We had just gotten back on Berkeley East after a swim when a couple passed by in a dinghy. We were anchored far back in the huge Luka Telascica national park, and finally beginning to understand the beauty of Croatia. We'd heard over and over again how gorgeous the country was, but we just hadn't seen it, except in all the aerial photos of Croatia's thousands of islands, a view unattainable by boat. There were nice places, but nothing more scenic than we had seen in other countries. But here, at the park, we were starting to realize that there were different kinds of beauty in Croatia. The park, for instance, is somewhat barren, but when we stepped back and looked at the expanse of it all, it took our breath away.




The couple in the dinghy came by again and asked, "Is it an Oyster?" We've heard this question before about BE, she looks a bit like an older Oyster, well known English-made yachts. We are always flattered by the question, as Oysters are beautiful, expensive boats. "No" we answered, she's a Hylas. The conversation continued with the couple standing in their dinghy hanging onto BE's rail, as cruisers do. We learned that they were Fi and Eddie, from the UK, who own an Oyster and have cruised in Croatia for 14 years. They asked what our cruising plans were and we told them that we were moving quickly through Croatia and Greece to winter in Turkey. They offered to give us some tips on places to go in Croatia, recommended the restaurant in the park, even went off and made a reservation for us. A lovely couple that later introduced us to their friends, shared their wine and spent hours helping us mark our cruising guides with their favorite anchorages and restaurants.

Our cruising friends joke about how often we change plans, especially when it comes to where we are going to put Berkeley East for the winter. This year, we left Sicily with the plan to go back there again this winter. While we were in Malta, we decided that we should go to Turkey instead. Along the way, we researched just about every possible winter marina in Italy, Croatia, Montenegro, Greece and Turkey, but never made an actual commitment. By the time we said goodbye to Fi and Eddie, our heads were spinning, there was so much to do in Croatia and our current plan gave us very little time. Once again, we could see that we were changing our minds, coming full circle, to cruise longer in Croatia and probably take Berkeley East back to Sicily for the winter.

But before making the final decision to slow down in Croatia, we decided to test run a couple of our new friend's recommendations, after all, we may not have the same taste in anchorages, or food.

Ancorage on North East side of Otok Kornat




The Island of Otak Kornat, often described as a moonscape



Sabuni a great restaurant on Otak Zut



Lunch of grilled squid, cooked on a wood grill, french fries and local wine



View from our lunch table to Berkeley East at anchor



After the Uvala Statival anchorage on Otok Kornat, the beautiful bay at Uvala Hiljaca, and the grilled squid at a tiny restaurant on Otak Zut, we knew we were going to follow "Fi and Eddie's Croatia Cruising and Culinary Guide." And so back to Sicily we will go.