Back in the early days of Joe and Christy’s sailing adventure, Lisa, myself and our 3 sons Jake, Eddie and Max spent a week aboard Zia sailing Cape Cod and Nantucket Island (see August 10^th 2005 entry).  We had a fantastic time and not so fantastic weather, and we vowed then that we would meet in the Mediterranean sea, sometime, somewhere, and get some REAL sunshine.  That “sometime” was last week, and that “somewhere” turned out to be the beautiful Dalmatian Coast of Croatia.

With now a 6^th addition to the Dunoyer crew (Francesca, age 19 months), we all agreed that staying aboard Zia might prove a little tight, so we decided to seek out an option where we could stay on land but have Zia moored within spitting distance.  Lisa spent a good part of last winter scanning the Internet for a solution that could work and we finally zeroed in on renting waterfront Palm Tree Villa, located on Ciovo Island, just outside the town of Trogir. We planned on having my brother-in-law Chris Pratt, his wife Sue and two daughters Olive and Ruby also stay with us at the villa for the week. As far as we could tell from the Internet pictures and maps, there was a very good possibility Zia could anchor directly in front of us.

  

We knew we had hit target almost as soon as we collected our luggage from our flight into Croatia: the owner of the villa who came to pick us up at the airport said “we’ve spotted your friends, on the big boat, with the two girls and a cat, right in front of the house”.  As we drove up to the house we could not believe the thrill of having actually realized that vision, begun back in rainy Nantucket Harbor two years ago.

  

The first couple days are spent planning out exactly how we want to tackle going on day cruises with 14 people on board, including four Dunoyer kids (ages 12, 11, 7, 1) and two Pratt girls ages 3 and 2 .  By Day 3 (Monday) we’re setting off on a first easy sail to see how everyone fares, heading for the tip of Ciovo island.  Everyone loves it!  With Zia anchored in a remote cove, kids go swimming, snorkeling and exploring. Parents sit down to a scrumptious lunch, while baby Francesca conveniently has a 2-hour nap in Joe and Christy’s cabin!

  

With such a successful experience we decide to set out on Day 5 (Wednesday) for a more ambitious sail to another set of islands.  At the end of our short sail Monday, the windless motor which raises the anchor had started acting up, and now as we embark on the bigger sail, it has stopped working altogether; Chris, Christy and I lift the anchor out of the water by hand (that was kind of fun!).  Out on the water, the weather is gorgeous and a nice breeze kicks up.  Enough to blow Chris’ hat into the sea, followed a few minutes later by the precious net bag full of lettuce.  On each occasion, Christy lets out a loud “man overboard drill!”, Joe turns Zia around, all hands on deck and soon the lost cargo is back on board again.   We end up anchoring in between 2 small islands, where the water has that dazzling turquoise color. Once again, snorkeling, exploring, food and wine, not necessarily in that order.

                                    

                                         

As we bask in the late afternoon Mediterranean sun during the sail home, and I just can’t believe my good fortune in simply being here, on this beautiful water, with such wonderful people.

  

The next day, Joe kindly takes a break from working on fixing the windless and agrees to take the kids water skiing off the dinghy. For this you need a driver (Joe) and someone holding the rope (me).  Cassie is a pro, but our sons are more used to skiing behind bigger boats.  It takes a few tries to get it right, including one start where 11-year old Eddie finally makes it out of the water only to have his Dad get dunked right into the sea by the pull of the rope (all the spectators REALLY liked that one).  Everyone ends up getting some good runs, including 7-year-old Max who is up on skis for the first time in his life.

  

We decide we can’t leave this area without a proper visit to Trogir, a beautiful historic town and harbor founded by the Romans and ruled by the Venetians until the 19^th century.  On an earlier car trip into town, Joe had located a perfect anchoring spot just outside the walls of the city, so we all go aboard Zia, and head into Trogir for a late afternoon stroll and an early dinner.  The streets are narrow and the architecture beautiful.  We’re delighted to be taking in some of that old Europe, and more eager still to sit down for some of that terrific Mediterranean style pizza which we’ve been sampling throughout the week. We find a perfect restaurant, sitting outdoors right on the harbor and at the foot of a massive medieval dungeon.  The food is terrific and the staff friendly and wonderful.  They are especially attentive when Francesca and I  unexpectedly sample the waters of Trogir harbor…

                                   

The end of the week comes far too soon as we make the best of the last remaining hours of our precious time together, outside a villa, on the Mediterranean, with Zia anchored out back.

We dreamt it up, we made it happen, what a magical week.  Thanks so much, Joe and Christy, we’re lucky to know you.