Skip to main content

Every cloud has a ............

By

We are still in Opatija waiting for the replacement shock absorber. However the breaking news and the good news is that the part has now arrived in Zagreb from the BMW head shed in Germany and it will be in Opatija tomorrow (Friday)  Hallelujah! It was promised for Friday but you never know. Our grateful thanks go to our daughter in law Melba who has been on the case and has pointed out to all concerned that Croatia's reputation is on the line here!  She is so good  that I have made her an offer to come along with us on the rest of our trip as our business manager. If she accepts the next step will to be to buy a side car for her! 

So to pass the time of two spare days we rode down to Rovenj  on the Istria  peninsular for an overnight stay that was not to far way in case ( a) the spare part arrived early or ( b) the shock absorber failed. Both events were very unlikely 

Well, what a gem of a place Rovenj was. It was absolutely beautiful. The inner part is blocked off to cars so it was just a case of riding round the barrier arm ( getting quite good at this now!) and the mixing it with all the pedestrians on the narrow and crowded walkways. It is sort of hard to ride a bike  through this! 


  

But we get to the hotel without any pedestrians draped around the front wheel! 

 

Then have to park the bike. What a setting. About 50 km across the water as the crow flies  is Venice! 

 

And spot our Orlanda tucked up for the night! 

 

We explore the town which to me is prettier that the famous Cinque Terra on the other side of Italy 

 

 
 
 

 

We wander up the narrow streets at night 

 



Next morning we shout ourselves a Mediterranean cruise !  It is 15 minutes each way to Isola Rossa ( Red Island) where I watch the marine life and spot a mermaid ! 

 

Then it is back to the mainland, " on ya bike " and down to the town of Pula where there is the largest standing  Roman stadium in the world. 

 

 

And from thence back to Opatija on a sun drenched afternoon which is like travelling along the French Riviera. On the way we cross the 45 th Parallel which on the other side of the world almost goes through our Queenstown. It is an interesting contrast between the Meditterrean type landscape  and climate here of 45 degrees North and the Central Otago climate of 45 degrees South 

 
 
All in all a lovely two day break. And a new shock absorber tomorrow! What more could a fella want! 

Comments

Unknown said…
Really enjoying following your ride from my sofa. Glad you are back on the road (almost).
Janet R
12 August 2016 at 02:42
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The last post!

By
How do you summarise a motorbike trip around the world from Tokyo to Los Angeles?. With difficulty!   Well we are not into record setting. But we believe we are the oldest couple in the world to ride a motorbike “ two up” ie with pillion passenger, right round the world on one season  Let’s start  off with the statistics for the little trip  -                                                                    Total mileage.        34,416 km *                                                        No of days travelling        165                                                      No of countries visited       29                                                     Max temp on bike               41 deg C                                                     Min temp on bike                0 deg.C                                                          No of punctures.              One                                                          No of breakdowns.         One                 
2 comments
Read more

Chapters 1 and 2

By
WHY MOTORCYCLE ADVENTURES ? I have always been interested in adventure. Over the years I have climbed mountains, parachuted, had my private pilots licence, dived, sailed and done various adventurous pursuits (with various degrees of success I might add!). Motorcycling has been one of the later activities. Why motorcycles?  Firstly it is all a bit easier on the body as one gets a little bit older. This is of course on the assumption that one does not inadvertently part company suddenly with said machine!  Secondly, it does also require a bit of brain power - intellect you might say if that does not sound snobby. There is also, to me, an element of "man and machine" about motorcycling. Then if that is not enough justification in itself there is  the scenery and the absorption into the landscape you are passing through. On a bike you see much much more than in a car, bus or train. You are aware of nuances in the landscape, you smell the smells and you become more than just
3 comments
Read more

And a volcano stopped us!

By
What a day. First thing this morning it was off to check the rear tyre of the bike. Oh the relief !  The tyre was rock solid and the same pressure as after fixing yesterday.  So it is a pack up and first day on the road today. We get on the way with a just a little bit of nervous excitement.  On to the  Japanese motorway system we go. And what a delight. The traffic is orderly, calm not going to fast and not too thick. We track right in towards Tokyo itself before bearing West. Yes, there were lots of spaghetti junctions - It looks like The Los Angeles motorway system but it is so much easier (and slower). Japanese politeness really shows thru’. However there were lots of toll booths - we had chopped thru  about NZ$50 in the first hour and a half  Then we are on to the slow bit and off the motorways.  It was about a four hour stop and start crawl thru the urban sprawl of greater Tokyo. However I did find time for some serious reflection - I also saw a hotel called - and I kid you not
3 comments
Read more