BLOG PART 3 Tuesday 19th June The continuing travelogue of the Guerins in Europe. If a six month holiday doesn't change you - it probably isn't worth taking a break ever again. This holiday is perfect in every way. Totally relaxing; us adults will live much longer now (with luck - driving through Italy and France is next on the agenda). Croatia is a fascinating country that offers a bit of everything. It is now the tourism darling of much of the world and is worth the visit. Once you swim in the brilliantly clear Adriatic you will always want to return. The ancient streets, traditional lifestyle in the interior and great seafood are perfect for us - especially at a better cost than the rest of Europe.From Fascism to possible entry into the EU but more importantly: independence. Just over a decade has passed since the end of terrible violence, ethnic cleansing and fear during civil wars and bloody battles for independency. The remnants of this past are often still visible or drifting just below the surface. We passed signs warning of the presence of land mines; bullet holes in walls and large lamentable cemeteries. If you don't enjoy driving on precarious roads perched high up on the side of steep coastal mountains, take my advice and get someone else to drive. Failing that drive anti clockwise around the Mediterranean - it keeps you that little further away from the edge. Little money has been invested in side-rails and where concrete has been the mainstay in much of the remainder of the country - no need for it when a little wire fence will do the trick. I admit I have been petrified a couple of times; and Camilla in the passenger seat is that much closer to the action yet copes brilliantly. She is so cool. Our favourite places are many but the standouts so far have been Razanac - a small and lovely village with ancient ruins scattered through it. And Korcula (Island) with a perfectly designed old town rising up from the magnificent sea. It was great to see part of the interior: excellent olive oil in soft drink bottles; sheeps cheeses and fresh veg for sale at roadside stalls. Th temperature jumped from 14 to 25 degrees as we went through a 5.6 km tunnel onto the Dalmatian coastline. Incredible thunder storms followed us during much of this but we have received very little rain and nothing but sunshine now for weeks. We have been meeting many lovely people as we travel; the cost of campsites keeps the 'trailer park trash' to a minimum. Pag Island made for a lovely excursion; famous for its sheeps cheeses and wines as well as incredible stone walls. I guess the island only has ½ the thickness of stones left (200 feet) after generations have stacked them into high fences only yards apart and alsolutely everywhere. It is a rockery compared to Cornwell. And not a sheep to be seen! The old towns at Zadar and Split have been very impressive and we still haven't seen Dubrovnik. The further south we go the more holidaying Ozzies we run into - can't say we have missed the accent. I have purchased a Croatian hat and Croatian sea shoes (needed for staggering over the pebble or stone beaches to get into the water); these make Camilla swoon (proud of me I guess). Some beaches are sandy but they are a raritly. We have been very excited whenever there is a prospect of an English bookshop - Camilla can't sleep for days beforehand. Rather short on childrens books so it was lucky we brought 23 kgs worth from of kid's luggage from OZ. We now have Asterix magazines in every language except English; but the children don't mind. We have needed to make some running repairs and to do this have utilised various rough tools and tricks. We were recently able to wash all our clothes but no drier to be seen and Croatia is short on laundrymats so we strung out all 100M of power cord over the awning to solve the dilemma. Camping outside of towns and travelling into the old towns either by bus, foot or bicycle is the perfect way to conduct sightseeing. Children's schoolwork is coming along quite well. The Guitar is being well utilised. Actually, we have become quite efficiant motorhome campers with a perfect setup. This may even lead us to start up a business one day - the Gurus Ultimate Motorhome Breaks in Europe. We need an Australian sticker for the back of Tito the Kettle Van as everyone approaches us as if we are German expecting that we will understand them. Thanks for all the emails; see you in October! Do vidjenja! David and Camilla