The trip to Croatia was a success. The town of Opatija (pronounced Opa-tia), turned out to be somewhat of a tourist destination (for Europeans; we were really the only Americans around: and I can say this with relative certainty because I'm pretty sure Randy talked to 94, no 96, percent of the other hotel guests--not that there's anything wrong with that...). It was fun swimming on the Adriatic, which, as it turns out, is very salty (I normally sink like a stone, but I actually found myself floating at one point).

We also spent time walking along the boardwalk/shore, looking at the concession stands (you'll note that tourist crap is tourist crap, no matter the language or culture or price), and eating ice cream. Croatian ice cream, and cuisine in general, seemed to be very Italian: one night we had pizza (very good mind you), and it seemed much the same as the Italian style. On a small side point, you wouldn't believe how many pizzerias I saw as we drove through Italy. I would guess there were 5-10 per town (and by town, I'm talking town with 200 homes kind of town).

The views from the restaurants (above) were quite good (all overlooking the sea), but we did discover an interesting thing about Croatian culture (or perhaps Opatijian culture): they really charge you for everything. You want a side dish with your main course? Forty Kuna (Croatain currency). You want a fork? Ten Kuna. You want to look at the sea? Four Kuna. You get the idea. In truth, the food was quite reasonably priced (for a tourist spot, and small portions nonwithstanding); though it wasn't for the Croatians/Slovenians/Eastern Europeans (we found that they make very little money; coming to such a tourist spot would be a major extravagance).

We had a pretty good view from out hotel room (which I found for a song); the sea could even be spotted (barely, and not shown in the picture) from our balcony. The view from the hotel's terrace (below) was even better. See Sarah's blog for a picture of our hotel.

(Above, from our balcony; below, from the hotel's terrace)

We pulled in late last night, returning from our quick trip to Croatia (seems weird to say, "quick trip to Croatia", but, in reality, it was only 500 miles from here). We didn't end up stopping in Venice, instead taking the long way home (mostly to avoid the horrible congetstion that is central Italy/Venice/Milan--we were stuck there for 5 hours on the way down). This long way took us through 7 countries (in one day; again, weird): Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, and France. Oddly, I'm not even sure that I've been to seven states in one day. By far, my favorite part of the drive was the Dolomite section (seen below) of the Italian Alps (in northern Italy). The extended, jagged peaks and precipitous valleys are different than mountians I've seen before, and, apparently, this place is a mecca for mountain climbers and winter-sports enthusiasts.

We even passed through a town called Cortina d'Ampezzo, home to the 1956 Winter Olympics, and location of several movie productions, including The Pink Panther and For Your Eyes Only (a James Bond film). Cortina seemed like a great town, and is, apparently, one of the three most exclusive mountain resorts in Europe. Naturally, we didn't (or should I say, couldn't...) stay there. From the car, the best I could manage is the bad picture below.

In fact, we didn't really stay anywhere. Most of the pictures I'm posting (regarding yesterday; as in, everything that's not Croatia) were either taken through the car windshield (on the go) or at rest stops. Note the spectacular scenery at even the rest stops. Although, at one point, we did stay in a traffic jam. Note the people are actually OUT of their cars. At this point, we hadn't moved anywhere in about 15 minutes. All told, we were stuck for about on hour. When the cars started to move again, the cause of the jam was nowhere to be found. It was as if nothing had happened. Crazy Italians.

(Above, rest stop in Swizterland. Below, rest stop in northern Italy).

All in all, it was a pretty good trip; though, I'd have to say the best part was when Randy and Jan decided to pay for everything as an early anniversary present for me and Sarah... Quite frankly, we are just very blessed in general. Thanks be to God.