Day 25...Kayaking and Snorkeling in the Adriatic Sea!

Day 25, July 9th:

Today is definitely ranked among the top 3 most amazing days so far on Semester at Sea.  The day began with breakfast (well only for some of us…others decided sleep was more important).  27 of us then headed for the gangway.  We rode the metro bus to the City Walls and met up for a kayaking and snorkeling adventure!  Here is a little bit of info about what we did! 

First, we all had to sign our lives away (not really) and pay up the whole 207 kunas.  Then we all lined the beach and the instructors took a million pictures of our group before putting us in life jackets and making us choose partners for the kayaking journey.  Of course, I got stuck with Danielle.  Anyways, we then threw our stuff into a waterproof barrel and they attached it to our kayak.  We climbed in and began our paddling lesson, while we were still in the bay.  Now let me remind you that we began in a little bay at the base of the City Walls and then kayaked to the snorkeling spot to, of course, snorkel.  The views were utterly astonishing for the entire kayak trip!  I mean we were kayaking around in the Adriatic Sea, while looking up at Dubrovnik’s City Wall with people cliff diving off into the water next to us from the rocks surrounding the wall.  We passed many cruise ships anchored outside the city, as well as smaller boats, other kayaks and yachts from around the world.  The water was so blue!  It was a very relaxing journey kayaking from one side of the city to the other.  Once we reached the other side, we went further down the coast until we reached another back bay with a rock cave overhead.  The rocks alone were really cool. 

We then pulled the kayaks ashore and ate salami and cheese sandwiches for lunch.  After lunch, we put on our snorkeling mask, air tube thingy and life jacket and then headed into the frigid waters to snorkel.  At first, I was unsure if I would like snorkeling; however, once I put my head under the water and opened my eyes to a totally different perspective of the Mediterranean Sea, I was amazed with the views and the beauty underneath the water surface.  There were a few fish in the water swimming away that were about the same size of fish that we had in my fish tank a few years ago, but it was still cool.  The sea floor was covered in rocks of all shapes, colors and sizes along with various sea plants.  I found a new hobby!  If you haven’t been snorkeling before, then I recommend that you give it a try!  It opens up your eyes to the various forms of life in the water and puts a whole new perspective on how you view the creatures living below the surface.  I purchased an underwater camera with Danielle before we began, so we took several underwater pictures as well.  When the guides began calling us back in, I did not want to stop snorkeling because I was having so much fun! 

After we all removed our snorkeling gear, we boarded our kayaks and began our journey paddling around Lokrum Island (island located right off from the old city) before heading back to the other side of the City Walls.  The entire journey was 3.5 hours of wonderful views, beautiful landscapes of the surrounding hills and islands, awesome weather and great fun with all of the other SASers.  I really enjoyed it and it was well worth the 207 Kuna ($37). 

After we all got back from our tiring trip, we headed back across town to go to the beach for some rest.  The beaches in Croatia are packed everyday, all day.  I don’t know if these people actually work or if they just go to the beach everyday.  Some of the shops in the Old City close for 3-6 hours in the middle of the day after lunch, while others remain open until 23:00 or midnight.  The locals are all very nice and provided us with many of the local insights on activities and restaurants.  They all know each other and tell you where to go to find what you are looking for if they don’t have it.  Overall, the people are very nice and almost all of them speak very good English.  In regards to that, I am kind of upset that we really didn’t even have to try to speak their language because they spoke English so well.  We didn’t even use what we learned like hello, goodbye, thanks, your welcome, etc.  Okay, I guess I went off on a tangent…back to the beach.  In Europe, I guess that many of the beaches can be topless beaches.  This was the case in Croatia too.  No matter what town we are in, we always seem to stumble across these sorts of things on this trip.  I found a spot in the shade and took a “little tiger snooze” after chowing down an entire bag of gummy bears I purchased from the market.  BTW, I know that you like that movie reference…

A few hours later, we headed back to the ship for a much-needed shower after being in all that salt water all day long.  Our clothes were so stiff from all the salt that got in them while kayaking and snorkeling.  I noticed that my red hat had more white on it then red when I returned to the room and took it off.  The great feeling of the shower may also have been a large role in deeming today one of the best days on SAS.  Overall, the day was just so relaxing! 

After we all were squeaky clean, we met in the dinning room for dinner to discuss our plans for the next day: Mostar, Bosnia!  We purchased round trip bus tickets from the port to Mostar for only 133 Kuna ($23.50).  That was a great deal!  $23.50 to travel to another foreign country for a day…how could you pass that up!  After we purchased our tickets, Clark, Lacey and I had a group bonding session over snacks.  It was great fun!  I just still can’t get over the beauty of Dubrovnik and the amazingness of the water and views!  (I think I just created a word…)  I love this place!!!!  BOSNIA TOMORROW!!!!!!!!