A Bit of Ireland

Here are a few photos of our time in Dublin, Waterford and Cork. Ireland is a beautiful country and the landscape is unbelievably green!  

London Calling

We arrived in London after an early start in Croatia and made our way to our AirBnb room!  For those of you who haven't heard of it, AirBnb.com is the BEST way to get a room or an apartment nearly anywhere in the world! We immediately set out to do some exploring and we covered a lot of ground in the 4 days we were there.  We also had the chance to visit Derek's cousin and had a lovely dinner with her family!  After seeing the Victoria and Albert Museum, Science Museum, British Museum, National Gallery, Westminster Cathedral, Big Ben/Parliament Building, Trafalgar Square, Harrods....etc, well, we realized there is a lot to see and do in London.  Way more than we had time for, but we tried!  Enjoy the photos, there will be more from London when we meet Ashley's Dad and sister there on June 14!

Playing Catch Up!

We've been busy for the past week or so.  We arrived in London, spent a few days there and then headed off for Ireland!  This post contains photos from our last 2 days in Dubrovnik, Croatia....one of the most beautiful places we've been!  Keep and eye out for posts on Ireland and London later in the day!

Hiking to Stari Grad Fort and Split Part 2

Cetina River Adventures

We rented a kayak a few days ago and took a trip up the river.  The natural scenery here is breathtaking and we definitely spent more time looking around than paddling....which is probably why it took us twice as long to reach our destination.  You can easily paddle upriver until you reach the point where the small rapids make it impossible to go any further.  Luckily, there is a great outdoor restaurant on the river bank!  An old mill was transformed into one of the most popular restaurants in Omis, Radmanove Mlinice (you can find more photos here: Radmanove Mlinice Restaurant) While we didn't have a full meal, we did enjoy a local beer and one of the local Dalmatian specialties: smoked prosciutto. Amazing!  Enjoy the photos!

The Best Views....Ever

A few days ago we took the short hike up to Mirabella Fortress.  We see the tower from our kitchen window every day and decided we needed a closer look.  We ended up with some of the most beautiful views of Omis!!

We Split for Split!

We took a short bus ride up the coast to the second largest town in Croatia, Split.  It started to rain in the afternoon, but luckily, we are only 30 minutes away so we will be back!  We enjoyed their walkway along the Adriatic and after exploring some of the narrow streets we had a wonderful lunch with a view of the water.  Diocletian's palace is here, but we only snapped a few photos before the rain came.  More on that on another day!

Morning Walks in Omis, Croatia

Derek and I walk or run every morning here in the gorgeous town of Omis. The old city, where our apartment is, is something out of a fairy tale. We wind through the old streets for a bit before walking along the river toward the Adriatic. Derek gives me a daily boat lesson as we pass the boats anchored near town.  The scenery is so dramatic with the rock cliffs hovering so close to the ocean. I think we are going to enjoy it here...

Dead Sea and Masada

After seeing the outrageous prices quoted for a tour to the Dead Sea and Masada, we decided to try and rent a car and get there ourselves .  After a little research, we found it would shave around $100 off the trip and, as it turns out, it was so easy!  Israel is a small country and there is only one main highway that leads you directly down the coast of the Dead Sea and straight to Masada- a bit over 1 hour.  So we packed a lunch, grabbed our swimsuits and set off....with Derek at the wheel, of course!  After a few wrong turns, we made it to Masada.  At Masada you can either take a tram to the top or hike for an hour.  We, in our money saving mindsets, figured we would make the hike.  It was an extremely hot that day and with Ashley not so used to the dryness/heat, we had to take it slowly.  But, we made it to the top and enjoyed the panoramic views of the Dead Sea and surrounding desert (only for a few minutes at a time, because then we needed shade!)  After hiking down, we made our way to the Dead Sea, had a picnic lunch, and then carefully waded into the water.  It was a pretty amazing experience...you won't sink even if you try!  But don't stay in too long....any tiny cuts or scrapes begin burning like crazy after a few minutes.  We drove back to Jerusalem just in time for rush hour, but returned the car with 5 minutes to spare!  All in all, a wonderful day. 

 We made it to the top...much to Ashley's relief!                  Derek seems to be fine......   

              Dead Sea in the distance and Roman sauna

                                                    Beautifully preserved mosaic floor

                                                                Wildlife! Notice the baby

                                                                         Dead Sea

                                                                     Just relaxing....

                                                                     And flying......

                                                           More relaxing......

                                                         And more flying....