From the April 28, 2002 New York Times - Mihaljevic of Croatia coaches
the St. Francic College Women's Water Polo Team

Diverse Women Form Tournament Team

By ERIK BOLAND

Megan Nolan admitted she had low expectations for her first season on
the St. Francis College women's water polo team.

"Hopefully, we'll win more than three games," Nolan, a junior,recalled
thinking after transferring to St. Francis in Brooklyn Heights last
August from Golden West Community College in California. The pessimism
was understandable.

The women's program, a Title IX sport established in 1996, had never won
more than four games in a season. But under their first-year coach,
Srdjan Mihaljevic, the Terriers, an undermanned amalgam of nationalities
and playing experience, finished 16-3 and qualified for this weekend's
Collegiate Water Polo Association Eastern Championships at Princeton,
N.J.

St. Francis, seeded 11th, played second-seeded Hartwick (23-8) last
night. The winner of the 12-team tournament, in which Michigan is seeded
first, advances to the N.C.A.A. tournament in Los Angeles.

The 23-year-old Mihaljevic played on several Croatian junior national
teams before coming to the United States in 1996 as a high school
exchange student. The assistant coach, Yulian Hristov, is from Bulgaria.
Jelena Maljkovic, a sophomore, is from Yugoslavia. Gili Kollan, a
freshman, and Carmit Reuven, a junior, come from Israel. The freshman
goalie Liz Grant is from Texas. "Think about it, a Jewish girl coming tostudy 
in a Catholic school," Reuven said.

"People ask me about it all the time, but I think it's beautiful to
learn about another culture. We are all good friends."

Kollan and Reuven played together on various Israeli junior water polo
teams. "We try not to talk too much Hebrew," Kollan said, adding,
"Jelena tries not to talk too much Serbian and Liz tries not to talk too
much, I guess you would call it, Texan."

The Terriers have nine players. All of St. Francis's opponents have
between 18 and 20 players, allowing for liberal substitutions during the
grueling 28-minute games in which players swim an average of one mile.
St. Francis has few substitution options and even less room for
injuries.

Grant sat poolside during a recent practice, her right thumb wrapped in
gauze that covered a blue plastic splint. She broke the thumb, the
second time she has broken it this season, in practice last week before
the Northern Division playoffs in New London, Conn. Grant played all
four games as the Terriers went 2-2 to qualify for this weekend.

"It hurts, but you play with it," Grant said. "We only have nine
people." Warding off shots of the yellow one-pound rubber ball, Grant
has also suffered a concussion, a hyperextended elbow and had her nose
broken twice this season.

Mihaljevic attended St. Francis on an athletic and academic scholarship,
playing four years for St. Francis's men's water polo team. While
finishing his economics degree last spring, he assisted the former
coach, Kylie Parnaby, and took over when Parnaby chose not to return
this season.

Mihaljevic, who works during the day as an equity controller with Morgan
Stanley, inherited a team with little or no water polo experience. Other
than Maljkovic, the team's leading scorer this season with 57 goals, and
Reuven (27 goals), much of the team was made up of converted swimmers
like the New Yorkers Patricia Comer and Catherine Dale, who were
learning the sport for the first time. Mihaljevic, and seasoned players
like Kollan, Reuven and Nolan, attribute much of this season's 12-game
improvement to the swimmers' rapid progress.

"They're way better than I was my second year," said Nolan, who played
four years of water polo in high school, then two more at community
college. "They've really done well for just starting."

For next year, Mihaljevic has already secured commitments from two
players, one from Yugoslavia and one from Florida. Still, finding
players in the United States remains difficult.

"In the U.S., with the exception of California, you don't have
water-polo powers in a state," Mihaljevic said. "And the kids in
California, they always want to go to the best water-polo schools, which
are over there. My best bet when I'm recruiting people is selling coming
to New York City."

And perhaps, after this weekend, an N.C.A.A. tournament berth.

	Veleposlanstvo Republike Hrvatske u Sjedinjenim Američkim Državama Embassy of the Republic of Croatia to the United States of America
	2343 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W., Washington D.C. 20008 Press office,  Phone: (202) 986 9476       Fax.: (202) 588 8938 E-mail: press@croatiaemb.org               www.croatiaemb.org

PRESS  RELEASE

CROATIAN AMBASSADOR TO THE U.S. TESTIFIED BEFORE THEHOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES COMMITTEE ON INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

The Vilnius group Ambassadors testified on Subcommitteeon Europe hearing, NATO Enlargement: A View from the Candidate Countries

WashingtonDC, May 1, 2002 – Dr.Ivan Grdesic, Ambassador of Croatia to the United States, expressed today theCroatian views on the NATO enlargement during the U. S. House of RepresentativesCommittee on International Relations Subcommittee on Europe hearing.

Asa newly independent state, Croatia did not have the burden of the Communiststyle army, but rather established its armed forces modeled on the NATOprinciples. Faced with Communist Yugoslav army aggression in the early 1990s,Croatia demonstrated its military and strategic capabilities to defend itselfand win the war, said Grdesic.

Inthe aftermath of September 11, Croatia demonstrated its commitment to act as ade facto ally of the United States, defending the values shared by thedemocratic world, said Grdesic and continued: The threat of global insecuritythat emerged after September 11 has taught us clearly that it is necessary toexpand the institutional framework of mutual cooperation. All NATO aspirantcountries expect to contribute and participate in the process of building asafe, free and democratic Europe. There is no place for new division lines inEurope.

Croatiawelcomes the approach that would stimulate and award individual performances ofevery NATO aspirant. All countries that follow the path of irreversibledemocracy and commitment to share the common values of freedom have thepotential to contribute to the regional and global stability. Croatia is awarethat NATO membership is conditioned by strict criteria which brings additionalcosts and responsibilities. An admission to the Membership Action Plan, that weexpect to be approved at the Reykjavik NATO Ministerial in May 2002, would allowCroatia to advance preparations for the Alliance and be recognized as a crediblecandidate for the post-Prague round of enlargement, said Grdesic and continued:In the period after the Prague summit, Croatia will be strongly committed to aNATO open-door policy and encourage the strengthening of institutional linkswith all countries that share the common vision of security, cooperation, andsolidarity as the principles of the North Atlantic Alliance, said Grdesic.

Thishearing was the first opportunity for the Republic of Croatia and other V-10countries to voice their will and readiness to join NATO in front of both U. S.House of Representatives as well as American public. The other V-10 Ambassadorstestified as well. The V10 comprises Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia,Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

The nextkey-V-10 event to take place in 2002 is V-10 meeting during the Speakers andPresidents of the Euroepan parliamentary assemblies conference in Zagreb,Croatia, May 10-11. Croatia is expected to join NATO’s Membership Action Planat NATO Foreign ministers meeting at Reykjavik, Iceland, May 13-16.

####

Mediacontact: Alan Vojvodić, (202) 986 9476, press@croatiaemb.org 

http://www.hkz.hr/Hslovo.htm
HRVATSKO SLOVO (Internet izdanje) u broju 366 od 26. travnja 2002. donosi:

***
ZA VAS SMO IZDVOJILI

UVODNIK
Benjamin Tolic
Sloga na kusnji

RAZGOVOR
Vesna Kljajic
DR. IVO SANADER: Krecemo u kampanju za parlamentarne izbore

MEDIJSKI JAD
Mihovil Donat
Nehoticna istina i hotimicna laz

Jakov Gumzej
Antihrvatski mit o Jasenovcu jos ziv

HRVATSKA RASKRIZJA
Zoran Vukman
Ravnoteza snaga?

Zoran Vukman
Europskoj uniji danas se dogadja francuski Vojislav Seselj

Zvonimir Kuhar
Soros opet vratio komuniste u Madjarsku

GOST KOMENTATOR HRVATSKOGA SLOVA
Carl Gustaf Ströhm
Kriza suvremena politike

Stjepan Sulek
Mediji u sluzbi nove kolonizacije

Eduard Babic
Hrvatska Republika u BiH?

RAZGOVOR
Anto Marincic
DON MIRKO BARBARIC: Vjerujem u katolicku mladez u Zepcu

RAZGOVOR
Mira Curic
IVICA ANTOLCIC: Posavina je pleter mog zivota

OD PETKA DO PETKA
Vesna Kljajic
Misevi

OKRUGLI STOL O POSTTRAUMATSKOM STRESOM POREMECAJU
Gordana Dujic
Je li patnja hrvatskih branitelja imala smisla?

SVE JE VISE PRIJEDLOGA ZA NOVI UPRAVNO-PROSTORNI USTROJ REPUBLIKE HRVATSKE (2)
Radovan Pavic
Prijedlog Milana Djukica o srpskim kantonima / Djukic bi vratio "SAO Krajinu"

KARTE NA STOL
Semini Loncar, Branko Zmajevic, Marta Vidakovic-Mukic, Ivica Pancic, Wolfgang Petritsch

CRVENA OLOVKA
OSVRTIC -CIRKUSANT U SABORU
VIJESTI - Vlado Simenc
JEKA
VIC TJEDNA
DUDEK IMA RIJEC

POZIV pretplatnicima, podupirateljima, darovateljima
DARUJTE PRETPLATU POTREBNIM HRVATSKIM USTANOVAMA U B-H, 
BOKI KOTORSKOJ, BACKOJ

ZAHVALJUJEMO
pretplatnicima, podupirateljima, darovateljima

*********
Cijenjenim citateljima Hrvatskoga slova
na internetskim stranicama
http://www.hkz.hr

Cijenjeni citatelji,

zahvaljujemo na Vasem interesu i paznji kojom pratite tekstove koje objavljujemo na 
internetskim stranicama http://www.hkz.hr tjedni
ka za kulturu i kulturnu politiku Hrvatsko slovo.

Obveza nam je obavijestiti Vas da u razdoblju od do nismo bili u mogucnosti objavljivati 
tekstove iz Hrvatskoga slova na nasim inter
netskim stranicama, zbog prilicno nepovoljnih financijskih prilika u kojima se Hrvatsko slovo 
nalazi.

Zahvaljujuci dobroti i pomoci nasih postovanih citatelja I. V. iz SAD-a i M. B. iz Australije, 
ponovno smo u mogucnosti objavljivati
tekstove na internetu.

Duzni smo zamoliti sve nase citatelje internetskih stranica Hrvatskoga slova, da pomognu i 
omoguce daljnje objavljivanje na internet
u svojim novcanim prilozima, u najmanjem iznosu od 50 kuna, 10 EURA ili 20 USD.
Nadamo se da cete razumjeti nase potrebe, i zajednicki interes u kontinuiranom objavljivanju i 
pracenju Hrvatskoga slova na internetu.

Vase uplate za Republiku Hrvatsku, Bosnu i Hercegovinu, Boku Kotorsku, Kosovo, Banat i Backu 
molimo doznacite cekom ili na ziro racun:
HKZ-HRVATSKO SLOVO d.o.o. 23400009-1100149615.

Devizne su uplate moguce cekom ili na devizni racun:
HKZ-HRVATSKO SLOVO d.o.o. 2500-9982800-575186,
Privredna banka d.d., Zagreb, Hrvatska.

Obratili smo Vam se s povjerenjem i nadamo se da ga ne cete iznevjeriti.

Hrvatsko slovo ce, od sada i uz Vasu pomoc, i dalje izlaziti svakog petka!
Hrvatsko slovo Vas ne ce iznevjeriti!

CROATIAN AMERICAN TIMES NEWSPAPER

Croatian American Times (Cro-AT) is the only WEEKLY INDEPENDENT newspaper in North America that serves Croatian Americans. The Times is bilingual, being published in Croatian and English, and international in scope. Daily contact is maintained with journalist and reporters in Croatia and America. Circulation to Croatia is 5000 weekly. Cro-AT is published with the intention to provide business, cultural and social information and news to the American and Croatian community. It provides business and trade opportunities for Americans, Croatian Americans and Croatians in Croatia. Cro-AT reports on all historic, social, benevolent, church and other activities within the Croatian American community and promotes, thru advertising and articles, Croatian American and Croatian enterprises. Their advertising rates are reasonable and affordable. Subcription is $95.00 per year or $2.50 weekly. Write or call Croatian American Times at 44-37 Douglaston Parkway, Douglaston, NY 11363; Phone 718-819-0401; Fax 718-819-0407; E-MailCroatianAmerican@aol.com. Call or write for a free sample. 

BOL, Croatia (Ticker) -- No. 4 Iva Majoli did not disappoint the native fans as she was one of 
three seeds to advance in the first round of the $170,000 Croatian Bol Ladies Open on Tuesday.

Majoli, one of four Croatians in the tournament, rallied for a 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 victory over Slovakian 
Ludmila Cervanova. Majoli is coming off a 7-6 (7-5), 6-4 win over Switzerland's Patty Schnyder 
in the final of the $1,224,000 Family Circle Cup.

Sixth-seeded Henrieta Nagyova of Slovakia defeated Slovenia's Maja Matevzic, 7-6 (7-5), 6-2 and 
seventh-seeded Slovakian Tina Pisnik dispatched qualifier Zuzana Hejdova of the Czech 
Republic, 6-2, 7-5. Russian Anna Kournikova ended a five-match losing streak Tuesday with a 6-7 (3-7), 6-2, 6-2 victory over Julia Vakulenko of Ukraine.

Angelique Widjaja of Indonesia routed Seda Noorlander of the Netherlands, 6-2, 6-0 and 
Croatian Jelena Kostanic got past Tatiana Potchek of Belarus, 6-7 (5-7), 6-0, 6-4.

A pair of qualifiers moved on as Russian Vera Zvonareva cruised to a 6-3, 6-2 triumph over 
Germany's Jana Kandarr and Libuse Prusova of the Czech Republic eliminated Croatian wild 
card Karolina Sprem, 6-3, 6-0.

Top-seeded Russian Elena Dementieva and second seed Anne Kremer of Luxembourg each 
received byes in the first round.

Defending champion Angeles Montolio of Spain is seeded fifth.

The top prize in this Tier III claycourt event is $27,000.

  >

 Katarina Tepesh
New York City, USA
tepeshk@aol.com

English Teacher - Croatia
NIKA Foreign Language School

Contact Information: Mr. Zoran Loncaric
Email: nika@email.hinet.hr

Description:
Start Date: October 1, 2002

Our family-owned language school, NIKA, is located in central Croatia, one 
of Europe's newest countries and also one of its most beautiful. Perhaps 
we're most famous for our gorgeous, unspoiled coast, and yet there's a lot 
more here to see: lovely mountains, national parks and historic cities, such 
as Dubrovnik, Split and Zagreb.

The school is located in Krizevci, a small medieval town just east of the 
capital Zagreb. This offers you the advantage of living in a relaxed, 
peaceful town where you 'll be welcomed with hospitality, and at the same 
time the big city is just an hour's train ride away. (You can see a picture 
of Krizevci at www.krizevci.hr).

In addition, many interesting places outside Croatia are within easy reach 
from Krizevci: Venice, Budapest, Sarajevo, Austria and Slovenia.

ABOUT OUR SCHOOL

NIKA was founded in 1992 and now has 350 students learning English, Italian, 
German and French. We are proud of our positive, fun, family-like atmosphere 
and we have an excellent reputation in the community. We offer classes for 
adults, teenagers and young learners, and our staff includes 7 local 
teachers and one native speaker. We keep our classes small, usually about 
5-10 students. We have good resources and a computer for you to use as well.

ABOUT THE POSITION

The contract is for 9 months, from Oct. 1, 2002 to June 30, 2003

You will teach approximately 18 45-minute lessons each week

We hold classes Monday to Saturday, but you won't necessarily work every 
day. The final schedule will be arranged with the students in late 
September, and then the final teaching schedule can be set up.

You will teach students of all levels, from beginner to advanced, and of all 
ages from young learners to adults.

WHAT WE OFFER A salary of $400 a month, which will allow you to live 
comfortably in Krizevci and to travel in the region

A free flat with all utilities paid by the school Free health care and dental care

Three weeks of paid holidays (at Christmas and Easter) plus various national holidays
Cell phone to use during your stay
Full reimbursement for visa costs
Access to the school's computer and the Internet

Qualification:
Native speaker with TEFL certification
Bachelor's degree
At least one year of experience
Teachers under 35 will be given preference

MORE INFORMATION & HOW TO APPLY

Please send your CV or resume, a recent picture, and references by May 15 to 
Mr. Zoran Loncaric, the school's director, at nika@email.hinet.hr

American Radio Relay League       Naval Cryptologic Veterans Assn.

Email address:pyacich@wave.tcs.tulane.edu
Affiliated with PAUL YACICH PRODUCTIONS

7364 Beryl St. Phone: 504-283-4714 New Orleans, LA Fax:504-283-4714

I am an AMERICAN of Croatian descent. Mypaternal grandfather came to New Orleans around 1875 from Supetar (Saint Peter)on the Dalmatian island of Brac in the Adriatic Sea. He operated an oysterlugger in the Gulf waters of Louisiana. My father became the dative executor ofa large estate.


I am a retired TV Producer/Director, having spent the better part of my careerat WDSU-TV where I started in the broadcasting field as a technician in theengineering department. I joined WDSU in 1947 after serving two years duringWWII as a Radio Officer in the Merchant Marine aboard T2 tankers and Libertyships. In 1950, during the Korean Conflict, I served in the U. S. Navy, in abranch of the Office of Naval Intelligence, stationed at Wahiawa, Oahu, TH. Ireturned to WDSU-TV in 1952.

 I have had the honor and pleasure ofdirecting two Emmy winning TV documentaries and many award winning commercials.In February of 1999 I was honored by the Louisiana Association of Broadcasterswho awarded me their Lifetime Achievement Award. In July of 1999 I was inductedinto the Greater New Orleans Broadcaster's Association's Hall of Fame. I wasawarded my first Amateur Radio license in 1946 and have held the call W5LLJcontinuously since then.

Admitted to The Order ofThe Iron Test Pattern with the dignity of BRIGADIER

I am also a hopelessly incurable netsurfing addict! HELP!

Youare Cordially Invited to a Seminar On

Long-TermCare

April29, 2002 at 7:00pm at 35-01 30^th Ave, 3^rd Floor, Astoria,   New York 11103.

Inapproximately one hour, we’ll sort through the sometimes confusing andcontradictory information you may have read about Long-Term Care and show youwhat your options are.

 Someof the questions we’ll address include:

ˇ      Whatare the risks?

ˇ      Whatdoes Medicare cover?

ˇ      Canyou afford to self-insure?

ˇ      Whattype of insurance is available?

ˇ      Whatare the effects of legislation?

ˇ      What’sin a good Long-Term Care insurance policy?

For directions and to confirm yourattendance, please call:

MarioCroner at 718-267-3615 (work) or 646-244-1594 (cell)

or email:  mcroner@MetLife.com

MetLife

Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, One Madison Ave, New York, NY 10010

L9905HQP5(exp1205) MLIC-LD

Dear All,

This is a small and successful example, how we work together and have immediate success.
Please stop sending Mr. Probert more letters. Actually, few more about Croatia being part of Yugoslavia should be sent. He had full 10 years to change it.

There should be a team of people (maybe in the National Library, or wherever) who will:

1. Change all misinformation that is floating around the world
2. Implement new information
3. Proactively place information about our history, sports, science, art and culture.
best,

Nenad

Dear Nenad;

Thank you for your suggestion.

Indeed, the dalmation dog originates from Dalmatia in east Croatia. This entry will be amended shortly in the encyclopaedia. Yes there was a typing error in "strangers" but travellers is spelt correctly (I am English, not American ! <G>)

Apologies, no insult was intended of the Croatian people by refering to "Yugoslavia".

Yours sincerely

Matt Probert
----
Author Of The Probert Encyclopaedia
http://www.probertencyclopaedia.com 
-----Original Message-----
Sent: 27 April 2002 16:56
To: enquiries@probert-encyclopaedia.co.uk
Subject: Dalmatian Dog - needs correction

Dear Matt,

Thank you for your kind respond. Dalmatia is in Southern Croatia. I will post your letter as I did the previous one (if you got more letters) on a Croatian websites. I hope that this will help some visibility for your encyclopedia. If you want some input for your encyclopedia

Yours sincerely,

Nenad Bach

p.s. Do you say dalmation or dalmatian dog? We say Dalmatian (in the USA). InCroatia Dalmatiner. because when you say Dalmatian, people would think of ahuman, not a dog.

www.nenadbach.com
P.O.Box 274
Irvington, New York 10533 USA

The Probert Encyclopaedia
From Places of the World
Croatia is a republic in Europe. Part of Yugoslavia.

My response:
That one is outdated too.
Thank you
NB


Dear Mr.Probert,

While I was searching the net for the Dalmatian dog, I found your beautiful Probert Encyclopedia.

Since I found a misinformation and I hope that you will appreciate my time to write a letter to you, I would ask you to reconsider, changing the "Yugoslavian breed" into Croatian breed. To say the least, Yugoslavia existed only 70 years. Dalmatian Dog outlived many countries and political systems. Dalmatia happened to be part of Croatia. Croatians live there since the 7th century. Here and there, I call myself Dalmatian (my mother is), not that I do not behave like a dog sometimes. Joke aside, we Croatians are very proud of our new country and especially about our own history and identity, that even a dog reflects. Dalmatian dog is very popular in Croatia and it fits the character of who we are. 

Please take time to explore on your own, and if you do not have that time, we can help you find information about our dog. We are still learning the power of promotion, otherwise, I wouldn't need to write such a letter in 21st century. I hope that our Croatian government will finally understand the value of truth. In the meantime, let's change what we can, when we can.

Sincerely,

Nenad Bach 
www.nenadbach.com

p.s. Travelers and Strangers were misspelled. I corrected it for this letter. When you change this information, I will advertise your Probert Encyclopedia on our Croatian community boards. There are 3 million Croatians in US and cca 10 million all together.

The Times
Travel 
April 27, 2002

Emma Haughton and her sons pause for breath during the
family’s tour of Dubrovnik’s city walls, one of the
highlights of their holiday in Croatia 

Sending them up the wall in Croatia
Dubrovniks views, Cavtats beach and Dalmatian
hospitality suit Emma Haughtons children

SOMETIMES first impressions of a place are misplaced,
and so it is with Croatia. Frazzled after flying with
our brood of four, I inadvertently step beyond the
immigration checkpoint before being invited and find
myself brought to task by a fierce-looking customs
official. 
“You vill come back here now,” she barks in a tone
that snaps something inside my usual British reserve.
“I will not be spoken to like that,” I say equally
vehemently, not missing the kids’ looks of alarm and
my husband Jon’s sharp intake of breath. Oh gawd, I
realise the moment it’s popped out of my mouth — now
they’re not going to let us into the country. 

Thankfully they do — and very grateful I am too,
because Croatia proves to be a real treat. On the
short coach journey from the airport to our hotel, my
ruffled nerves are quickly soothed by the lush green
coastline, interspersed with peaceful-looking villages
and hemmed with gorgeous bays and a deep blue sea. 

Pomegranate and tangerine trees are fruiting along the
side of the road, and flowers are blooming in the
hedgerows. It’s October, but feels like spring. “How
come it’s still summer here, but it’s winter back
home,” says Chip, six. “Because they’re lucky and
we’re not,” is all I can think to reply. 

Our hotel, on the southern edge of the coast, is
large, clean and well equipped. The two good-sized
swimming pools are a stone’s throw from the beach and
we spend our first day basking, bathing, then
strolling the 20 yards or so to a restaurant
overlooking the sea, where we tuck into salads and
plates of chips. 

Jon, having refused to pack sunblock on the grounds
that “we couldn’t possibly need it at this time of
year” is forced to eat his words when, later that
evening, we all turn as red as the local roof tiles. 

The hotel and the smart little resort of Cavtat nearby
are perfectly placed for trips to Dubrovnik: sitting
on the beach we can just make out its fortified walls
a mile or so away across the bay. So it seems
appropriate to make our first visit by boat, and catch
one of the regular ferries leaving from outside our
hotel. 

It is the ideal way to travel, the sun on our backs
and the kids squealing with delight as the boat
gathers speed and sprays them with brine. As we close
into the harbour, we soon see why Dubrovnik is
considered such a treasure. It is impossibly
beautiful, with its fortified harbour and the Stradun,
the grand main street where thousands of feet have
polished the stone pavement to an improbable shine. 

It’s also tiny, with a population of 30,000 and, like
the rest of Croatia, incredibly cheap. Our kids think
Christmas has come early as we sit in a posh café in
the main square and indulge in luscious slabs of cake,
a mere 40p a slice. “I weally would like to wive
here,” mumbles nine-year-old Flan through mouthfuls of
confectioner’s cream. 

But to get a real flavour of Dubrovnik, you have to
rise above it. We drag our protesting brood on a
one-mile tour of the city walls. They soon stop
complaining as we gain height and peer down into the
grid of streets and cobbled passageways that cut
between whitewashed houses, and into the assortment of
little courtyard gardens, all lit up with Barbie-pink
bougainvillea. 

The highlight of our trip, literally, is the view from
the dizzying 650ft heights of the Minceta Fortress,
where we survey a sea of coral red roofs, spot
someone’s washing hanging from a TV aerial, a cat
sunning itself on a top storey windowsill, and beyond
it all, wonderful views across the bay, the cobalt
blue sea blending into the horizon with barely a fault
in the blue-grey haze. 

We hire a car for a couple of days and drive along the
near empty coastal roads of the southern Dalmatian
coast, past imposing white hills speckled green with
scrub and trees. There’s a collective frisson as we
pass a sign to Mostar; again when we see another for
the main road to Sarajevo. 

Our curiosity is aroused — the next day we venture
into neighbouring Bosnia. Our first port of call is a
supermarket, from which I can only conclude that the
Bosnians are extremely fond of Swiss chocolate, then
visit to Neum, or Bosnia-by-Sea, the only town on the
nine-mile stretch of coastline the country lays claim
to. 

It turns out to be a rather godforsaken and grim bit
of land culminating in a car park that looks like it
could well be mined; the surrounding buildings have
bullet scars in the walls and I can’t help thinking
the Bosnians got something of a raw deal when it comes
to seaside resorts. 

Then we head inland into the beautiful, fertile and
eerily quiet interior, where we perch on a pile of
rocks up in the hills and listen to the sound of
nothing. Passing back across the border, the lone
guard and his dog look surprised to see us, but after
a careful check of our boot and passports, they allow
us to leave. 

Another day we take a boat trip to the Elaphite
islands. The kids discover that by chucking their
lunch over the side of the boat they can attract half
the marine life in the Adriatic. Word gets around
almost instantly, and suddenly we’re deluged by a
heaving frenzy of bread-crazed fish. 

On Kolocep, population just 150, we sit in the little
café in the harbour admiring the surrounding islands
with their volcanic looking peaks. “Hope they’re not
still active,” says Chip, worried. 

At Sipan we walk the pretty, woody half-mile to one of
the few sandy beaches in the region, where Hetty,
three, finds a crafted boat made from flotsam and
driftwood, and spends a couple of happy hours bouncing
it on the waves. 

It’s perhaps the most idyllic and relaxing afternoon
of the holiday, only slightly marred by my wandering
off the path on the way back and coming face to face
with a large snake — I run in one direction, the snake
heads off in another, both as terrified as each other.

We spend our last evening lounging in one of the cafés
lining the pretty waterfront at Cavtat, watching the
pleasure boats deposit their passengers on the
quayside. Suddenly the little resort is invaded by a
high-spirited and raucous Croatian wedding party. 

Some 30-odd cars parade up and down the seafront,
decked out in white ribbons, their drivers tooting
their horns and waving before parking in the middle of
the street, and disgorging their happy revellers into
the nearby church. We follow their lead, and are just
watching the bride and groom emerge as newlyweds when
our eldest two decide to engage in the
mother-of-all-battles over nothing in particular, and
have to be half-nelsoned into submission. 

Jon and I are pink with mortification, but the
celebrating Croatians seemingly nonchalant. Scary
customs officials aside, it clearly takes more than a
couple of squabbling English kids to ruffle their
feathers. 

Need to know                           

Getting there: The Rees-Haughtons travelled with
Holiday Options (0870-013 0450,
www.holidayoptions.co.uk). Seven nights at the
three-star Hotel Albatros in Cavtat costs from Ł349pp
and Ł315 per child (under 12) based on two sharing,
including flights, transfers and half-board
accommodation. Other operators to Cavtat include
Transun (0870-444 4747, www.transun.co.uk) and Inghams
(020-8780 4444, www.inghams.com). 

Reading: Croatia (Lonely Planet Ł10.99), Croatia
(Rough Guides, Ł9.99). 

Further information: Croatian Tourist Office (020-8563
7979, www.croatia.hr).