Summer Party Time

I forgot to tell you about the Ljeta Festa (with a ‘sh’) Summer Festival Party that was in the trg on Saturday night – it’s an annual party with bands and as luck would have it (and just to keep us in the spirit) followed directly after the big party in the street on Friday night.

This one celebrated nothing more innocuous than … summer. Because it is.

This was the first night in Makarska for friends who arrived from New Zealand from Rome that day. Friends with a Croatian surname, also wondering where and who and why – those questions that start itching under the skin of New Zealand Croatian descendents. And what greater why to itch it than to come here and do some searching. Fascinating for me to look at my surroundings and my adventure through a family with fresh eyes and fresh questions.

I found them in hotel Biokovo in the evening, and after a few drinks we wandered to a restaurant at the top of the trg – the oldest one. The best one. An eco one with local ingredients and organic wines. It fed us all well, gave us some extra treats that we didn’t see coming (sardines in tomatoes, beautiful fresh melons for desert and a nice discount..) and we stumbled out into the trg at about midnight.

Live bands, dancing in the streets and creative costumes! We stood for a while, danced for a while and quite a bit later, slunk down another ulica to find yet another band playing. The acoustics in these little streets is interesting because you can’t really hear that there is something going on until you stumble on it.

By then we were about to turn into pumpkins (three late nights in a row, and one of them a school night!!) so we walked back along the riva, wending our way through high heels, short dresses and attitude. The cruise boats (read ‘party’ boats) were lit up in the luka again, and no doubt those looking for a party found one. You certainly can’t argue with the social life here in the summer time!

So. A twelve day pauza coming up – tomorrow I fly to Paris and then on to Toulouse for the Rallye du Midi – five days of rowing hiking covering 206 kilometres. This year I have been invited to participate in the race to learn how to organize such an event back in New Zealand. We have been working with a concept to have a three or four day event on the Waikato River to invite the French rowers to – it would involve a few nights sleeping on a marae, and hopefully a morning rowing in waka ama.

We will return from Bezier via Lyon, fly to Milan, have a night there, and then fly to Split. Ticket for Milan to Split is 16 euro. Seriously, why wouldn’t you.

Vidimo se kad ja se cu vratiti. Bog.