Our boat, Romantica, is a twin mast sail boat that sleeps about 30 in a total of 16 staterooms (or more correctly ‘state closets’.) It is wooden and actually very beautiful and well maintained. The crew was on deck scrubbing the sides of the boat when we emerged for breakfast after a fairly peaceful night’s rest. It is not fully rigged for sailing, so we motor from location to location.

I began my day with an upper body workout as I had to haul Rick out of his bed when the wooden bed slats collapsed leaving him unceremoniously atop our luggage which was being stored under his bed. He started the day irritated and I started the day just a bit anxious than the day before.

Breakfast was huge and delicious. The guides have insisted we will not lose a single gram while on this trip and frankly, I am beginning to believe them: bread, yogurt, cereal, meat, cheese, fruit, eggs and some reasonably good coffee were all readily available in substantial quantities.

My cursory survey of the other guests had me increasingly concerned that I might be the only one rolling out in padded Lycra bicycle shorts as breakfast attire seemed to run more to shorts and sundresses. This would be aside from one of our guides, Sina, who is German, likely in her mid 20’s, full of fun, and beautiful.

Whatever my situation, I was committed to riding well ahead of, or behind, wherever Sina might be stationed in the pack; I wished to avoid any and all comparisons between the relative shape/size of our Lycra clad posteriors. To my great relief, almost everyone re-emerged in suitable cycling garb, and I was able to put that one fear behind me (pun intended).

While I had been changing and retrieving helmets and panniers, Rick had been busy negotiating for the use of the single unclaimed e-bike – FOR ME! I was so very happy to join the rest of the electrically assisted bikes. I had never actually ridden an e-bike before, but a quick few tips and I was ready to roll. I have committed to Rick that I will be buying all of the drinks for the remainder of the trip as a token of my deep appreciation. :0)

Then it was time to depart and off we went. Today was an “easy” 15 km with “only” 200m of climb. What does a hard ride look like? By the time we were climbing the second very narrow and very steep hill, my gratitude for the e-bike had expanded from drinks to all the meals and perhaps a few souvenirs?

Although there are 4 assist settings on the bike, beyond a brief experiment with level 2, I pretty much stuck to level 1 for the entire ride. Given the modest assist, and considering the bike itself weighs 27 kgs, it was still hard work. I was breathing hard on the long climbs and my quads are very tired this evening. Rick did the entire trip on a regular hybrid bike, taking only one stop going up the longest of the hills – super proud of him!

We did endeavour to admire the scenery along the way, and there were a few stops for photos, but this was mostly a test ride day that took us across the center of the island (read that as uphill all the way) with a rapid 3 km of descent into Primosten on the other side. This is Rick working hard to get through the last bit of the final climb. In the background you can see some of the already travelled road.

There is a small family group of four from the UK on the trip: a Mom with three, mostly grown, slightly reprehensible children. They were all on hybrid bikes, including the Mom, who was not terribly fit but never, ever stopped. Her children needled her endlessly and I felt so sorry for the poor woman. At some point, while we were all waiting at the top of the last hill, I did tell them that they needed to let her know what a great job she was doing – especially considering how much harder she had to work at it.

I’m not sure if they listened or cared, but when I saw her at the end of the ride I thanked her for staying back to keep Rick company and she just beamed. We will be sure to keep a closer watch on her going forward – she just needs a tiny bit of encouragement. If not for a lucky break, and Rick’s quick thinking, that could have been me trailing along behind. Way behind.

Arriving at the boat we were asked to board immediately as they needed to move to the next stop quickly, in an effort to outrun an approaching wind and rain storm. After some persuasion, we were allotted 30 minutes to shed our gear, throw on our bathers and leap into the water for a brief refreshing break before getting back on board.

We all floated about in the water, congratulating ourselves on our first successful ride, and revelling in the warm Adriatic Sea. The beaches here are beautiful to look at but generally not sandy. Shuffling across the large pebbled beach was a painful process. Next time – water shoes!

I decided to shower immediately after the swim – a tricky business as the boat was already on its way and tossing me about in the small space. There is limited water on board for amenities like showers, and the hottest temperature is lukewarm at best. This means getting wet, then stopping the shower to soap and shampoo before turning it back on for a rinse. It took some time for me to comb all the tangles out of my hair while the boat rocked and rolled and I set myself solidly in front of the mirror using my already weary quads and barely there abs, to hold myself steady in front of the mirror.

I got out of the room as quickly as possible and spent the next hour pleasantly daydreaming and chatting with the others on the top deck while we all waited in hungry anticipation for the lunch bell. Another delicious meal – caprese salad, beef rigatoni and home-made strudel were our reward, with loads of water and a cappuccino to top it all off.

With heavy rain and wind promised, four possible options were discussed for tomorrow’s adventures. Whether it is a 40 km out and back ride to Krka National Park (it’s like a mini Plitvice with waterfalls and turquoise lakes) or a one way trip with pickup on the other side – we are ready!

The afternoon has been quiet as the rain falls and the winds blow. The tossing of the boat is more noticeable and I have had to drug myself again. The sound of the wind can be a bit alarming at times. I have been happy to rest and read in our cabin. I think the other passengers are similarly occupied.

And now we are off to dinner ashore and a tour of the Sibenik, assuming the rain stops at the scheduled time. So far the weather has been better than forecast, so we are hopeful. I think I will see if I can track down a sweater somewhere as I accidentally left the only cozy one I had in the car when we got out at the airport. So far it has been hot and humid so I haven’t missed it much, though a cooler day is promised tomorrow and I imagine I will want it in the afternoon.

We are back from our walking tour, and dinner, but no success with a sweater. To be fair, I just never really looked.

The city tour was entertaining. Our Croatian guide was very up-to-date and knowledgeable without the tone of a history lecture. He had a great sense of humour and occasionally pushed the envelope a wee bit in a way that made the experience more enjoyable – and relatable.

We saw several churches and really enjoyed just strolling the streets. The Cathedral was pretty cool. It was used in Game of Thrones for the House of Faces. It is a UNESCO heritage site for multiple reasons including the way it was assembled – like Lego blocks. The exterior decoration included female faces which is very rare, and many of the faces show emotions which had been virtually unheard of prior to this cathedral being built. It took 200 years to complete. A wedding group wandered past us in the town square, complete with an accordion and guitar, singing Croatian songs.

Sibenik was a wealthy town in its day with many nobles in residence. Their homes are marked by their coat of arms. At the time the primary industry was salt production – which they had essentially locked up. It was more valuable than gold so there was lots of money to burn – explaining why such a small town had 25 churches. This is a photo of the large town square, another sign of the amount of wealth in the town.

Ken did some research and found a restaurant for dinner. Sadly, it was not a great experience. The waiter told us how he never needed to write anything down due to his excellent menu, then promptly mixed up all of our meals. He brought food we did not order, never brought water (the glasses sat empty until the ice cubes melted away) and the wine was just bad – though we drank it anyway. It took us ages to get his attention and we contemplated just walking away without paying the bill. No tip. We were cold and ready to get back to the boat. No complaints to Ken though – no one can get it right every time and he has really been good at finding us good restaurants and experiences.

We walked back later than planned, through the cold and blustery streets. I am now happy to be tucked into my little bed as tomorrow starts early.