The old image of Diocletian’s Palace, the hustle and bustle on the Split waterfront this time of year, they welcomed us, late in the afternoon, when we arrived in the Port of

Split to refuel. Since we had planned a longer stay in this area, we decided to locate in Marina Kastela near Split. While Peter, after binding to the pier, was resolved administrative tasks with the reception of the marina, I was scrubbing the deck and cleaning the ship. On the dinner in a nearby restaurant, we have listed the duties and obligations that should make over the next ten days when we planned to welcome aboard our dear friends from New Zealand.

As we have already had two problems on board, we put them at the top of our List. By the next morning my husband was looking for a master to repair the winch, while I, catching the bus, took the toilet pump for service in Split. “The early bird gets the worm”, says the old adage, though this morning it looked more like “Early bird that is sleep-deprived”. Already early in the morning, summer heat and high temperatures, as well as the complete situation around the repair parts, are not promising much. Marina services were simply “swamped” with work and laziness of workers, so when we came with our problems it seemed that we were superfluous. Everything was going slowly, with long waiting and looked like the real coma, so my husband and I, without losing time and nerves, used the situation to resolve other obligations.

Certificate for the life raft, which we had on board, was the next important thing we had to do in the company Antipiros in Split. That afternoon, the company’s driver came with the van to pick up the raft. When we said that we sail to Australia right now we were told that the existing rafts we cannot proceed to the Island of Brac (nearby of Split) and certainly not to Australia. In fact, it was the old rafts category “C” and we need to have on board a large transatlantic raft for 10-12 people category “A”. As someone has poured us with a cold water, Peter and I looked at each other and started laughing. We did not have anything to say. By purchasing a new life raft, we put a dot on the story with a happy ending.

The next day, we found a little time for some of our small pleasures. We visited some friends, took flowers to the grave of my parents, and after cutting the hair in hair salon we went down to the city to be relished cake in a candy store “Tradition” and had coffee in our old and well-known coffee shop.

If you like sweets, “Tradition” is a great place to enjoy the best cream pie, mandulates and marzipans in Split.

Still the same family running this business since its opening in 1937, now already the third generation. As now, I remember when my grandmother, as a child of three years old, she brought me here, where even today, I enjoy in these beautiful yellow pleasures.

Split, the most beautiful city in the world, flower of the Mediterranean, situated on a peninsula surrounded by the sea and the mountains, the town in which every step feel the history and culture. Singed in hundreds of verses, but even in one song it is not good enough because that’s not possible to put so much of beauty into words.

It is a city that the chronicler will easy describe how he lives at a slow pace, at which quickly gets used. The feeling that every day is a holiday, squares, restaurants and bars crowded with people and unavoidable waterfront, which blows a gentle refreshing breeze and in the winter, as a winter coat, the Mediterranean sun and Diocletian’s Palace protected from the cold, reminds us that we are at home. World famous music festivals, cultural and entertainment spectacles, film festivals, concerts of classical and urban music, all of it, during the summer months, is irresistible collage of musical events in Split.

Just recently held 55^th Split Pop Music Festival, which we attended, watching the last night of the festival at Split’s Prokurative. With peanuts and Coke, we enjoyed the spectacular atmosphere and warm of the Split night.

It was 2 o’clock in the morning when we got back to the marina to the boat.

That afternoon, after a week of waiting, winch was the second time,  replaced by a new and stronger and then we set sail for the Island of Šolta in order to test the anchoring in the Bay of Nečujam, while the toilet pump problem was still unsolved and puzzling.

Necujam is located in the largest bay on the island. It is the youngest place with the central beach and eight smaller bays. At the time of Diocletian, who lived nearby in his palace in Split, the emperor had the smallest bay in Nečujam as his pond. It is the

reason why the bay still bears the name of Piskera and the ruins are still on he bottom of the sea.

At that time, Nečujam from Split was 7-8 hours by rowing away, while Meermowe by sails, with little wind is sailing only 1 hour. The silence and the green beauty of the place have been inspired great croatian poets, who were wrote their best work in Nečujam. The bay is able to hide any sound and turn it into a tiny whisper.

At anchor in Nečujam we stayed overnight. Never dreaming what horror awaits us the next day, satisfied and happy we enjoyed swimming to survive heat stroke that affected the Split area.

The duration of our happiness was expired with preparations for breakfast the next morning. As we chatted cheerfully about the plan of sailing with a friends of our, I opened the fridge to reach margarine. With disbelief I watched the full fridge and then in the freezer. Everything was dissolved, refrigerators generally have not worked. The ampermetar showed that the batteries are low. The currents on the boat was gone, it was shocking therefore that the batteries are new, built-in Pula, each with 300 amps. It was the real nightmare. We felt as if our hearts stopped beating. Realizing the situation, we forgot the breakfast, start the engine, raised anchor and left Šolta. By the entrance of the Marina Kaštela, we urgently contacted with a specialist of boat refrigerators. Get an appointment with Ante, to come on board and address the problem directly is the winning combination of lottery. Finishing work on another boat near us, he promised to come at noon, “bingo”. Three hours was almost up to his arrival. The heat became unbearable. Air temperature climbed to 40*C. We were not sure how long will take this agony, we had to do something to preserve food. All brain wheels were in operation.

Fast searching the internet I found the solution, marine portable freezer, “Fantastic, this is exactly what we need,” agreed Peter. We immediately got into already rented car and drove to the marine shop. While Anthony came, the food was already safe. With relief, smile and happiness at heart we watched the temperature drops to -25 * C.

With its great experience and knowledge, after a detailed examination of the

refrigerator, Ante explained what it is about and recommended us a very good electrician Nikola, to first solve the existing problems based on electrical installation in the ship, after which he will solve his part of job.

On the arrival of an electrician, we found out that the fan on the battery charger and went out under warming fuses on the box are burnt and the copper wire in the electrical wiring is corroded and touch crumbled like sand.

All it would go so far as to cause a fire on board. To solve the problem, Nikola pulled the cable out until he came to the healthy cord, the box is replaced by a new and ultimately guarantee that we will not have problems with electricity for a long period of time. Refrigerators were again in operation after that Ante and his son, the discharge of gas, adjust their work. With the arrival of electricity, life returned to the ship.

Maybe a little funny sounds but thinking of all, we were very happy to have problems like this one after the other, opening right now while still sailing the Adriatic, which are far easier to deal with them than in any other country, or even worse, perhaps somewhere in the middle of the ocean. We greeted each other with Ante and desire to one day comes again sometime, maybe not on the same terms

The days are slowly pulled away, our friends were getting closer to Split and our toilet is still no cure. Servicers have given up on him with a diagnosis of “buy new”, what we on the end did.

On Sunday evening I made a very tasty and easy summer pole with cream, whipped cream and forest berries. Dino and Pipo enjoyed helping me in the kitchen with their favorite song “Imagine life in the rhythm of the music for the dance.” The creams were everywhere and at least on the cake. On Monday morning it was delivered to us a new toilet, Peter had masterfully installed it after which he was ready to use, to the general satisfaction. That afternoon we went to the airport to welcome our guests. Excitement and happiness knew no bounds, especially as with our friends has been landed and Mimi.

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