We arrived in Rovinj on Wednesday and it was so cute! We hopped off the bus with all of our stuff and had to wait for a ferry to take us to Katarina Island, where our hotel was located. Upon arrival, we got our hotel room assignment info, waited for our luggage to be brought up from the ferry, then headed to our rooms. Overall, it was a beautiful and quiet hotel setting, and I had a nice balcony overlooking the garden area, which included some seagull 'regulars.'
That evening, we enjoyed a decent buffet dinner in the hotel, which included a self-service ice cream bar, which was nice. It was a mellow evening--I just hung out in my room and made a plan for the next day, which was what they referred to as a "vacation from your vacation"...a free day in Rovinj...which absolutely had to include laundry for me!
The next day, Thursday, I rolled out of bed, got ready, and headed back down to the hotel restaurant to have breakfast--it was PACKED and I could barely find a table. Note to self, when there's a hotel restaurant with a patio and good weather--arrive early! After heading back to my room to grab my day bag and laundry, I walked down to the dock and waited with some of my tourmates for the ferry to Rovinj.
I was on my own, and my mission was to do my laundry, then have lunch (calamari!) and set out in search of a geocache, magnet, and wine. It was hot, but I wandered around and took in the sights. I spent a good 15 minutes trying to find a geocache outside a small museum, but gave up and headed back down to near where the ferry dropped me off. I bumped into a couple from the tour group, and mentioned I was (now) searching for a different geocache, which they offered to help me find! Well, this one was especially challenging because it involved climbing down stairs on a seaside cliff, then searching through a cave. We came up empty, and given the app showed that the most recent seeker also came up empty, I was convinced the cache had been stolen. Oh well!
After walking around in the heat a bit more, we headed back to the dock to catch the ferry back to our hotel on the island. Later, we met our fellow tourmates in the lobby then out on the patio for the traditional Rick Steves happy hour. For this one, we toasted our tour bus driver, with whom we would be parting ways the next day in Slovenia, where he lives. One of the tour members hand-made a beautiful card for him and for our tour guide, which we all signed with our thanks and well wishes.
We then headed to the ferry to Rovinj for dinner, which was really cool. The weather was beautiful and we sat out on the patio, which was nice because we got to enjoy the sunset. The meal had multiple courses, was centered around seafood, and the presentation was really cool. After dinner, some of us took the long walk back to the dock, which was fun. I was surprised at how hoppin it was! Everybody was out enjoying the evening. We then headed back to the hotel via ferry for the final time.
On Friday after breakfast, we packed up, checked out of our hotel, headed down to the dock and on to the ferry to take us back to Rovinj to meet up with our bus driver to head to Slovenia. We arrived in Ljubljana and met with a local guide who took us around for a bit. We got to enjoy samples from a few restaurants and then had free time to go explore on our own. I hung out with the couple I had tried to find a geocache with in Rovinj and we were determined to find one in Slovenia. After a bit of clunky Google Maps navigation and trying to decipher the hint on the Geocaching app--SUCCESS! We then headed to a rooftop bar our guide had told us about to enjoy a drink and the views, then walked around the outdoor market a bit before heading to the bus for our final ride with our fun bus driver.
We rode the bus to Lake Bled, which is just beautiful! After getting off the bus, getting our luggage, and saying goodbye to our driver, we headed to our rooms for the evening. The rooms were "okay," but the A/C and wifi were terrible. However, I did enjoy a nice dinner in the hotel restaurant downstairs later, then one of my tourmates joined me to eat the rest of my pork belly that I couldn't finish...but of course, I had room for dessert (chocolate mousse).
The next morning, we all met in the lobby and walked across the street to board some boats that would take us to the little island on the lake. It was a bit overcast and chilly, but what a cool experience! We arrived on the island, walked up a ridiculous amount of stairs, then into a cute little church where our guide gave us a bit of a history lesson. We were then all encouraged to make a wish and ring a bell by pulling on rope...that was a hoot. I then hit the gift shop where I picked up a tshirt, magnet, and cute little plate.
When we arrived back to the hotel area, we had free time, and I chose to walk around the lake a bit, knowing I would be sitting on three planes the following day and heading home. I wanted to soak up as much as possible before going back to reality...which included a very yummy vanilla, raspberry, chocolate chip ice cream cone! I then ran into a tourmate with whom I had already joined for a few cocktails throughout the trip, and we found a cafe where we enjoyed a light lunch and a drink. (I think this was my 4th Aperol Spritz in two weeks??)
Later that day, we met again in the lobby to figure out transportation and head to a little restaurant for our final dinner together. The dinner was okay...cute restaurant, but the steak was overcooked and they served us a different dessert than what our guide had promised (traditional Bled cream cake), but it was still a nice dinner and great send off. We presented our guide with a handmade, group-signed card, and he presented US with gifts--finishing salt from the Adriatic! After wrapping up dinner, we said some goodbyes, knowing we were taking different vehicles or walking back to the hotel, and some of us had to get up at a ridiculous hour for early flights home.
The trip home on Sunday was crazy and exhausting as per usual with these tours. 3 flights...running through airports (including to shuttle busses that connected terminals)...and the inability on the final flight. Plus, I thought I would be pushing it to take the following day (Monday) off, but lesson learned. I had blocked my calendar for the morning to go pick up George, but I was absolutely drained and should have taken the whole day off.
The vacation hangover is real. I'm already missing Europe and thinking about where I want to go next!
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