by Dee | Oct 3, 2018 | Featured, Travel
Once we had spent a couple of days in Orasac, Croatia, checking out the local area and finding out more about its history and culture, we were becoming more fascinated by the country and were completely in love with the choice of location.
The Novasol villa in all its glory, with is amazing views of the sea and bay was a great base for us, and and our gracious host Ivo had offered to show us around Dubrovnik just 15 minutes along the coast. As Ivo drove us toward the old City, he began to tell us more about the history, and how it had become an UNESCO World Heritage Site, having been founded in the 7th century.
As we entered the city at the Pile Gate we strolled around in sheer admiration of the ancient alleyways and architecture. We visited the Rector’s Palace which has a vast history of surviving war, fire and earthquakes, but has now been restored to its natural splendour and the History Department of the Museum of Dubrovnik has operated in the palace since 1872.
We then stopped for lunch at Poco Loco, situated in a little square, just around the corner from the old port, serving fusion food and cocktails. We ate a delicious light meal and sipped at one of their local recommended wines, before stepping out again to explore the rest of the City.
There seemed to be Street artistry at every corner, and it is no wonder as Artists and Performers are attracted to the sheer magic of the City as it has become an inspiration for all forms of creativity. It is an uplifting experience to just wander around within its 2km walls, and has earned its name Pearl of the Adriatic, as there is nowhere else in Europe that could compare to its captivating spirit.
Ivo had arranged to pick us up later in the afternoon, giving us plenty of time to explore the City. As we drove back along the coast we again marvelled at the wonder of the landscape, as we had on our first day in Croatia.
The following day we were recommended to visit a restaurant close to the Villa, and so we ventured to Taverna Arka just three kilometres from ‘home’.
There was no need to book as we were slightly off season, but were greeted by Peter the owner as if he had known us for decades. The young waiter who was friendly and caring, took time to explain each item on the menu to us, and the produce was fresh and sourced from local farms and fishermen.
We decided on the wild mushroom risotto and oysters followed by a steak and seabass main course, all specialities of the house, and we hardly had room for the desserts, but there was a good selection, which were also quite delicious.
In the Summer the roof terrace is open and overlooks the bay of Zaton where it is situated, and the views again are quite exceptional, and a great attraction for both visitors and locals.
We were now beginning to feel the benefits of the region, and were still on a mission to discover more.
See later more gems of the Adriatic on our Novasol adventure.
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by Dee | Oct 2, 2018 | Fashion, Featured
Some years ago when visiting a distant relative in Mississippi, I noticed a Coat of Arms hanging on their living room wall displaying a rather distinguished tartan crest of our family tree, dating back to the 17th century.
It made me think about tartan and its origins and the significant role in symbolising clans and heritage, and the part it is still playing even within our own Royal Family. Kate, Duchess of Cambridge recently wore a Black Watch tartan outfit when visiting St Andrews school in Berkshire, and Prince Charles is famous for donning his tartan kilt at a variety of events in Scotland.
It is not surprising that tartan keeps making a comeback in our fashion industry, and the Burberry plaid is actually recognised by the Tartan Organisation in Scotland.
This Winter you will see the return of tartan in both high end labels and on the High Street, which is good as it always seems to hold its charm and resonate with most generations.
Versace have a stunning outfit embellished within its layers, as only they can portray, and if your budget stretches to those heights, you can only indulge in the splendour of this stunning and actually ageless outfit.
Warehouse are doing a smart but stylish reversible tartan trench, a snitch at £99 which can adapt nicely with jeans or as a smarter work coat.
Next Lipsy have an adorable tartan mini-kilt at only £40 and , and you have to check out the morgan tartan asymmetric skirt from Preen By Thornton Bregazzi at £745, and more can be found on www.shopstyle.co.uk and www.farfetch.com.
If you just want a hint of tartan, dress any outfit with a classic tartan scarf for Winter.
Within its history, tartan has also symbolised the Rebel and the Royal, and this is reflected in all aspects of its evolvement in fashion, either being worn regally with its classic bent, or with a more daring punk influence.
It just gives us food for thought, and also gives us the confident to explore and include this heritage emblem within our own ‘brand’ of fashion to bring it home and make it our own.
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by Dee | Oct 1, 2018 | Featured, Travel
When the travel company Novasol asked me to write a travelogue on one of their villa destinations in Croatia, I agreed immediately.
Firstly, because I had worked with Novasol before, and as they are celebrating their 50 year anniversary this year, knew that anywhere they sent me would be first class.
I had never been to Croatia and so did a little pre-adventure research and discovered it had the potential to be a very special experience. I knew that a great deal of movies and TV have been filmed there over the years as I had known an actor who had appeared in Game of Thrones, so decided to check out the most interesting locations.
Novasol provide holiday homes all over Europe, and their homes are constantly monitored to make sure they maintain the standard of their brochures. So I knew I would be very well catered for, but was overwhelmed with the care and attention I actually received.
At my initial request, I had a series of email communications from the owner of the Villa, Ivo Dimnic, in the stunning seaside village of Orasac, just 15 kilometres from Dubrovnik. Ivo assured me that on arrival it would take just half an hour or so to reach him, and this was absolutely the case.
The short drive from the airport to the Villa was amazing, as the winding coastal roads sported breath taking views of beaches and ancient architecture, which give you an immediate flavour of the beautiful country of Croatia.
Ivo and his wife Ela were there to greet us, as I was travelling with an old friend, theatre Director Frank Nealon, who also wanted to experience Croatia and I suspect, check it out for any future projects.
Ivo and Ela showed us around the Villa which is stunning and also had a bottle of wine and some ‘welcome’ home baked cookies for us on arrival. We also discovered that Ivo Dimnic is a well-known local artist, and his stylish paintings are displayed throughout the walls of the Villa to enhance the already high spec tasteful interior decor. It is actually spacious enough for two families, and even has a kids room which is set up for their X-boxes and computer games.
Ivo was charming and offered to drive us into town and show us some beauty spots, but we had hired a car and so didn’t want to put him to any inconvenience, but it seemed that nothing was too much trouble, and so we planned to meet up with him later in the week in Dubrovnik.
The Villa is set high on the hill of Orasac, and so the views over the bay are outstanding, with the little boats and the bigger trawlers making a magical picture as we sipped our wine and relished our first evening in Croatia.
We decided to stay close to home on the first day, and so walked down the steps to the bakery below to check out where to buy fresh bread for breakfast the next day, and then ventured down to the Hotel below the Sun Gardens, where we had a fantastic meal in one of their restaurants open to non-residents, overlooking the beach.
We discovered too that the white wine from Orasac is famous in Croatia, and the seafood delicious. So we were really set up for a fabulous Croatian vacation.
Watch out for more adventures in Croatia on Glotime.tv shortly when we report on more food, beauty spots and culture.
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