Chalfont Holidays

Saturday 27th August      Opatija to Cres
Breakfast was another excellent buffet with varieties to satisfy all tastes. At 11.00am on the dot our taxi arrived to take us to the dock where the M S Dalmatia was moored. It was not one of the older wooden boats that the brochure had shown and that we had enjoyed on the first cruise, but a brand new purpose built ship with much more spacious accommodation than we were used to from our first cruise. You will get an idea of the amenities from the quick photo tour I did as you will see below.
As we were sailing out from Opatija lunch was served. At the end of lunch the Captain sent a message that bad weather was forecast and we would head for Cres, and nor Krk, because there was a more sheltered anchorage there. Because of this the whole of our itinerary was reversed, which we decided did not matter at all. There was a swimming stop when we reached the island of Cres but before we reached Cres town. We were a bit surprised that we moored off a beach well used by textiles, but this did not stop us all going for a nude swim, and those on the beach showed not the slightest concern. In the early evening we moored in the bustling centre of Cres town. We went on a walk exploring the Franciscan friary before choosing a harbourside restaurant for our evening meal.

   

   

   

   

   

Sunday 28th August      Cres to Losinj
As we enjoyed breakfast in the salon the town and countryside of Cres floated past the windows! We now motored towards the island of Losinj. We made a swimming stop mid morning but the wind was getting up and there was a current so only the stronger swimmers were brave enough to go in. One lady was finding it difficult to swim back to the boat, and one of the men had to do out with a rope to help her back. After lunch the Captain sent a message that a storm was brewing and that he would like to go straight to port. So in the early afternoon we arrived at Mali Losinj, a pretty town, with a nice promenade, a big Lidl, and a parish church on top of a hill.

       

Monday 29th August      Losinj to Molat
Quite a long sail this morning with lovely views of various islands including Ilovic, the island of flowers, but we did not stop there. We moored off a remote bay in the island of Molat for a late morning swim, lunch, and a long afternoon sun bathing and swimming session. The dinghy took some of us ashore and we were able to do a nude walk on the island. We then made the short trip around a headland to the little village of Molat. Most of us took a walk along the one village street and up to the church with a seperate bell tower. Tonight we enjoyed the "Captains Dinner" on board because there were few eating opportunities in Molat. The ship's chef did us proud and the meal was excellent, except that the Captain did not join us. However some of the party who declined the "Captains Dinner" found the "Mare Grill" where they were fed and entertained royally until late in the evening.

       

Tuesday 30th August      Molat to Zadar
The sailing programme was the same as yesterday with a lengthy sail, a long lunch and swimming opportunity, and then a short journey to Zadar. We moored alongside the city walls beyond which was the old city. All our stops so far had been on islands but Zadar is on the mainland and was the ancient capital of Dalmatia. It has many fragmented Roman remains but had suffered much damage from 72 allied bombing raids during the Second World War. We spent some time in the Forum an open square with some Roman remains, churches built from Roman stone, and some dreadful blocks of flats from the communist era. Zadar has a fine sea front promenade with two interesting features: the Sea Organ - organ pipes activated by the waves, and "Greeting to the Sun" - a solar-powered light display.

   

   

   

Wednesday 31st August      Zadar to Rab
We made an early start from Zadar and found a delightful mid-morning swimming stop in a sandy bay. It was here that I tried out the snorkel that we had bought and had the amazing experience of swimming along amid a whole shole of small fish, and the exploring the underwater "rock gardens". We had another swimming stop in the afternoon and although shallow water swimming was limited by the many sea urchins, it was interestung to explore their domain with aid of the snorkel.
And so we got to Rab, perhaps the most beautiful town so far. It is a perfectly preserved late medieval town sited on a slender peninsular along which are the four campaniles (bell towers) composing Rab's unique skyline.

   

       

Thursday 1st September      Rab to Krk
The fortifications of Rab were gliding past the salon windows as we eat our breakfast. We made two swim stops this day. At the first some were able to go ashore and explore a cave. At the second we were moored off shore from a naturist camp site. The more able swimmers went ashore and explored, but there were strong currents and not everybody braved the sea. And so to Krk, our last island stop, we moored below the castle walls. We had an enjoyable evening exploring the old town, including the recently discovered Roman mosaic.

   

   

   

   

Friday 2nd September      Krk to Opatija
And so we commenced the last section of our voyage. We made a long stop at a pleasant cove for our final lunch at sea and swim. Then after a long delay while our boat the MS Dalmatia was refuelled, we went ashore to spend the evening back in Opatija. We were very happily surprised that Katarina herself had come to meet us along with Anamaria and Sonia. We found a delightful restaurant in a quiet side street and enjoyed one last Croatian meal on the terrace. There was no possibility of a peaceful last nights sleep, with a disco in a club on the dockside playing until 3.00am, but the disco was enjoyed by some of our party.

   

   

Saturday 3rd September      Opatija to Stansted
On request we got up early to pack before breakfast. After our last breakfast on board we took our bags out to the waiting taxi, who would take them to the Katarina Line office. We had the morning to explore some more of Opatija and were to meet back at the Katarina Line office at 1.00pm. We took Katarina's advice and explored the delightful Park Angiolina with its collection of exotic shrubs and flowers. We then visited the Villa Angiolina which houses the Museum of Tourism: a wonderful reminder of the early days of seaside tourism. In the nineteenth century Opatija was for the Austro-Hungarian royalty what Brighton was for the Prince Regent in England. Then, after a short jewelry buying interval, went for coffee and cakes in the Hotel Milenij, which was very elegant and with a great view.
The Chalfont Holidays party met up again at the Katarina Line office for our taxi ride back to Ljubljana. We had been fearful that we might be held up with heavy traffic on this last Saturday of the school holidays, but the journey was speedy and uneventful. We had plenty of time for a meal at Ljubljana airport before taking our easyJet flight back to Stansted.