The track between here and Tucepi has blackberries that are nearly ripe and I have an invitation to go and pick wild blueberries - late summer fruit! – and walking home from yoga tonight, I noticed that the sky is darkening as I leave the gym - so many signs that time is moving on quickly.
When I arrived in Makarska, this VW was dead but not buried – look at it now! Just four months of vines and it is nearly invisible (a wicked waste of a VW!).
And my beginners are all graduating - out of the double with me and into singles. My little Duje who refused to row for a month because he was too scared, insisted that he row on his own in a single this morning. I felt so proud of him because he really was fighting fear. When he got off the water he gave me a hug (he's 9)and instead of disappearing to avoid cleaning the boats, he helped to carry the single up to the shed and carefully washed and dried the boat. I said ‘to je tvoj brod’ and he grinned and said ‘da’. And it was his boat today, he was fantastic. The bigger kids shook his hand and said ‘odlicno’ (with a ‘ch’) – excellent!
I have two months left of this adventure – and next week I will go to France for the annual rallye , returning 12 days later. August (kolovoz) will nearly be finished! Today I feel as though I am taking stock – this morning at coffee, Lara said ‘you will really miss us when you go’. I am now an accepted fixture in Arbun, the ‘mens’’ café, in my rowing gear – look how far I have come!
I must tell you about Sara and Corina, the two girls who started rowing a couple of months ago. They are now happily rowing from the club to Krvavica in a double (4 ks there, 4 ks back).( I took a photo of them on Tuesday and sent it to Corina’s dad – he emailed back to say that he had immediately posted it on facebook because he is so proud of his daughter rowing..) Anyway… today they were out in the middle of the Adriatic, rowing along, when they spotted some dolphins… but the big boys in the quad told them that they were sharks….. they came in roaring with laughter because they said that they had never rowed so hard or fast in their lives! I am loving watching these gorgeous kids develop and grow on the water. Even Frane (who turned 12 today) had his first go in a single today. He is like a bouncing puppy – he calls me ‘Miss Alison’ and is desperate to do anything to help.
I guess where this is heading is that I am taking stock and weighing up my place in this community, the friends I have made and the niche I have carved, and am aware that October is looming.
The consolation is that before then, the weather will be cool enough to allow mountain climbing again, the tourists will go so everyone can come out to play again, and I have two more months to cram as many memories and as much language into my head as I can!
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