of mega yachts. This is definitely the place for them. The million dollar boats are moored along the port walkways. The billion dollar yachts are too big to come into port, so they anchor in the bay and shuttle the owners in with smaller tenders. As we walked along the water one of these billionaire boat tenders pulled up with their very fancy passengers…THE DOGS! Just the dogs. 5 crew members, 2 to handle the boat and one assigned to each dog to attend to its every need.
We got to talking with the crew members (who were very nice) and they said they bring the dogs ashore several times a day for potty breaks and walks. Well, all but the English Bulldog who they said was very lazy. He likes coming out for the ride but prefers to lounge on the boat and take in the view while the others walk. So his attendant just hangs out on the tender with him.
Oh the things that dog has probably seen 🙂
Kotor is a small medieval town at the end of a beautiful fjord. The walled city is not nearly as large as Dubrovnic, but something about this place is really special. Sitting in the ship in the bay and looking at the old city from the water is just beautiful.
We went into town and decided to take a bus along the coast just so see a little more of Montenegro before walking around the old hisyoric city. When we got back, we walked around the historic center, did some shopping, and had lunch. There are lots of cats, and they seem well taken care of by the locals. Kenzie loved that part!
Wow, what a place! The medieval walled city was amazing! We started by walking along the top of the old city walls which gave us some incredible views. Game of Thrones was filmed here apparently (I have not seen the show yet, but I’ll have to watch it) and there were lots of references here. After spending a few hours taking in the town we hit the beach. And along the way Kenzie found some artwork that she really liked. She ended up buying several paintings (with her own money) that she is really excited about. Hopefully, they will be something she can look back on years from now and remind her of this place.
Next stop was Corfu. We stayed around town here and didn’t venture into the farther parts of the island. Checked out the old town fort and found a cafe on the water where the kids could get some water time in. It was pretty hot to do much more so we just had a relaxing day.
Our second stop was Santorini. This was a really cool place! The town is built on the top of the cliffs, and there are a few ways to reach the top from shore. A gondola (with a line that was forever), hiking up (not appealing in 100 degree heat), or taking a donkey. We decided to try donkeys, and that turned out to be the adventure we were looking for!
They are basically on autopilot and you just hold on for the ride. No guide, you get on and the donkey just takes off up the mountain. Good luck to you if you are a tourist hiking up the shared path. It was a lot of fun though and a very unique experience. Eventually near the top the donkeys just stopped and refused to go any further. That’s how you knew you were at the end.
Incredible views from the top in town and a nice place to walk around.
After having the night to settle in, our morning brought the first stop in the Greek Islands. Myknoso. We used the ship tenders to get to shore, and then after walking through town and the tourist shops, found a bus to take us to another part of the island with a nice beach. It has been really hot so since we arrived in Greece, so it was nice to get some swim time in.
Before heading to the ship, Kenzie, Kailynn and I spent the morning checking out some other parts of Athens and doing a little shopping for gifts. I think the highlight for Kenzie was the grocery store and seeing all of the different things they have here. Then we packed up our stuff and headed for the port to board the ship!
Despite a very long day of travel to get here and some challenges with lost luggage, our first stop was great! We visited the Acropolis and Parthenon (along with about 10,000 other sweaty tourists), wandered around the little back streets and markets of Athens, and did some shopping to get Kailynn replacement clothes. We’ve had a pretty relaxing few days as everyone adjusts to the new timezone and recovers from the trip here. Best of all, amazing friends to enjoy the experience with!
On our last day in Thailand we spent time seeing more of the city. We took the river ferries to get around and visited a Buddhist temple, the Royal Palace, the “Reclining Buddah”, walked through Chinatown, and of course, more markets. The night market was very cool. Organized chaos but a lot of fun. We had some street food, and then headed back to the hotel to get ready for the flight home.
The flight home was a long one. We were up for about 24 hours including a stop in Taiwan. But we made it back to LA to see Kenzie and then we all headed home to Portland.
Jodi and I had a blast! We’re exhausted, and I think we need a vacation to recover from our vacation, but we saw so much and had some great experiences along the way!
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