hello World, welcome to our Universe !

Couple of years ago I entered the world of expats on Expatblog.
As usual dreams are followed by plans and after plans reality knocks.
Croatia, here we come, or better "came", as we moved there.
"Came", as we now live here for more than two years,
and have no regrets of taking that step.
! Not for a single moment !

But, as usual, a lot of things had to be checked, learned, organised.
Changing our Dutch life for Croatian life came with a lot of work.
And where better to check than on Expatblog,
as all people who think of, or work on moving to another country,
are member of it.
Again: "shared knowledge is the best knowledge".

To read the full story, see Blog of the Month October 2013,
as there I willingly and proudly tell it all.

If you dream or plan to make the same move,
do feel free to send me an email,
my address (as always) is in the right topside of my blog.
(In which X = @ of course).

Some rules in advance:
-if you mail me, keep it short;
-if looking for a job, sorry, I can't help you;
-if looking for trustworthy advise or help finding a place,
I will connect you to some good people.

Simple rules, as I am retired, I do not look for a job,
and our free life here is to precious to us.
Nevertheless I gladly support your plans,
as life is great in Dalmatia (Croatia).

And should you want to have a look first in this European country,
before you decide to take that giant step,
spring, summer and autumn the weather is the best, and you can always combine a visit with some days at one of them hundreds of superb, clean and sunny beaches of the Adriatic coast.
In that case however, check my friend Robert, as he's a friendly, trustworthy pro running a tourist service, but also helps people to find a place to settle in this area (avoiding the typical problems).

One way or the other, enjoy reading the interview on Expatblog,
and if you get inspired to move to Croatia:

!!   RIGHT   YOU   ARE   !!
(and so were we)

jobs, laws, religion and politics in Croatia

Glad you found my blog, but I'll have to disappoint you first.

I do not write about politics.
Nor religion, jobs, laws and such.

When I write my little "no goods for nothings",
I have only two objectives:
fun and focus.
The fun is in being inspired by something, anything, and writing about it.
If you somehow get inspired from it, well great,
as than I scored my first point.

Having my fun, I hope (and try) to make you focus on this part of Croatia, perhaps when thinking of where to enjoy your next summer holidays, or even, like we did, settle down to enjoy your retired life.

If you think I am blind or ignorant for things related to jobs (and the lack of it here), laws (every day a new one), religion (any religion is a good one) or politics (and everything connected to it),
I must disappoint you again .

I'm not !
However, those are things I can't change, so I don't bother.
If you do, still enjoy reading my blog,
as there is more than those things.

Was invited today to become "Expat blog of the month" and willingly (even honored) agreed to the invitation.
The more people discover our hidden treasure, the better.
As long as you don't all come together :-), spoiling the magic.

And if you can make the difference for the benefit of Croatia, being an investor or (just) an idealist with good intentions, I warmly welcome you to this fantastic country.

I'll continue (together with my wife and a number of cats),
to enjoy life here.
Most of the time great weather, just beautiful nature, sometimes frowning my eyebrows, but always happy.

JA VOLIM DALMACIJA,
and I/we have a trillion reasons for that !


PS.
Gonna take care of our tomatoes again now.
If you like, you can always mail me, 
the address is in the top right side of the front page.

celebrating Sveti Ivan

 

 

Some years ago, a tiny fire on our land, introduced us to an old "Catholic" tradition.
Lots of Saint's days in Croatia, and Sveti Ivan, the day of Holy Ivan (Sveti = Holy) is one of them.
Some of those Saint's days just come and go, some other are celebrated in for instance Split, Solin or Trogir.
(Don't ask me when, how or why).

Overhere, in our neighborhood a couple are worth mentioning:
Sveti Marko, on which day a sermon is held at an old chapel on a mountaintop.
Funny detail of that day is that the crowd circles the chapel three times, to ask for a good harvest.
Sveti Jure, another sermon another chapel, another mountaintop, high on the ridge between us and the sea.
A straining climb, followed by a gathering around the chapel, and after the catholic sermon, a pick-nick and on returning home, picking herbs to make one of those many liqueurs (this one called Travarica).

And than there is Sveti Ivan, the day we adopted, to share our happiness with neighbors and friends.
Being a (pretty good) hobby cook, I prepare a "grand buffet" for all our friends and take care there is plenty of refreshments.

What started with some close neighbors, a small fire, a beer and "goodnight" again, grew to be a great gathering with about 40 people (and increasing !!), a huge  fire and a great evening together.

We feel at home here, and are invited many times here or there to hop in for a drink or a diner, so this is the perfect way to say THANKS/HVALA to all our friends !

Of course we're not only depending on all those Saints, we've got many occasions through the year where we meet and help each other (picking grapes or olives, planting potatoes or cleaning our roadsides).
The great thing of life here is that it's still a true community, sharing each and every moment.
And most of those moments are a good excuse to eat, drink and sing together.

Many more happy days to follow, with once in a while a sad day too, but all of those moments and days are shared together, and that makes life here more than special.

Lucky you, if you experience one of those moments during your holidays in Dalmacija.
You might one day decide to do like we did.
Living in paradise.

As that's what it feels like.

so very true !!!!

Couldn't agree more with this poster.

I found it on the internet, and added the English text to it, so you (and I) understand it.
Should you think my Croatian is perfect, the answer is no.
I manage to communicate on a one to one basis, but as soon as there is a group of people, my brains seem to jam.

Lucky me however, not being shy, I learn a bit every day (svaki dan malo vise), just by practising.
And hopping from one word to another slowly my vocabular increases.

Back to this poster, as I love it !!!!
I printed a couple immediately, as this perfectly explains one of our GOLDEN VALUES.

I also grow my own everything, and I am proud of each result.
However, today I visited some neighboring vegetable gardens, and realised I still have a lot to learn.
Don't know how they do it, but they already have their first tiny tomatoes, while I still struggle to keep mine growing.
Whatever, it's with learning curves always trial and error, being vegetables or language.

The essence of this poster however, I couldn't agree more with !
Become friends with the locals, eat local food.
And as much of it you never get to taste in all them pizza parlors, you simply must (!!!!) go into the Dalmatinska Zagora (the hinterland), as there you will find how Dalmatia tastes.
Perfect, just perfect !

Try for instance Konoba Kunjak near Kucice.
It's about fifteen minutes from Omis, up the mountain road along the Cetina Canyon, and short before Kucice, follow the sign to the left.

Basic, but excellent, and when it's melon season, wait to see what you get from the owner as a desert.
No, he does not charge you for it, as his guests are his friends.
The rest of the meal, splendid lamb from the grill, his very own french fries, tomatoes, salad, and the drinks of course you'll have to pay for.
Who cares, as it's still a very reasonable price too for such quality !

So once again:
Sprijateljite se sa seljakom.

Virtual Tourist: see you some day in Real Paradise.

Left Giampiero, the general manager of VT, and a really good guy.

Dear readers of my blog and good people on VT
( www.virtualtourist.com ).
Until recent I not only wrote my blog but also my informative pages on Virtual Tourist.
Inspiring visitors, giving free tips, answering questions to my best knowledge, having great fun !

Until recent, as a while ago some member called Misseille started to nag about me entering commercial info.
Mind you, I do everything for fun, as I freed myself from commercial activity, and pay my own beers.
Slowly increasing her sarcasm, she brought me to the point of leaving VT's pages.
Very sad, but yes, even in the Virtual world there are people like her, spoiling whatever is unspoiled, turning good mood into a bad mood.
Want to send her a message, go to her VTpages at "Missile", wishing her just a bit of the luck I enjoy.
Tell her open minded communication between honest humans always prevents a war to start.
And in this case I also know who lost it !

The Eagles have a fantastic song on their latest album, singing
"Get over it".
Well, I did and I do, so I closed my VT-account to free myself from her non productive negativism.

As we live here in a little paradise, surrounded by fantastic nature and charming people (and a couple of cats), on the very best location to discover Dalmatia's hidden secrets.
That, and only that is my reason to write, in English, as I want you to know where to go if you are visiting Dalmatia.

Of course there are many ways to experience Croatia's beauties, being a lazy beach holiday at the Adriatic or a trip to Plitvice Lakes or cities like Dubrovnik, Split and Trogir (don't ignore Trogir, please !!!).

And if staying here, close to or in Omis, a lot more is waiting for you, like the Cetina River, Biokovo Nature Park and much, MUCH more.
Hell there is MORE, but you have to open your eyes, ears and heart !

Zooming in, on an organised trip or better, on your own, with an open mind into the open, brings you to discover many hidden pearls, little secrets that are not frequented by regular tourists.
That's what I want you to understand and discover.
If my blog helps you to do so, that's my GOLDEN reward.
(And if you need some help, mail me, the address is in the header).

So, from now on, no more VT pages, only my good old blog, with daily little things combined with pictures and stories about fantastic spots and experiences in this stunning area.
Many of them hidden to most of you.

I might even use the VT-flag once in a while on a picture, as I still have it, and to ensure you all I have no bad feelings about VT as a whole.
Real People behind Real Places they say, and I couldn't agree more.
To bad in the real world there are also real people who are a
"pain in the ass".
So best to do is to kick ass if something really bothers you.

Bye bye VT, back to be a HL*) again, my blog pages are waiting.
In one of the next pages I will put some links to professionals who do a great job here, in case you want to use their splendid service.
But only if you need them, as I do it all for free, because I love this country, and they do it for money AND because AND because they love it too.

Or as they say it in Croatian:
JA VOLIM DALMATIA.

*) a Happy Local again).

PS.
Anybody wanting to comment or write me, my address is in the header of this blog.

how and why ?

About 1800 kilometers from the country we were born, grew up and worked all our life, that's where we live now.

Leaving Holland, with it's Rembrandt's, it's tulips, it's green meadows and cows, what makes people make such move ?
What drives two "strangers" to change such an easy and friendly country to a completely new life, with a not so easy to speak or understand new language ?

Was it the sunny climate, the clear blue Adriatic, good food and even better wines ?
All of it !!!

The climate is nice, at least most of the year, however summers are a bit on the hot side, and winters can be pretty cold in our valley, with even some days of thick snow.
And yes, the Adriatic is stunningly blue, clear are of a very pleasant temperature during a long summer.
Not to mention the food, quality meat, fresh fish, organic vegetables and a variety of fruits.

But all of that is nothing compared to our peace, our silence, our nature, stars, birds, herbs, flowers, our surrounding mountains, and our breath taking panorama.
And, as it showed, our very friendly neighbors and friends, making us part of an active social life.

!!! All of it, ALL OF IT !!!

Once you open your heart to truly experience Dalmatia, not only the "excursion type of experience", but the "dive in and swim" type.
As that's what makes you fall in love with this part of the country.

Nothing negative than ?
Hell yes, you have to fight yourself through a lot of paperwork, have to get used to other habits, even have to accept Croatia has a different kind of bureaucracy (and it's very complicated and giving one many headaches).

But...........it's all worth it !!!!

This life, waking up in this life is almost better than life as a whole, or to say it in other words, this IS life.

Birds are singing, stars still visible, silence is complete, and all we grow on our land tastes ten times better than any well assorted supermarket can offer you.

Nothing comes easy, to burn a wood-fire in winter means cutting wood after summer, eating our own vegetables, fruits and potatoes means taking care of them first, and you only have eggs if you have chickens (at least this quality).

My dentist in Split (and a splendid one too in case you need one) once surprised me by asking: "are you (doomsday) preppers" ?
The question made me smile, as that's certainly not what we are.

Connected to electricity, water, internet, having airco's and freezers, we are common people, connected to common modern life as most of us are in the western world.
But we're privileged and blessed to have moved from over-organized Holland to the hidden beauties of Dalmatia.

That's how, and that's why !

wonderful world

Discovering the globe; it all starts with some local explorations.
That goes for kittens as well as humans.

After some mild rain yesterday, today is as usual, great weather, clear blue skies and a mild 20 C. in the morning.
(And coming week temperature even goes into the 25 degrees, not bad :-).

Everything on our land is growing rapidly, potatoes have been planted, so now it's all a matter of keeping things going with a bit of water and some tlc.

Later this spring we'll enjoy cherries from the trees, first strawberries, young salads, into summer it's melon time, as also a lot of melons have been planted.

Producing (and reproducing) a wide variety of fruits, vegetables and flowers is one of my to many hobbies, and the land we've got is the most fantastic lot (all friends around say).

Still have many other hobbies, pure practical and theoretical (researching Roman history in this area for instance), all of it for the fun of it, as only being in it for the money is history to me (happily retired).

And of course I explore our world like those young cats, as amazed as they are, step af step after step into this gorgeous area.

one, two, three

Recently one of our "house" cats gave bearth to six kittens.
One red, two white, three grey, but that's how it goes here, with many fathers involved in love affairs.

House cats means they live around the house, some on a distance, some less shy, all of them always looking for some food to add to the daily menu hunted around the house.

Many people here have some farm cats, keeping mice or a passing snake at a pleasant distance.
Most of them just use people to get an extra meal, some of them, like ours :-), become friends.

We enjoy their company, like we enjoy all life around us, and as long as they don't enter our house it's ok.
Following bearth and the growing up of these little "raskals" is pure fun, making us smile every day.

Still not real cat persons (dogs still are our favorites) we share our happy life here with these animals, as much amazed about the beauty of life in the Dalmatinska Zagora as this little white "monster".

now listen !!!!!!

Listen to me, as I will not tell you again (today :-).
It's about time you understand why I write this blog, so once more:

"Visit the DALMATINSKA ZAGORA when visiting the coast" .

And for those of you who don't know what Dalmatinska Zagora means, it's all that lies behind the coast.
So to say the hinterland, everything between the coast and the border, everything behind the Adriatic and before Bosnia.

Capito ?!?!
I want you to understand this is where the real life is being lived, in all those tiny little villages.
In the very middle of nature, between high and less high mountains, in small valleys and a bit larger peaces of farmland.
Between grapes, olives, cherries, apples, plums, figs, and a wide range of organic vegetables.
With chickens, goats, sheep, ducks and some pigs.

And of course mountains, rocks, boulders, caves, rivers like the Cetina (a beauty of 105 kilometers, not only the canyon), springs, small ponds, woods and wetlands.
Silent unspoiled slow streaming canoe water, but also energetic wild white rafting water.

Numerous birds, nighingales and eagles, known and less known, lizzards, turtles and yes, some snakes too.
Don't be afraid, they don't kill, just be careful and enjoy them from a safe distance.

And if hungry, well known restaurants like Radmanova Mlinice, Kastil Slanica and Krememko, but also less known places like Konoba Tadic and Konoba Konjak (and no doubt a lot more in each and every small town).
Not only the door to door pizza's, but original, tasty fish or meat from the grill, accompanied by organic potatoes and salads, followed by a slice of dripping sweet watermelon.
Want wine, try local, as all wine here is tasty (and strong) !!!

And if you want to buy a horse or a cow, new shoes or some gardening tools, or perhaps because you're hungry, there is a farmers market in Zadvarje every tuesday.

So, when coming to Croatia, heading for Dalmatia, relaxing from a stressfull job between let's say Trogir and Makarska, don't make me angry, don't say "oh, I did'nt know that", as I have told you once again, here in the Dalmatinska Zagora is where the fun starts.

Feel free to contact me, the mail address is in the header of this blog.
I know some truly good people who make your visit the very best, from place to stay to excursion.
Including a visit to Split, Trogir, Krka or Plitvice, but also to less known places, and even over the Bosnian border to Livno, where about twohundred horses live in the wild.

But..........write it down and don't forget:

"visit the Dalmatinska Zagora".


CAPITO ?!?
:-)

daily food

One of the many open air markets in Dalmatia.
This one is in Trogir.
All of it is pure organic food, grown and harvested in small gardens, ripened in the Dalmatian sun.

All year round seasonal vegetables and fruits are being sold.
In winter the offer is limited, from spring till alte autumn however the variation is enormous.

Once you've tasted these tomatoes, peaches, melons or figs, you'll never forget it.
Even the variety of potatoes is amazing, and.........tasteful.

why wait for summer ????

If spring is such a glorious season in Dalmatia, why wait for summer ?
Don't give me the answer, I know !
Springtime is wonderful overhere.

FIRE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What to say to a picture like this one ?
Ok, nothing for once.

just in case

Because I am busy, not just a bit, but VERY busy, while I drink my evening coffee, I may as well write the shortest text ever in this blog.

Just in case you plan to visit Dalmatia, and look for some professional help, see www.malimlin.com, as there my good friend and travel companion does a splendid job.

He and I often go around to explore unknown places, being nature, culture or history.
To me it's all just for the fun of it, he however shares his expertise with his clients.

So if you come to Dalmatia, check his office in Omis, as he can and will offer you the very best service, so you have a fantastic holiday.

Rooms, excursions, a car, a good tip, ask Robert, it's his profession, his pride and joy, and....your holiday !!

Coffee empty, back to work.
(Just kidding, all I do is hobby, slavery is history, but I still have many hobbies).

erotic fruits

Erotic fruits, that's what figs are !
Couldn't resist (re-)publishing this picture, like I did once before.

As spring has not yet arrived here, the cats have their kittens, birds are returning and nature is changing to green again day by day, so it will be spring soon (as always).

However summer is still far away, the moment will come the figs ripen at the trees again, waiting to be picked, one by one, sipping the sweet juice leaking on my hand.

Fresh they are the very best, dried still a fantastic nutritious addition to winter tables.
As you know what they say: "a fig a day keeps the apples away".
(And the doctor :-).

Should you want to dry figs yourself, here are some tasty tips:
-dry them in open sunlight.
-dip them twice in seawater (preserving and adding taste).
-wrap them in a paper bag, with dried leaves of laurel between them.
Like this you can store them for months and months.

Warning:
The milky juice from branches and stems of fig trees may cause some allergic reaction to some people.
So better avoid contact with it, and enjoy it's flesh.

one step always leads to the next

As usual, opening a box (not Pandora's :-) surprises come out.
From a request about family roots of Croats from Svinisce, living in Chili for many years, came a next item.
A friend who writes a lot about the Balkan, sent me the above picture of a grave.

However my Spanish is zero, I understand a bit.
First of all, this is the resting place of Pedro (Pero in Croatian) Kusanovic-Salamunic.
Born in 1899, died in 1981.

Many of the Croats (former Yugoslavs) left for a better future  young as they were, settling in many parts of the world.

From both my correspondents and some search with Google, I slowly get an idea of how many connections there are between Chili (Terra del Fuego) and Croatia.

I feel very privileged to be able to unfold some of those almost forgotten connections.
We (a retired Dutch couple) now living in one of those small Croatian villages, we left Holland because we wanted to.
And with internet, highways and frequent flying connections, it takes less than nothing to stay in touch or visit family or friends.

Not in those days, not for those many brave young people !
They left what was common to them, their country, their families, friends, habits and certainty.
Of they went, with hardly anything, not speaking the language, into the unknown !

Many times, when driving through our surroundings I watch all those stone walls, those little fields, high up the mountain slope, to be able to grow some food, olives and grapes.
They all did so bare handed, no cars, simple tools and very hard labor.
Those were already brave people, those who left were even much braver.

Think about it for a moment, and when visiting Dalmatia, don't think "oh well, just a simple wall", as those walls were built by a special breed of men, and when you think about that, also remember those many men and women, who left to settle in a completely unknown part of the globe.

Forgetting ones history is forgetting who you are.
Our history lies in Holland, but day by day we get more involved in our today's history in Dalmatia.
People here have a common wish to each other: "hope you live another hundred years".
Being over my sixties, I hope I live those extra hundred years, cause I opened a new box, but still have to unpack many other.
(Roman history, wild flowers and herbs, animal life, geology, oh dear, I need those hundred years).

(Rest in peace Pedro, tamo daleko, you're not forgotten).

do we have glaciers in Svinisce ?

No, if you like glaciers, this is not the place to be.
Than why do I publish this picture ?

Well than, here comes an almost unbelievable story:
I received an email from Terra del Fuego, in the deepest south of Chile.
It came from the grandson of a man who decided to move away from Svinisce, still very young, and out of all places settling at what I call the very border or civilisation.
Next stop would have been Antarctica, where all doors of freezers stay open all year :-)

For sure he's gonna read this item, so welcome Brzovic family !
And like I already replied to your email, I am gonna search and look and talk to each and everyone here to inform you about your relatives still alive and kicking in Svinisce.

Guess it's no surprise when I tell you many people from this valley in Croatia left their homeland, looking for a better future far away from the Adriatic, the olives, the wine, ánd relatives.
Those people are the bravest you can imagine, as they left behind all that was so very common to them.

All around the world you'll find people from Croatia (and former Yugoslavia), and most of them made a success of it !

As soon as I have more details worth sharing with you readers of this blog, I will publish them, if possible with pictures.
Interesting to you in general, highly interesting to those brave Dalmatians around the globe, who still think back to the days they lived in and around Svinisce.

And if you are connected to Svinisce, but living in Canada, America, Australia , or anywhere else, please write me an email, as any new info is highly welcome.

My email address is in the header of this blog (slightly hidden from spambots).

Pozdravi iz Hrvatska, pozdravi iz Svinisce !!!

what a night (in Omis).

Omis by night.
Just one of the many fantastic places to enjoy in Dalmatia.

You readers know I like to share dalmatian highlights with you, places I like, things we enjoy living here.
But I wanted to extend my audience to a larger scale than the limits of my blog.

Having written a couple of items on Virtual Tourist's website, I decided to share this link with you, as on VT there is a lot more info, as I am not the only "idiot" loving Dalmatia and sharing info with the world.

So here it is: click on the link: at VT there's a lot more and you'll find a lot more.
The good thing is that many others publish there.
Don't be afraid, I will of course continue to add special details to my blog, but if interested, Virtual Tourist is a great place to look around, ask questions and find answers.

I just hope you keep following this blog, and even more, I hope you don't decide to fly to China, Argentina or Holland now I told you where to look or to enjoy superior nature or historic towns in those countries.
VT is sharing the whole world with the whole world, with thousands of local specialists.

I prefer to stay your local "specialist" for our surroundings, and believe me, I've seen many countries,
but nothing beats Dalmatia !!!

So yes, I'll add some interesting spots to my VT-pages too, but no, I will not fly to any other country anymore, as having seen a lot, this country still is so damned nice, with such a load of interesting, beautiful  special places, I truly would be an idiot if I hopped over oceans, while having it all here !!!!

what a view (on Biokovo Mountain)

See previous page.
And for sure follow this blog, as there is more to come !

The picture shows Biokovo Mountain like a Swiss alp, taken from the SW side, close to a little village called Slime.

For details on the park, click here: BIOKOVO

no thanks, ne hvala !!!

Today in Holland (and elsewhere ?) lots of vegetables are grown like this.
Mind you, floating on plastic islands in large water basins, with computerized systems to feed the plants.
Factory food, huge amounts of green stuff, they call vegetables.

To me this is a horror scenario, but I live in a small Dalmatian valley, where people still grow their own food, so I guess I am lucky.
DOMACI is the word, HOME MADE the translation of it.

Let me put it this way, as grapes and olives give a perfect example:
Each and every piece of land has it's specific character, less sand, more stones, clay, less sun (not here), more sun (sure !!!), natural water, minerals, even the manure (goats shit) is pure natural.

For wines and olive oil it's obvious, each of them has it's specific taste, and we are gladly paying the price it deserves.
Now think of salad, tomatoes, and a lot more vegetables and melons that grow on natural soil.
Don't you think those are like good wines and olive oils, with a honest, nutritious taste, even with a specific taste due to the patch of land they grow on.

I dó, I knów now we are polluting ourselves, or at least missing the good properties of those vegetables grown outside, harvested from good soil, with here and there a lesser leaf, perhaps even a small hole or a brown spot made by a hungry insect.
But at least it has taste, it has nutritious values, it's góód food !

And however the masses need to be fed, I am not blind for that argument, vegetables growing on waterbeds, computer fed, that cán not be the answer you asked for.
Food means FOOD, taste, minerals, fibers, vitamins, NOT this green stuffing grown on waterbeds.
Waterbeds are for good sex or pleasant sleep after good sex.

In a couple of weeks I will be preparing our land again for a long season of fun, making my hands dirty, looking how our food is growing under the Croatian sun.
Tasty, nutritious, honest, DOMACI food.

Priatno, enjoy your meal, hopefully like we do.

PS:
Eat what the seasons offer, don't ask for strawberries in winter 
(unless you live in Australia :-).

biokovo on a winterday

(Click to enlarge !)
View from Pisak, a sleepy little town not far from Omis.
During the winter season the bura (the dry easterly wind here) can blow you away, while creating a pure and harsh winter wonderland on the high slopes of Biokovo Mountains.

And while palm trees and agaves survive at the coast, up there in the mountains, temperature drops to a bone chilling freezing minus 10 Celsius (and worse).

The town of Makarska is only 30 minutes away, a nice place to drink an espresso under the palm trees at the Adriatic during winter.
For those like me, who like a bit of difference after a lazy sun sprinkled espresso at the beach, it's only another twenty minutes up the mountain road to the very top of Biokovo till the snow makes driving a once in a lifetime experience.

Well dressed, there starts the winter fun  walking into a white world, still looking down at the Adriatic and the islands deep below the mountain.

And for those who like it pure and rough: yes there are wolves over there, but lucky you if you happen to see them.
Traces of those wild animals however are clearly visible, so give it a try (if you dare).

And being the Dutchman I am, during winter entrance to Biokovo is free of charge, another reason to be happy to live here all year round.