A Bench

I came across this bench on one of my hikes through the town.

An ordinary bench, nothing special about it except... this one had a plate attached. I have learned recently that sponsoring benches is common in the UK but it is a concept unknown here. So I approached with some curiosity and read this:

Indeed, the island of Vis became an allied military base soon after Italy's surrender in September 1943 and in Komiža was the British marines headquarters. A number (decreasing in time of course) of WW2 veterans used to visit the island every year up until 2005 to pay tribute to their mates who hadn't returned from the battles.

I think wars are madness and why humans should go about killing each other has always been beyond me. But what do I know...

Still, that bench standing in a sunny corner overlooking the bay, obviously sponsored by a man with little time left but remembering the times he must have spent on this island, somehow seems a nice and appropriate gesture in this world of insanity.

Return

Driving on empty (or almost empty) roads in fair weather is a rare privilege and pleasure. And it was one of the rare pleasures I had from this vacation.

After an almost two and a half hours' ride by ferryboat we set off through the city of Split – the drive was surprisingly smooth – and continued towards the inside of the country. Most passengers choose the motorway and few the coastal road but the route we take is about 50 kms (or 30 miles) shorter than any other, and there's hardly any traffic on those roads so the drive was smooth and enjoyable.

We made a few 'pit stops' (or should I say pee stops) and a longer break for dinner at a restaurant about two thirds of the way.

But the closer to Slovenia, the more populated the area and the denser the traffic. Hardly a surprise on a Sunday afternoon. Not too much waiting on the border, though, despite the recently applied regulations at the borders between the members and non-members of the EU.

Basically, the whole journey home went as smoothly as one could desire until about 20 kms, maybe less, from home. There was an accident on the part of the motorway where there are no alternative roads and said accident caused a traffic jam a few kilometers long which set us back at least an hour.

Global warming or...?

The departure day was nearly perfect: warm, sunny, and nary a breeze. Where the fuck was that kind of weather when we could make use of it?

Out of the first seven days spent on the island five were either rainy or windy – and I don't mean a breeze; the gusts of the cold northerly cut to the bone - or both.

It is true, I hate cold, particularly when there's neither the time nor the place for it. And cold is definitely unbecoming of beginning of September in Dalmatia.

That makes one wonder whatever has happened to the global warming. Oh, there are climate changes, they are more than apparent. Dramatic and sudden weather changes, periods of extremely hot interchangeing with periods of extremely cold... there's no such thing as average weather anymore except perhaps in statistics.

Oh well... I fell prey to such an extreme weather change at the most inappropriate of times. When the sea temperature drops as low as it has this beginning of September there's no way it will warm up again to acceptable levels before the next season... the days are simply too short and the sun has lost too much of its power.

*

I wrote this Sunday night hoping to post it then but then I lost internet connection for almost two days so it's coming up now. And this Tuesday has been another proof of the changes mentioned above: an extremely violent front crossing these areas causing massive precipitation that resulted in flooding streams and mudslides in large areas of the country, making some parts completely inaccessible. Reportedly, one person was killed thus far due to these harsh weather conditions.

Hello!

What do you do...

...when the only thing worth visiting a place does not exist?

This island has always been known for its favourable climate and warm sea. This beginning of September both the air and the sea temperatures have been on end-of-October levels; the cold northerly increasing the feeling of cold and the sea suitable only for penguins. Since there are no penguins in the northern hemisphere and I'm not a mazochist...

Swimming pools are fiction for these folks and you can't stay in the bath for ever. You can't walk the same few paths over again now, can you, and getting drunk is no alternative. Besides, I can't get drunk here no matter how much I drink.

So it seems the only answer is to bugger off. And that's what we're going to do.

Better luck next time, eh? Perhaps not anymore... but who knows?

Vacation Diary V

It's cold here. Sunny, but cold. Damn that wind! I HATE cold!!!

That's all I have to say right now.

Vacation Diary IV

The thing one notices very quickly in this town is a huge number of cats. Cats of all sizes and colours parade the streets, perch on the stone walls, scavange the garbage.

I'm not averse to cats but even I find them annoying at times. Oh, the little ones are cute as all the cubs are. But they are quite aggressive when food is concerned, not to mention the noise they make.

It's quite remarkable, though, that dogs (which also abound) and cats seem to get along quite well. At least I haven't seen a single strife occur between the species. They must have learned to let each other the space they need. Or perhaps they have learned each other's language. Who knows! But I sometimes wish people were more like the cats and dogs on this island.