One if By Land Two If By Sea

Category: Travel 2024

  • Heel of Italy 2024

    Heel of Italy 2024

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    Having put True East to bed for the winter in Corfu, we decided to explore some of the heel of the Italian boot in anticipation of next summers cruise.

    We took the ferry from Greece over to Brindisi in Italy where we spent a night at the Neptune Hotel. Of course are first stop was at the port to inspect the prospective facilities for a stop next summer, Approdo delle Indie was the choice marina. We could spend a couple of days in this lovely city.

    We rented a car (seventh road trip this season) in Brindisi and headed south along the coast to Casalabate, then inland to Lecce. This is one of the highlights of the Puglia region of Italy. The next day, we visited the fortified village of Acaya then on to San Foca. The marina here would be a potential stop; however, it quite far from the city. Continuing on down the coast, we stopped at Roca Vecchia with it’s interesting natural pools then on to Torre dell’ Orso and Ortranto where we spent the night.

    In Otranto we found the operator of a small boat rental that also controlled a couple of slips in this crowded port, he promised us a spot on our return. Otranto is a charming city and popular tour stop. Sure enough, we encountered Alessandro, our friend from Florence leading a tour. We would meet up again in Matera where we had time to have dinner together.

    Back on the road, we stopped at the Bagno Roman sea baths at Santa Cesarea…what great construction. We made many stops along the coast as we worked out way down to Leuca. Here we found a very fine marina that would definitely be a stop on our way to Sicilla in 2026. Continuing on our next stop was Gallipoli were we spent the night at Palazzo Flora and it was a true Palazzo.

    We continued up the inside of the heel to Taranto for lunch with a stop to play mini golf at La Buca, pretty grim course. Frankly, we did not find this part of Puglia very interesting and decided we would bypass the Gulf of Taranto headed east.

    Headed inland we stopped at the terraced city of Locorondo described as the prettiest little town in Puglia. Here we started to see the famous cone shaped stone houses known as “trulli”. They are constructed without mortar so they can be disassembled when the tax collector is coming. The next town was Alberobello that is the epicenter of the trulli construction…magical.

    On to Matera, what I would call an upside down city. The dwellings were literally carved into the side of the cliffs. In 1952, the population was evacuated due to the poor living conditions. Now many of the dwellings have been renovated, new utilities installed and the city has been rejuvenated. Be prepared to do a lot of climbing.

    From Matera we headed back to the coast at Bari. After a few hours of wandering the city, we decided to head south to Monopoli a city that was highly recommended to us. It was a fine walled city; however, the marine facilities were very disappointing. The next day we headed back to the airport at Bari making a stop along the way at Polignano where they had a fine marina we would use next summer.

    Overall Puglia was a very underrated area we would be pleased to return again.

    Italian Heel 2024

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  • TE Croatia Return 2024

    TE Croatia Return 2024

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    Crossing over from Italy our first stop was Pula in Croatia. Here we met Jane and Carla who would cruise with us down to Zadar. From Pula we took a short cruise over to the Briljuni National Park where Tito maintained his summer home. A beautiful island with a golf course, zoo and some guest accommodations.

    With an early start we proceeded south to the cute little town of Osor. We needed to arrive for the 9am draw bridge opening. While we made the bridge opening as Osor, we were not so lucky at Mali. With the bridge closed till 5 pm, we decided to go around the bottom of Losing Island to visit Mali. Mali is one more of the many pleasant ports in the Croatian Islands.

    Our next stop was Rab, with time to spare we decided to circumnavigate the island. The west side is boring, but the east side is well protected by the neighboring island of Dolin. ACI has a nice marina in the city, the hilly park being the main attraction here. Continuing south, we took a side trip up the Zavratinca gorge before stopping at Nin for lunch on route to Zadar. Nin is a small island only accessible by tender. Zadar is one of the major cities in Croatia and one of the charter boat capitals with over 500 boats available. Jane and Carla left us here and continued their travel adventure thru Europe. Although we could not watch the US Presidential debate, we did read the disastrous results in the am.

    Kristi and Gabrielle joined us in Zadar and cruised with us to Split. First stop was Rogoznica, known primarily for its great marina and promenade around the well protected bay. Stari Grad on the island of Hvar was the next stop. Fell in love with this port and used it a base to explore the island. Hvar city is very well known as it can accommodate cruise ships, but not a place for recreational boaters.

    From Stari Grad, we headed back up to Trogir. This is a walled city that we visited several time. Around the corner is Split, another principal city that we underestimated on our first visit. Sadly Kristi and Gabrielle left us in Split. However, a few days later Steve and Tiffany joined us for a cruise down to Dubrovnik.

    Leaving Split we stopped at Supetar on the island of Brac, lots of swimming in the relatively warm waters. The lovely walled city of Korcula was our next stop. The city is a great walk around the wall and is ringed with restaurants and gift shops. Here we rented a car and took a nice tour of the island. We even stumbled across the monument to Main Caparin, the pioneer vintner of the Posip wines.

    On our way to Dubrovnik we stopped again at Gastro Mare marina and restaurant. Once again a wonderful five course meal and good friendship. From here we were able to tender to Ston, the crazy walled city that’s missing the city.

    Dubrovnik is so well known there is not much to say except ‘where did they get all the stones?’ Here we spent our last days with Steve and Tiffany, we are always sad to see our guest leave us but know they will continue their adventure.

    It was now late September and the weather was changing to cooler and windier. Two stops in Montenegro at Kotor and Bar and then a long run past Albania to arrive back at Corfu. Here we met with the team and reviewed the works to be carried out over the winter.

    By now we had decided to come back to the Adriatic for one more summer. As that would include the west coast of Italy, we decide to go explore this next area before the summer travels ended.

    TE Retun to Croatia 2024

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  • TE Italy 2024

    TE Italy 2024

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    Arriving from Tanzania, we drove to Monfalcone to get continue on True East. On route we stayed at the wonderful Castello de Roncade, an estate owned by only two families over the last 400 years. Naturally we loaded up on a few cases of wine.

    Returning to the boat, we found the yard had done a really excellent job of refinishing the bottom and tuning the props. After a night on the dock we headed for Trieste. While the dockage was less than ideal, we did love the city.

    With some extra time on our hands before meeting guests in Venice, we decided to go back down the coast to Slovenia because we loved it so much the first time. We visited Koper for a lunch stop and then on to Portoroz, unremarkable. Next day a short hop to one of our favorite cities, Piran. Dan will never forget the carbonara served here.

    Next we headed to Italy, stopping in Grado, very much a resort town with a carousel and lots of beach. On to Punta Faro on the edge of the Marono Lagoon, another resort town. At the Miami boat show we had met the owners of Marina del Cavallino, so stopping at their marina was a must. This great father and son team showed us the area and recommended taking the tender into Burano. This was about a 10 mile ride thru the Venetian lagoon to this colorfully little island town. Lunch at Riva Rosa was wonderfully classical Italian…Mamma Mia!

    On to Venice where we stayed on the east end of the Island and enjoyed walking the city and visiting the Biennale Art festival. Our Barcelona friends Oriol and Eric joined us in Venice for a long weekend trip to Rimini, poor Tomas forgot to set his alarm clock. Along the way, we stopped for a night at Chioggia the southern flood barriers is located, a massive structure. We were surprised to find offshore oil rigs off the coast here, now abandoned and being dismantled. Lots of swims, good food and wine along this leg of the cruise. What a wonderful surprise to see not one but two flocks of flamingoes flying towards Venice!

    After dropping off Oriol and Eric, Marcia managed to find another mini golf. Rimini turned out to be a fun walking city with the river running thru. From there, we had an amazingly calm crossing back to Croatia landing in Pula.

    TE Italy 2024

  • Tanzania Safari 2024

    Tanzania Safari 2024

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    Leaving Zanzibar we flew to Msembe via Dar es Salam and were met by our guide from the Hodi Hodi Bush camp. Yes, its the same Hodi Hodi where Julia partenered with Rex to create a very special place at the edge of the Ruaha National Park. The park cover 7,809 square miles and is served by a few lodges with a total of 153 rooms.

    The Hodi Hodi Lodge has 12 huts on land owned by the local Maassi village….with a 75 year lease. Every detail of the facility was built by local craftsmen using native materials and culminated a life long dream for Rex who was raised and spent his entire career in East Africa. The lodge has an concession from the local village for 75,000 acres of exclusive use.

    Our experience here was clearly the highlight of the trip. First, we were the only guests as this was slightly off season. Second, from the moment we were met at the airport, the safari adventure started as we drove to the camp. The Hodi Hodi vehicles are extremely rugged 1990’s Land Rovers where only the essentials work. Our guide had encyclopedic knowledge of the wildlife and the territory. Over the next five days, Marcia kept a list of the wildlife, I think the only one we missed was a rhino.

    Ruaha is a very different park than most safari parks in Africa in that the animals are not migratory. This is much more like being with families of animals in their home. It was also a great pleasure to have a personal guide in an area with very few other vehicles. This unique experience is highly recommended.

    From Ruaha, we flew to Arusha via Dar es Salaam. We were met by Tanya’s partner Sululu who would be our guide for the next couple of weeks. In Arusha, Dan got a chance to see several of the projects Tanya’s NGO Terrawatu has sponsored. A visit to Arusha National Park gave us a chance to do a walking safari thru this beautiful landscape.

    It was then on to the Serengeti arriving at Karibu, Tanzania. We stayed in a tent camp and spent our days guided by Sululu through various parts of the part. As this was still the dry season, we did not experience the great migrations, but got to see every kind of mammal and bird resident in Africa.

    We then drove on the the Ngorongoro Crater which provided another aspect of life in wild. This crater is the result of a collapsed mountain as opposed to a caldera. In our safari vehicle, we joined the line of vehicles descending into the crater. The crater is huge, 126 square miles with a huge lake at the center. The wildlife is this crater does not leave the crater similar to what we experienced at Ruaha. We were entertained by the behavior of two mature male lions and three younger males as they played out their dominance within several feet of us.

    Leaving Ngorongoro we spent a couple of day at the wonderful coffee plantation Gibbs Farm Hotel in Karatu. Wonderful accommodations surrounded by fabulous gardens. We then drove back to Arusha and stayed in the city before heading back to Zanzibar where we caught our flight back to Venice via Doha.

    Tanzania Safari 2024

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  • Zanzibar 2024

    Zanzibar, Tanzania 2024

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    Zanzibar is an island off the east coast of Africa, about half way down the coast. It has been occupied by the Portugal, Oman, Germany and most recently England. Today it is part of Tanzania. With a population of about 760,000 it is primarily Muslim.

    Our introduction to Tanzania comes from our friend and neighbor Tanya Pergola who has a long history in the country and runs an NGO there. We spent a week in Zanzibar before moving on the the mainland where we spent several more weeks.

    Arriving well into the evening we were met at the airport with a driver to take us to the charming beachfront Hodi Hodi lodge on the east coast of the island. Julia, our hostess and East African native, built this seven room hotel about twenty years ago using native materials and labor. As there were few guests during our stay, we had lots of time for Julia to orient us to the island.

    The east coast has a lovely sandy beach; however, when the tide goes out the depth is only a foot our so out to the reef about a mile off shore. During this low tide period hundreds of locals engage in fishing and seaweed harvesting.

    In order to enjoy some snorkeling we were joined by Belin, a fellow guest at the hotel, and taxied up to the boats to Mnemba Island. The island itself is owned by Bill Gates and is off limits, but there is snorkeling on the surrounding reefs. The scene was rather chaotic with many boats and few facilities. At the extreme north end of the island is Nungwi Beach where most of the tourist hotel are located. Major new hotels are being built by Chinese companies on many parts of the island.

    One highlight of our stay was the Shambaland amusement facilities with its miniature golf. We managed to play in four or five countries during the summer. The owner, Luigi, was a delightful character. While many of the resorts where exclusive, we did talk our way into Ocean Paradise for lunch. Here we paid the bill and starting walking down the beach to our hotel, hotel security came chasing after Dan insisting he return to the hotel to pay the bill at a different location….Dan kept walking.

    On the 23 July, we headed to the airport and off to our first safari.

    Leaving Hodi Hodi, we had our driver takes us thru the middle of the island, out to Upendo Beach on the lower east side for lunch and then into Stonetown at our hotel. This gave us a chance to see the agriculture on the island, primarily rice paddies and banana plantations. While Zanzibar was once a ‘spice’ island, that is now primarily a tourist attraction.

    While Stonetown is a World Heritage site, little of its colonial heritage remains. We stayed at the Serena hotel on the beach on the west side of the island. Each night at dusk we could see hundred of open wooden fishing dories, each with a crew of about a dozen men, go out to sea. At night it looked like there was a city several miles offshore, a scene created by the lights on the fishing boats. In the early morning the boat were return and head for the fish market. Dan visited the fish market and found that most of the catch were a mackerel type fish used mostly to create a fish sauce for export.

    Chumbe Island off the south west of Zanzibar is a private marine reserve with a lodge and a dozen room. We got a tour and later had dinner with the director back at our hotel. A charming spot with good snorkeling.

    Zanzibar 2024

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  • Italy & Slovenia Road Trip 2024

    Italy & Slovenia Road Trip 2024

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    We watched the boat hauled and inspected the bottom and running gear. It was the right decision to have the bottom sanded and painted with the props sent out to be tuned. Expect performance to return to original specifications.

    Into the rental car and off to Slovenia with our first stop in Ljubljana. What a wonderful surprise this small capital city turned out to be. Great architecture, food, wine and people…..and spotless. Wonderful Puppet Museum and Castle in the city. Next stop was the famous Lake Bled, disappointing facilities but great natural beauty. However, we did get to play miniature golf.

    On route to Balzano we passed thru the spectacular Kranjska Gorge that runs for many miles. Passed from Slovenia to Italy with a small piece of Austria thrown in. Quick stops in Sillian and Brixen, both lovely small mountain villages. Blazon is a small mountain town where we stayed in a quaint lodge next to a magnificent villa. Continuing thru the spectacular Dolomites mountains we arrived at Borgo Valsugana.

    From there we visited Arte Sella, an amazing art park where all of the sculptures are outdoors and formed from natural materials. Dozens of artistic presentations in all shapes and sizes.

    From there it was on to Verona with its Roman colosseum and Grand Opera. Carmen with hundreds of cast, horses, etc….what a show. Terrible miniature golf course. On to Padua with its magnificent town hall unlike any we have ever seen. A two story affair with retail on the street level and an enormous open hall above.

    Our last overnight was in Bassano del Grappa with its great covered bridge and the start of a canal system parallel to the river. A lovely city with lots of fine retail shops for Marcia.

    Back to Venice airport for our flight to Zanzibar.

    North Italy road trip 2004

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  • TE Croatia North 2024

    TE Croatia North, Slovenia and Italy 2024

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    We finished up in Zagreb and were able to meet Robert and Jason there and we all drove back to the boat outside the industrial cit of Rijeka. Along the route we stopped at the Griffin winery, had lunch and stocked up. After a night on the boat, we headed off to Krk island, we are still trying to pronoun that.

    Dan grilled chicken wings on the boat and after getting smoked out put on a snorkel, soon followed by a swim. On to the cute little down of Osor with it’s draw bridge that opens twice a day. Another 50 miles or so takes us to Pula, Croatia back on the mainland. Pula has one of the largest Roman amphitheaters, now used as a performance center. Robert and Jason left us here in Pulja after a great visit.

    North Croatia is really out of the typical charter boat cruising grounds so once we passed Pula we saw very few boats other than locals. The marina operators up here were surprised to see a visiting boat, forget an American motorboat. A short hop away we stayed at the Brijuni National Park, Tito’s former summer residence. We rented a golf cart and toured the island with its hotel and huge guest houses, golf course and zoo. The following day we circumnavigated the island and continued on to Rovinj with its monumental clock tower. The old city sits on a promontory with limestone rocks carved with steps and paths for bathers. After spending well over an hour trying to locate the harbormasters office we gave up and ended up staying for free….gotta love that price!

    Our last stop in Croatia was Porec, a popular resort city with the adjacent small island of Svelte Nikola its with many upscale resorts. Here we checked out of Croatia as our next stop would be in Slovenia.

    On the way to Piran, we tucked into the fortress city of Novigrad and fueled up. Piran, Slovenia is beautiful with its fortress high on hilltop, quite a hike. We liked everything about the city and were sorry we only stayed a day and planned another visit on the way back south. We were now getting close to the end of the first half of the boating summer as we would arrive at Marina Lepanto in Monfalcone, about half way between Trieste and Venice.

    Our plan was to leave the boat boat here from 15 July to 24 August during the height of the European vacation season and the hottest weather. While the boat was there we arranged to have the bottom sanded smooth and painted and to have the props removed and sent out to be tuned. True East had gotten a little sluggish.

    It was now off to a road trip through Slovenia and northern Italy before we head off to Zanzibar and Tanzania.

    TE North Croatia, Slovinia and Italy 2024

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  • TE Croatia Middle 2024

    TE Croatia Middle 2024

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    Our Barcelona friend Anna and Marcia’s sister in law Cheryl joined us in Trogir for the journey up to Zadar. Leaving Trojir we headed for Skradin where we would visit the magical Krka National Park with its multitude of waterfalls, lakes and wooden boardwalks. On the way up the river we passed oyster and mussel farms and stopped at a cute floating ‘farm stand’ for fresh oysters and mussels.

    Next stop was a marina in the Kornati National Park on Murter with swim stops along the way….the water was warming and now in the mid 70’s. On to Otok Zut where we stayed in the ACI Marina. ACI has several dozen marinas in Croatia and this was not one of their best. We then headed around the north end of Kornat, about 15 miles long and run south on the east side. The southern end, including a number of small island on its eastern side form the Kornati National Park. Swim, snorkel, anchor up, drink wine, etc.

    Traveling up the west side of Dugi we spent the night at Veil Rat before heading into Zadar with a lunch stop anchored up on the west side of Ugljan Island. After a day exploring the city with its magical water organ powered by waves, Anna and Cheryl departed. We had ordered a water pump in Trogir that had not arrive when we left, so we doubled back to get our backup pump installed, then headed back to Zadar.

    Headed North again, it was a 54 nautical mile run to the walled city of Rab with its great fortress. It was then on to Rijeka or so we thought. This is the fourth largest city with a population of about 100,000 and the waterfront is totally industrial. We decided to go to the neighboring smaller city of Opatija with its ACI marina. Arriving about 5 pm, we were assigned a space with a shore power plug we had never seen before with 5 pins instead of 3. As we planned to leave the boat for another road trip, we needed an adapter. At 10 pm an electrician showed up and made us a custom adapter, things we love.

    On the road again with our first stop at the Pitvice Lakes National Park…many of these parks were created by Tito and are spread throughout the country, many with campground or inexpensive lodging. This was another park with magnificent waterfalls and a great boardwalk around the park. Continuing on to Zagreb we crossed the fertile plains of Croatia that are mostly agriculture.

    What fascinated us most about Zagreb was its Museums, of Broken Relationship, of Illusion, of Hangovers, etc. Palaces, old world charm, great food and the wines! Time to get back to the boat.

    TE Croatia Middle 2024

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  • TE Croatia South 2024

    TE Croatia South 2024

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    At Port Montenegro we cleared customs and headed up the 45 nautical miles to Dubrovnik, Croatia where we would clear into the EU and Schengen. We passed by the city and headed around the point to the Frapa Marine on the back side of the city. We were directed to first go to the customs dock, a pretty rough jetty. On entering the office Dan was immediately charged with crime of passing between the island and the city, despite there being no signs or indications on the charts. $200 later he starting the process..go to the harbormaster a few blocks away, get papers then go to port police on the other side of the building up the stairs and give up papers, then go to customs on the other side of the building and get new papers and then you can go to the marina that is on the other side of the same building.

    The old city of Dubrovnik is a short bus ride, or for Marcia an long walk. This is a wonderfully restored or maintained, hard to tell, walled city straight out of Game of Thrones. It has now become one of the most crowded cities in Europe; however, it is still delightful.

    Our friend Lisa joined us here for the cruise north to Split. Our first stop was at Sipanska on the island of Otok where we anchored up for lunch and a swim. On to Gastro Mare in Broce where we had a wonderful meal prepared by a renowned chef Ante Bjelancic who is also great fun. The service was interrupted by Lisa getting locked in the shower…longer story.

    The next day was 25 mile run along the island of Mijet that is mostly a National Park with crystal clear waters and hiking trails. On to the charming walled city of Korcula on the island of same name. This is little Dubrovnik without the wall to wall crowds. Once again very nice docking facilities Med moor styled. Throughout these island there are thousands of miles of stone wall most of which must have been built in ancient times.

    From there it was a 70 mile run to the Lav Marine in Podstrana a cab ride away from Split. Lisa departed to continue her adventures and we rented a car for another of our road trips. We headed back south down the coast to have some famous Moli Stan oysters and visit the walled city of Ston. Unlike most walled cities that all full to the brim, this is mostly walls with a single fortress on the mountain top. On the lovely city of Mostar in Bosnia with its famous bridge. While the city was heavily destroyed in the civil war, it has been beautifully restored.

    Continuing up thru the mountains of Bosnia, we reach the capital of Sarajevo. After spending a few hours wandering around, we decided it was time to move on, not much of interest here. Next stop was Travnik, a charming smaller city up in the mountains with its great fortress. It was then back to Split where we spent some time exploring the city before returning to the boat.

    We had a few days before our next guest would arrive so we headed over to the island of Solta on the north end at the village of Maslinica and spend a night. It was a double back but we decided to visit the island of Hvar and docked a Vrboska. We had heard about Stari Grad on the same island but the guides discouraged us from docking there, so we took a cab over. We really like Stari and planned to return there on our way back.

    We next headed to Trojir where we hoped to get a couple of boat issues resolved and were very fortunate to find a good shop at the marina. We also found a delightful city that is closer to the Split airport than Split.

    TE Croatia South 2024

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  • TE Albania and Montenegro 2024

    TE Albania and Montenegro 2024

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    We spent about five days in Corfu getting the boat ready and provisioned for the summer season. Clearing customs out of Greece turned into a major operation, but our agent handled it well. Our first stop leaving Greece was the port of Orikum in Albania, the countries only port with a marina. It’s a small marina and out of town. The agent there was a little more difficult, but we got it done.

    Our first guest were Jess and Sam Osborne who we first met in the Northwest. They joined us in Orikum and helped with staightening out a number of boat issues, thank you again. Moving on we stopped at the dreaded Durres….we knew this from having visited on our road trip. Albania is filled with hopes and promises…and promises. The coast is really not hospitable to boaters as there are no island or coves, mostly an exposed rocking cliff coast.

    On to Montenegro where we cleared in a Bar, again a confusing process the first time around. The city has a wonderful promenade the length of the beach with bars and cafes, much more relaxed than most Med beaches. The Orthodox church is magnificent…look at the pictures.

    Next stop was Port Montenegro with its large, modern and efficient marina. Jess and I were able to get a couple of boat issues addressed and still had plenty of the time to enjoy the city of Trivet and its sister city of Kotor. After Jess and Sam left us, we rented a car and took a road trip thru Montenegro and Kosavo, both parts of the former Yugoslavia.

    First stop was the charming ancient city of Budva with its fortress and fine waterfront promonade. From there we headed up into the mountains and stopped at Podgorica and then crossing the boarder into Kosavo we spent the night in Pec…not a place we would recommend. On to the capital, Pristina where we were welcomed with open arms as Americas. The US was the first country to recognize the newly independent Kosavo and Bill Clinton is regarded as their savior. The city has one of most interesting library building we have ever seen, we got only a limited view of the interior. Interesting conversations about Kosavo’s vs Albanian’s…Kosavo’s would say we do it and the Albanian’ dream about it.

    We decided to go further up in the mountains and stubbled across the Grand Hotel Belushi..a brand new reproduction of a turn of the last center Grand Hotel. Turns out some brothers made money and decided to do this because they could. First hotel we have seen with a ‘salt cave’, and one of the most remote hotels of its size. Our last stop was the Ostrog Monetary that was dug into the side of a mountain. Marcia made the several mile hike up, Dan used the old man routine and managed a pass to drive up. The drive was then back through the mountains with a stop at the delightful city of Kotor.

    Albania and Montenegro 2024

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