michael and i walked around the grounds and climbed the tower on the grounds of the church and monastery of st. john the evangelist. there are beautiful views from the tower and it’s a much easier climb than the main tower. there are what look like stone grave markers lying here and there in the path way. the ruins of the chapel are very beautiful. i would highly recommend visiting this historic sight.

we had dinner one night at a restaurant near our apartment called the restoran adriatic. it was wonderful! the owner and waitstaff were so personable and the food was amazing. the fish soup was probably the best i’ve ever had. the fish platter had sea bass and hake which are two of my favorites. (although now i feel terrible having eaten hake now that i know it’s highly endangered in the adriatic.) almost every restaurant does their own version of octopus salad (hobotnica) and each is usually amazing in it’s own way.

on the 29th of June we decided to take a bike ride from village rab over to one of the beaches on kampor. (i’ll have to add a name later.) it was one of the most arduous tasks i’ve decided to undertake in years! i did have to stop and walk my bike a lot, especially up the hills. it was a rough day and we didn’t end up making it to the beach that was recommended but did find a nice little spot. (with a lot of grumbling by the kids along the way.) we were exhausted by the time we got home.

on the 30th of june, michael and i decided to try the naturist beach. it was an eye-opening experience but once you get comfortable, it was nice. we had a great day there and the water was some of the most beautiful on the island. we offered for the kids to go but of course if you don’t grow up in that lifestyle, it can be uncomfortable, especially for preteen and teenage children.

on the 1st of july, kaity and michael decided to swim across the passage way and walk out to the little island and see what it was like. the boys and i hung out at the little cafe and had something to drink. that’s when i took the night shot of rab.

on the 2nd, we decided to do what tyler wished. he wanted to visit the sand beach at lopar. it is shallow for probably 75 yards before it starts to drop off. it’s exhausting walking all that way in mid-calf high water so i only went in to cool off now and then. it’s a great place for families with small children since the can play around for a good distance before any trouble. tyler had a fantastic time. it was nice to take it easy on the beach with my book. the boys and kaity took turns with the two rafts we bought just floating and relaxing. michael and i took sometime for a beer and some ice cream with kaity while the boys were hanging in the water. all of the cafes along the beach are average but at least the beer doesn’t change!

on the 3rd of july we had our last family dinner at an amazing restaurant in rab. the building, decor, staff and food were top rate. (once again, i’ll have to update later with the name.)

our last full day there was pretty uneventful. michael, thomas and i decided to find a nice beach. it took awhile but we found a nice spot. we had to move once from a little sandy cove which seemed to be filled with an italian group that all knew each other so we moved to a rocky outcrop that was beautiful. the water was amazing. it was deceptive though! i would look down and be able to see the bottom and then would think i could stand up but i wasn’t anywhere near the bottom! gorgeous! there were a lot of boats in the cove and more motoring in as the day went on. several of them were naturist…too funny.

it was back to the apartment and packing so we could leave very early the next morning. what a wonderful 10 days it was….