Memories of Venice

Venice was a hectic place to finish our European vacation but just about the most fun. After taking many trips, I have come to realize that the places you go are secondary to the people you travel and share the experiences with. Noel and I did many things in Venice but most importantly, we did them together. We ate, shopped, did some sightseeing and got a little tipsy.

It started with the shopping experience. She is definitely a bad influence but what a great time we had being bad. Jewelery particularly the gorgeous Murano glass necklaces tops the list. The lace purchases in Burano were complemented by the telling of the long history of the lace makers themselves, viewing several pieces of their lace artwork on display and drinking espresso at the post-shopping respite in the garden at the back of the shop.

The meals of Venice were definitely the best of the trip. Dinners at little out of the way places like Enoteca al Volto and the three hour seafood lunch on Burano at Trattoria al Gatto Nero were the stand outs. The service at the later restaurant was fabulous. Our waiter whose family has owned the restaurant since the 1940s was particularly attentive and made many useful menu suggestions. The dessert of the Burano biscuits dipped in a fruity dessert wine was a highlight. He incidentally spoke English with an accent that he latter confessed he attained while studying at the University of Edinburgh.

Of course, we did the tour of the Grand Canal by boat, had a Bellini at Harry's Bar, saw the fabulous mosaics of San Marco as well as the Doge's apartments and other things Venetian too. Although we did not have the romantic experience in Venice in an overpriced gondola ride, we did finish our European vacation with the very James Bond experience. A speedy near dawn ride in an overpriced water taxi through the many rios (water streets of Venice) and across the open waters of the Lagoon to Marco Polo Airport.

Salona

Necropolis

Basilica

Amphitheatre



We departed the boat/cruise today and took a local bus to Salona which is the ancient Roman settlement. Today, the ruins are surrounded by the new city of Solin. The walk about the site took almost 3 hours and it was quite marvelous. This is a truly a hidden gem and well worth the price of admission...about $5 Canadian.

The highlights include an ancient amphitheatre which was sadly mostly dismantled by the Venetians, a theatre and adjoining Temple, necropolis, thermae (Roman baths). Salona was a Roman city reaching its height during the reign of Diocletian (and probably his birth place).

It is also the site of the first Christian colony in Dalmatian. The emperor Diocletian was famous for martyring the local Christians and the first martyr of Salona were Dominus. St. Dominus got his revenge though as the Cathedral of St. Dominus is built over Diocletian's mausoleum and his body is missing too. Hmmmmm?

The exercise work out we got from walking the grounds was quite a direct contrast to the lazying about on the boat over the past few days. Our last pilgrimage was up to the citadel overlooking Hvar town which was a somewhat steep vertical climb up many stairs and a winding incline. However, the reward was our splendid views as we surveyed the lay of the land. It reminded of the Stations of the Cross trek I made on Gozo. Our meal that evening was fish Gregada in the restaurant named Hannibal. This a soup-like dish consisting of fresh fish cooked in olive, white wine, herbs,garlic and potatoes. Just delicious!

Dubrovnik and beyond

Walking the city walls of Dubrovnik


The Stradun from the city walls.

City walls from outside the city
Fountain in
Clock Tower in the old Renaissance square


The order for the good weather finally came in. We had two days of thunderstorms and heavy rains as we toured Dubrovnik. It was quite pretty despite the deluge. We walked the walls of this ancient city which is the best way to see the place. The main street known as the Stradun was a washed limestone finish from many years of pedestrian traffic.

The street was created to join the old Roman town of Ragusa with the newer settlement of the Croats...thus creating the city of Dubrovnik. Ragusa was hence originally an island with a different language and people. There is a mosque, a synagogue, and over a hundred churches and one cathedral. The old middle square has a Venetian palace called Sponza which houses the memorial to the defenders of the city during the aggression of the Bosnians and Montenegrins in 1991, In fact, several houses were destroyed by fire and the city walls were damaged too.

Our city guide was called Paulo, an Italian ex pat who was quite flamboyant and I suspect gay as well. He had dyed blond hair and orange trimmed sunglasses. He spoke animately and passionately about his adopted city with speedy and colorful descriptions and with theatrical gestures. Although he may not have always been factual, he was definitely entertaining.

We wander through the old Franciscan monastery, the orthodox church of St. Nicolas and St. Blasie church who is the patron saint of the city. At the end, we finally exited through a hole in the wall facing the sea to small bar called Burz at land's end to gaze on the towering 25m walls from outside the city. We took an extended walk of the city walls the following day. The occasional downpour did not diminish the grandeur of Dubrovnik.

Today, the sun came up and Noel and I worked on our tans. It was hot enough that I braved a swim in the cool and fresh waters of the Adriatic in Lombarda beach. We are now in Korcula, the reputed home town of Marco Polo. Boy have the locals milked their association with this traveller for all its worth. There is a hotel, restaurant, tower, local house, a bar and several souvenir shops with the Polo adage! We are taking a break from our seafood diet today to try some local beef and lamb specialities.

Makarska, a local Rivieria style resort dating back to the time of the Romans.

Old Style Fiat!

Does this look like a politican rally to you?

Peristyle...Diocletian's Palace Courtyard.

Langostines for dinner! Yum!

Seaside front of Split, Croatia from our sailboat, Eos

The internet is truely a wonder of modern technology. I'm on a boat in the middle of Mljet National Park and surfacing the web on mylaptop on unsecured wireless network signal from adjacent hotel. Just crazy!

When we arrived in Split, the old city town was definitely in a party mood, there was free concert as well as free food consisting of a local beef sausage with bread (the Croatian hot dog) and free beer too. Later, we learned this event was sponsored by a local political candidate who was running for a seat in the regional government. Canadian politicians could learn a thing or two here on how to win/buy votes.

We have sailed from Split to a local resort town of Makarska and then this morning, we sailed onto the National park of Mljet which is just outside Dubrovnik. The weather has been quite varied. It was sunny in Split (and I got slightly burnt while sleeping in a deck chair). In Makarska, it was somewhat cool overnight on Saturday and this morning it was down right cold as set sail to Mljet. The weather was fine in Mljet until after dinner when we had surprised by a sudden rainstorm.

We are certainly spoiled for choice for seafood. Each night thus far,we have shared our meals: grilled calamari, octopus salad, squid ink risotto, and stewed langoustines. The local wines have been quite fruity and there is a local herb/grass flavored liquor called Travarica which tastes more like a cough syrup formulation than an alcohol. We have also tried a tripe stew and on the boat had a grilled mackerel with a local spinach-like vegetable. Both were suprisingly delicious.

In Mljet National Park, we took a small boat to an ancient Franciscan monastery which was built on local Roman ruins. The monastery is located on an island in the middle of two fresh water lakes which arethe star attraction of the national park. The waters were clear and coloured much like that of Lake Louise in Banff. Mljet is reputed to be where Odysseus was ensnared by Calypso for 7 years and also where St. Paul was shipwrecked to and bitten by a viper. If these stories sound familiar, you are right....we heard them on Malta as well. The name of the cafe at the St.Mary monastery in Mljet cafe is Melita (whichis the Latin name for Malta). Coincidence?

Split, Croatia

After a long three-legged flight, we have arrived safely in Split, Croatia. There was a bit of a mix up with the bags. We thought they needed to pick them up in Zagreb before boarding our flight to Split. We assumed we would have to do this as we were all changing airlines from Air France to Croatian Air.

When all of our bags did not show up in Zagreb, we went to the lost luggage office and discovered they had been checked through to Split by Air France. Mom thought this was so in the first place but nobody else seemed sure. Score one for her but I still maintained we were misinformed by our travel agent.

I had gnocchi in a truffle, proscuitto, and brandy sauce this afternoon in Zagreb. This I have learned is a popular dish in Croatia. The heavy carbo load at lunch and poor sleep for the past 18 hours contributed to a power nap on the flight to Split. After a shower in the hotel Jadran, in Split, which is the original swimming complex where the Croatian National Team use to train, I discovered the free internet set up in the hotel lobby....happiness.

It is true what Red said, everyone speaks some English here. This is all part of a national push to put Croatia on the tourist map. It's working on me thus far. Noel and I will probably take a walk into Diocletian's Palace which is the Old City of Split before crashing tonight.

Moon Yuet

Another lovely Chinese tradition was carried out last Saturday. Ms. Crowded House's baby boy had his month old party which is called Moon Yuet. The celebration is much akin to the presentation of the baby to the community particularly the elders (and other ancestors unseen).

I suspect the celebration stems back to the times when infant mortality was somewhat higher than it is today. For the superstitious Chinese, it seems more appropriate to have a post birth month dinner than and pre-birth shower.

For the majority of this 12 course meal, the baby boy was paraded around, cooed and cuddled and really pretty much getting the paparazzi treatment. Most befitting a baby, he slept through most of dinner. These hard boiled "symbolical" red eggs (more pink) were presented to the attendants. Red is the colour of good fortune and the eggs representing ?fertility.

Income Tax Return

I was pleasantly suprised this year after filing my taxes at the end of April. Why? Because:

1) I received a return.
2) I received the cheque for the return amount today.
3) The amount of the return more than sufficiently pays for my upcoming European vacation.

A weekend in Toronto

After several weeks of busy call and office duties, I was in Toronto for a conference being held by the Canadian Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. What a delightful surprise to see a fresh set of faces. Some were mentors from MUMC. Others were former residents and even a patient's husband who had delivered about 18 months ago. It took me a while to remember who he was but after a little jogging of the old memory, it all came flooding back (much to my surprise).

Dinner at Jamie Kennedy Wine Bar on Saturday was a composition of tapas dishes: warm flat bread with three dips, braised rabbit, wild leek and mushroom ragout, steak and spinach salad, beets with spring greens and feta salad, grilled pickerel with wild rice, chorizo with buttered noodles, poutine and 4 desserts. The wine complement was excellent as was the company.

Now, it's back to the old grindstone.