Road to Venice (Day 11, Mar 27)

After another great buffet breakfast (I am trying to behave myself) at Park Hotel, we boarded the bus for our final destination--Venice. Our group was now a cozy dozen and while the original group was not the typical size of 40 or so since we're off-season, we knew everyone by then and it was kind of nice. Our guide was probably glad to get a break by not having to herd as many people around.

We were headed toward the Italian border--the opposite direction of Ljubljana and toward the coast, so the terrain was getting flatter. There were little towns along the way that you could see from the highway. I'd've loved to visit them, but...

My iPhone says this is Ajdovščina.

This is Vrtojba.

We stopped at a rest area in Slovenia (before the above pics were taken) and tragedy struck! It was rainy and wet and when I got off the bus and I pulled a hamstring stepping down. Never did that before and it hurt, but I'm glad it wasn't a joint or tendon problem.

In a couple of hours, we had crossed the Italian border. It seemed an industrial area but that shouldn't surprise me because we aren't far from a few ports (Venice is a major one).

Tapogliano. You can see the Venetian influence in the towers.

We still had a ways to go until Venice, so it was another rest stop and our first Italian one. This one had the espresso bar and baked goods right up front with people ordering their coffee and drinking it at the bar--just like I read Italians do it.

We finally reached Hotel Abbazia at about 1:45 pm. This was a great hotel in a good location (near the train station). It was a converted abbey.

Our room

Wall fountain at the hotel

It was still raining--sometimes heavily--but we went out to explore.

Gondolas

Small bridge--don't know the name.

"Street" scene

Sweet shop

Gondola

Teatro Italia--it was a store.

Fe and the Rialto Bridge

St. Mark's Square clock tower

By the time we reached St. Mark's Square the rain started to let up and we saw some sun. It also started to get windy and colder though, but it was worth the walk.

Fe and St. Mark's Basilica

Close-up of the basilica

Bell Tower, St. Mark's Square

National Library

Columns of St. Mark (left) and St. Theodore (right)

I've mentioned it in other blogs, but we always hit a McDonald's to see what they have that's different. We didn't see too much unusual in Croatia or Slovenia, but we hit the jackpot in Venice.

Sfiziosità, which translates--roughly--to snack. It's a tomato and mozzarella cheese savory pastry.

We did a lot of walking today and I was glad to get back to the hotel since my leg was still hurting. Tomorrow is our guided tour and gondola ride.

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Bled and Ljubljana (Day 10, Mar 26)

Our hotel is only steps away from Lake Bled . So naturally, I was up early to take a walk around the lake. Bled Castle Assumption of Mary Church . You're going to see a lot of these. Bled Castle View of the Julian Alps Sunrise behind the church Crucifix in a carved niche on the side of the mountain. Another view of the church Our hotel (Hotel Park) is the darker building. Not much to look at, but the location was great, the buffet was good, and the room was comfortable. Morning view I'm glad I got up early to do this but while flat and easy, the walk around the lake was longer than I thought at 6 km (3.7 mi). I had to hustle towards the end to make it back in time for breakfast. And I'm not much of a hustler. After breakfast we got on the bus which took us to Bled Castle , the oldest castle in Slovenia. View from the castle Fe and I at another castle viewpoint Inside the castle courtyard. The "Bird of Paradise" is a symbol of ...

Zadar (Day 4, Mar 20)

A lot of bus travel today. We left Opatija about 815 am and drove down to Zadar. With stops, it took about four hours and I'll have to admit that I slept on the bus. Zadar is the oldest continuously inhabited city in Croatia, known for its Roman and Venetian artifacts. It's also a port town, which I only saw through the bus windows as we left. Our tour began walking along the "peninsula" of the Old Town. This was one of our first sights--the boat is ferrying people across the inlet from the Old Town to the residential areas. This circular monument is the Greeting to the Sun . It absorbs light during the day and at night gives off a light show. This is the sound of the Sea Organ . It is really cool. Along the Waterfront Roman artifacts near the Forum Roman Forum with Church of St. Donatus on the left and the Cathedral of St. Anastasia to the right. Fe and a Roman Column We can't get over how there are Roman artifacts everywhere. Queen Jelena Ma...

Venice, Part 2 (Day 12, Mar 28)

So much for hope--it's still raining today. Today we have our guided tour and gondola ride. First we went to Murano island, famous for its glasswork. The glass factory This is only that last bit of what the craftsman did, but he finished this in less than a minute. Murano Lighthouse Rainy square Walking on the platforms (that I thought were for taking pictures). Another leaning tower in Italy--San Giorgio Dei Greci I'm glad we pushed ourselves yesterday to see the square when there was sun because today there was none--the rain was actually worse. We got to the gondolas and while i saw none that were running, they were willing to take us out in the downpour. What really killed it though was that the stone steps you needed to get into the gondola were at least a foot underwater. So we decided to cancel it and we should be getting a refund from Gate 1. We did get to look around the city some and we had a nice lunch and dessert. Fe's tiramisu and...

Adriatic Adventure Time

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