Well it seems I was stupid and ungrateful enough to post about missing traveling, but not summing up my whole amazing summer!
Croatia was like a dream.I learn more and more of the language when I am there.My cousins are just the most wonderful,sweetest,beautiful in all ways.My older cousin had her baby on the first of this month,so I am SO EXCITED to see little Nika next year!!!! Visiting my ancestral village,Velo Grablje,is always so emotional for me.I can literally feel my ancestors’ energy and beings there, even though it was just a short visit.It was really wonderful to see Katica,my cousin who just turned 80.(In Eastern Europe,you never know how many cousins you have,or how old they are!)
My cousin Ivo,who is 85, had restored the ancestral house,so we could finally go in it after years and years. His wife,Emily,is his childhood sweetheart,and they are such a touching couple, finally together after many years of not hearing from one another.
I made some really wonderful and fun friends, swam in that delicious water up to 4 times a day, hiked around, thought, dipped into Kata’s lavender bushes for a whiff of relaxation whenever I got a chance. One time I dropped by, everyone was there but Kata,and she force fed me a huge plate of cherry strudel she had made.With cherry drink! Mmm. She is from the north of the country,near the border of Hungary, and due to the harsh winters, she is a talented cook.
She doesn’t speak much English but we understand one another very well.She is so sweet and kind and curious, but has a lot of stress with her job. Her therapy is her huge garden, which is continuously blooming; the lavender was just starting to flourish when I was there.
I stayed in a beautiful room with wild jasmine growing outside. It permeated the room at night or when it rained. I didn’t even mind the rain, except you must take caution on limestone=very slippery! Numerous swallows always fly around in the wind, and I always think of them when I think of Hvar.
I can barely describe the swimming…..unearthly! The water is so thick, so clean,so clear, almost a purple shade at times, cobalt at others. The salinity really purifies your skin and I would totally lose track of any coherent thoughts or the time when I swam.Last summer my cousin Ivana came with me swimming often, but this summer she opted to sing to and kiss her sister’s pregnant belly.
Ivana and I are exactly alike, I find it really amazing, we never met one another until we were teenagers, but our personalities, interests,so many things are in alignment. She adores her three parakeets and two cats; one time I visited her, and the birds were out,she was playing with and singing to them. She is so full of light and positivity, and is such a special and beautiful person.
Needless to say, I did patronize the jewelry shop where she works again, like last year! In 2009 I bought a beautiful bracelet made out of balls of snakeskin turquoise, a stone that is blue and brown and grey, very unique.This time I bought a pendant of the stone with traditional Croatian elements, kind of hard to describe.I know it’s just jewelry, but to me it means a lot,as it’s made in Croatia, and with a lot of thought and love.
I did not make it to the capital,Zagreb,to see my city friends.They practically disowned me,they were very disappointed! I am not really a city person, I need space (mental as well as physical,space for yoga), quiet, the pace of cities and the combative energy is always difficult for me. Plus, staying with a Croatian, they go ALL OUT to be a host, and it can be awkward because you know they have their lives. The expect you and plan all these things,big dinners,inviting people to meet you, excursions.It’s a bit much to get into ….
I also went to a new island,Mljet, most of which is a national park.It is incredibly beautiful, dramatic, and intense, like all of Croatia’s south. The ocean meets with a large saltwater lake, a monastery in the lake, dramatic cliffs, mountains, views to the ocean. I’ll never forget looking out to the ocean, just the blue blue water, no tourists, boats, noise. Stillness is satisfaction to me.
Anxious to return. Anxious to return and not have to leave in two weeks.
Ja volim Hrvatska.
I love Croatia.
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