15. May

hik098
May 15, 2015
5 min read

Its hard to believe Ive been aboard 4 days and nights already. I joined the Doga and her crew in RAB which was a bit surreal as I had been there 3 years ago on the same boat and the memories came flooding back and the familiarity of it all as if it was only a week since my last trip.

The captain sent a really nice handome young man to meet me at the bus station. Theres no better way to bring a smile to a 40 something year old females face than when a handsome young stranger walks up to you and says "hi are you Sandra?" :) "yes I am" I smiled back and thought (bloody hell things are looking up) and we headed to the boat to join the crew. I later found out it was Mira the captains wife's idea to send someone to greet me, I must remember to thank her. The thing about sailing and boating in general is its a community and if you are part of it you fit in immediately. That has been my expereince in every country Ive sailed in. Unless of course your on a tourist boat, in this case we avoid you at all cost in case you crash into us while believing you are an expert seaman after a 10 minute briefing from the rental company.

The crew at this point was Alex from Russia, Zelimir (capt) Croatian, Stanko from Croatia, Matej from Slovenia (the guy who greated me at the bus), Shun from Malayasia and me the newest edition Sandra from Ireland.

When I arrived Zelimir was cooking lunch, I was given a plate and a welcome shot of vodka and the talking started immediately. This crew was really special, you could see how well they had bonded and what a great week they had, some stayed 10 and 12 days, one found love or lust we havent extablished that yet. Perhaps they will update us from London. I must admit my first though was "oh shit, 5 men and me" but that was a fleeting thought for one second. After lunch I headed for a beer with Zelimir and Matej and Shun. The other two went to the marina to use the showers. Thats another thing about boating, when you arrive to a port you immediatly go in search of a marina and showers, water is always a luxury, even the chance to use a land toilet is celebrated :) seriously, it really is!!

About one hour later Zelimir announces he is making dinner?????????? What, we just had lunch??? This turned into a drinking fest and a going away party for Shun and Alex, they left the next morning. I get the feeling Alex was the party man, a vivacious, charasmatic guy who loved to have a good time, he produced a bottle of brandy from the sea, yes the sea and no one went to bed until this was finished. He is to this day the 1st Russian Ive met who does not Vodka. It turns out Stanko lived in Dublin and in general this crew are well traveled as is often the case when you meet couch surfers. RAB is beautiful by the way, its a great little town with lots of charm and a lovely beach and marina. Full of cafes and bars and I can remember the last time I was here I had the hangover from hell with Anna a German crew mate. The next morning I do what I do best, I find a cafe and have coffee. When I returned to the boat, breakfast was made and I was handed a coffee, being the only woman on board was actually great. They treated me like a sister and did everything. Stanko is a whiz in the kitchen and has put some great meals on the table for this crew, including today he made a fantastic lunch. Im really sad he has to return to Rijeka.

We departed Rab and did manage to catch a wind and sailed for about 2 hours and then on engine we went to the Island of Sv. Grgur this used to be a women's prison. It is sparce but has some picnic tables and there were families having lunch which was nice to see. We decided not to stay however as the direction we were moored in could lead to difficulties getting out if the wind picked up. So off we went to Baska. This is a beautiful little town with a small harbour as most of them are around this region. A harbour master in all of them which Im not used to seeing in Ireland anyway. We spent the night here and Stanko got the bus home from here. Like all the little towns you can easily find a bus to take you to your destination, in some towns like RAB there may be a catamaran going so its worth checking. The catamaran is cheaper than the bus as its government subsidised. This was the quietest night on board since the journey began so Matej told me. Everyone is gone now except the 3 of us and he is leaving tomorrow. We had breakfast with him and he left for the bus and we departed for Vrbnk a small port on the island of Krk. Krk itself is huge. We spent a couple of hours here exploring. I visited a fantastic vineyard, there wine was amazing and of course I had to buy 5 liters. We continued on our adventure and headed to Silo, a favourite of mine and I would love to return some day. There is rustic campsite here and apartments to rent so the place has lots of options. We spent the night here, its really beautiful.

The next morning at 5.30am we departed for Crikvenca, we are meeting a new crew member today, Jennifer from America is arriving 6.30am so we have to be there for her. I met her at the bus station and got fresh bread, warm from the oven. We spent the day here exploring and having lunch and then came to Klimno. Klimno is also a small port. Lots of lovely little boats and a few restauants on the waterfront and a small supermarket. Klimno is also on Krk so a bus is easy access again. We spent the night here but I actually dont remember much of the latter part, too much wine that I bought in Vrbnk.

I have more information on Croatia and sailing on this and my last advernture on this boat at www.sandraorourkeglynn.com if you have any questions please ask.

Stayed tuned for updates.

Sandra