Saturday & Sunday: Ramblin’ on to week two in Croatia

First: Welcome Finn Weafer! Heather’s son arrived on Friday night and it’s so exciting to continue our “family business” with our sons.

Turnover day is always wild. We abandon our yacht so it can be cleaned, then hit crowded grocery stores, do laundry, re-stock the boat, and maybe take a nap.

Last week when Gaffney and I arrived in Šibenik, we visited all the forts. St. Michaels fort, the old one in town, has an amphitheater with about 1500 seats. We walked around it, remarking how cool it would be to see a performance of any kind there. As we walked out, I caught a flyer for some upcoming shows. Robert Plant with his new band Saving Grace, June 20-23. Like, Robert Plant, the singer from Led Zeppelin?!  Count me in!! The 20th would fall on the night of turnover day, so I dug a little deeper. Turns out this shows sold out in hours, and had been sold out for months. I put out some feelers - to the owner of our Air BnB, to our cab/van driver, to our local crew.  All of them told me to be patient, and that if tickets become available, it would be last-minute.

I devised a plan for the evening: dinner for the crew at a great restaurant in Šibenik at 6:30, then a walk to the beach for a swim by 7:30, then hopefully hear from one of my contacts about the show, which starts at 8, but knowing I may not hear from them until the last minute. We had an excellent meal at Pepperocino, where we started the meal with enough cheese and olive oil to feed an advancing Ottoman army. Afterward, we walked south toward the beach, and looking back at Šibenik from this vantage point, her limestone buildings took on a soft yellow glow. We could see St. Michaels fortress, way up on top of the oldest part of the city, lights atop a stage set up for the concert, and maybe the sound of a drummer warming up? By the time we splashed into the bay, the sun was setting in such a way that it looked like 2 suns. And here we were with 2 sons. A good omen.

The water here is a little cloudy (for Croatia standards) on top, for abut 5 feet or so. But when you dive under that, it becomes crystal clear, and much saltier, a trick of physics. We climbed out of the water, and I checked my phone. There was a WhatsApp message with the Robert Plant tickets attached!!!

Gaffney, Finn, and I abandoned Heather at the waterfront to catch a cab home, as she was pretty worn out from a busy provisioning day. The three of us then hit the medieval steps leading up to the fort, hundreds of them. By the time we arrived at the fort, we were covered in sweat. I grabbed a beer and a couple of waters for the boys and we found a few seats as the band played the first few notes of a folky version of the Led Zeppelin classic Ramble On. I cried a little with the joy of the whole thing.   

We woke on Sunday to bright sun and heat, and got right to work filling water jugs, making trips to the ice machine, stocking up on last minute items, generally straightening things up. Our guests soon arrived: Myssie, Yafa, Jeff, and Jodie. We have travelled with everyone but Jodie, and we’re glad to have a fresh face among those who have been with us before. We got them settled into their rooms, untied Forever Young from the dock, and sailed west.

We stopped for lunch and a quick splash at Zladin Otok (island) before making the big jump to the southern end of the Kornati islands. Skipper Ante found a cute little bay to tuck us into, and new guide Finn and I dropped the anchor and attached the stern lines to shore, a bit of a right of passage for new guides. We all swam around the inside of the bay, and Jodie quickly spotted 2 eels. Her keen eyes will be handy this week. We all lingered at the foot of the bay, over a bright white patch of sand surrounded by turtle grass in ridiculously clear water.

Jodie was in the water 5 minutes and found these two eels!

Matea has a way with appetizers. They tend to be fishy spreads on crackers and breads, garnished with herbs often plucked from Ante’s garden. When they’re gone, we tuck into a dinner of sea bass and a neat pile of greens and potatoes, followed by chocolate mousse with a crunchy topping. The winds calmed as stars filled the darkening skies, and we slept to the sea lapping at these rocky shores. 

Hopper