No, this not a WWII thriller. However, there was a lurking enemy of a different sort — fear of COVID. Not only was the disease a threat to phyiscal health, but the uncertainty of where it was, and who was carrying it, and how it was transmitted also created a mental fatigue as well.
We debated the pros and cons of travelling, and of leaving Germany. Finally, a stroke of luck/serindipity was delivered — some of the kids classmates were travelling in Croatia, which was one of the destinations we had in mind. Within a short while, we had booked a few nights in the center of Rovinj and started off via Munich.
We had some rain on the way out which threw off our schedule. We decided that instead of rushing a visit to Bled in Slovenia we would opt for some quality schnitzel in Austria. Chika found a great place, Postwirt’s where had a fantastic meal and some random stares from Austrian types who didn’t appreciate our mask wearing.
Back on the road, the weather had cleared. Some small delays at the border, but nothing exceptional. Our biggest concern would be that for one reason or another we wouldn’t be allowed to cross (especially since none of us had EU passports, only residence permits), but no issues arose. We finally made it into Rovinj — a lovely old-town right on the Adriatic coast. It seemed that our hotel was not accessible by car, so we needed to park fairly far away and drag all our gear across the city. And then up 3 flights of stairs to our flat. But it was a great little duplex with great views over the harbor. And air conditioning (not a usual fare in our German lives). We quickly changed and met our friends for some delicious mediteranean dining, al fresco of course. Overall, food was a great highlight of Rovinj, especially the visit to the winery estate hotel Meneghetti. I have to say, this was one of the highlights of the trip — such great ambience and a super fun meal and wine tasting.
After Rovinj, I felt the need to decompress and chill by the pool (which we didn’t really have in Rovinj, although we could easily walk around the corner and jump straight into the Adriatic.) We opted for a Radisson Group resort in Pula. We had a nice apartment with the beach straight in front of us, and swimming pools (salt water!) to our left and right. It was a nice place to explore, with activities like tennis courts, musical shows, swimming classes, etc. But mainly we just relaxed and enjoyed the pool and the sun — every day was perfect weather.
Finally it was time to start the journey back. I had some business colleagues in Ljubljana, Slovenia who invited us so we set our course. We made plans to visit the limestone caves on the way and almost missed them. We had run into an issue at a small mountain border crossing due to our lack of EU passports. We needed to backtrack to a larger crossing (keeping our fingers crossed that we would be allowed back) which had a longer queue, but we evenutally made it and even got to make it on the tour of the limestone caves (which was excellent). We checked in at the Interncontinental — a nice 5 star experience — especially the breakfast on the top floor in the morning.
Our hosts Daniel and Klavdija were amazing. Ice cream for the boys (and us too), tour through the town, illusion musuem, and lastly a dinner at the castle fort in the center of the city. Even that wasn’t enough, so we met again at their offices in the BTC for some go-kart racing.
All good things must come to a end (or at least a pause), so we needed to make our way back to Germany (which we did without issue). But now I am so ready to start planning our next visit back to Slovenia and Croatia.
