A tad wet start to the summer, especially on weekends. Rode outdoors on 14 days accumulating just over 650 miles with a long ride of 107 miles. Nothing noteworthy on any of the rides but fortunate enough to experience the tail end of the heat wave that settled into the DC area the last week of the month. Even starting as early as 0630 was still a draining endeavor. The heat and humidity was physically depleting after an hour or so. Even renewed the pleasure of sweating through the cycling shoes. Rainy or wet conditions necessitated 9 days on Zwifte for another 262 indoor miles for those keeping track. The remaining days were spent traveling to and from Croatia and enjoying a vacation on the island of Brac and coastal town of Split. Another weeklong gap in the training plan isn’t ideal for the upcoming cycling events but there will be enough time for the long event beginning in September.

Made two new desserts, a French chocolate dessert and lava cake. While they look similar in the ramekin, the temperature, texture, and taste are quite different. The French dessert was more like a mousse while the lava cake, with ganache, is served warm. Both were good but the lava cake was better. Also made a previous menu item – chicken pot pie.

The trip to Croatia was fantastic. First time back in 20 years and that visit was limited to the Zagreb area. Always wanted to return and visit along the Adriatic coast. Mission accomplished. The Missus, Girl Child and I spent a week, evenly divided between the island of Brac and the coastal city of Split. The purpose of the trip was a destination wedding for the daughter of my wedding’s Best Man. Decided to lengthen the stay beyond the 3 days of wedding related events to make the nearly 8-hour flight between IAD and Frankfurt’s airports more tolerable. Upon arrival in Split, obtained transportation to the terminal ferry for the 65-miin catamaran ride to the south port city of Bol. Brac is the third largest Croatian island and there’s over 1200 islands in the Adriatic. The water is a clean aqua/turquoise color but the beaches are comprised of small rocks, and not very comfortable to walk on without water shoes. The wedding venue was in an isolated compound about 15 minutes away by taxi near the large city of Gornji Humac (population 276). The villa was nice with most of the rooms allocated to those attending the wedding. Unfortunately, any island exploring required either a taxi or rental car.

The following day we set out to explore several of the highlighted places listed in travel literature: the 6-mile round trip hike up to Vidor Gora, the highest point on any of the islands; Stina Winery; a seaside restaurant for lunch, Taverna Riva; Zlatni Rat (Golden Horn) beach, and; and olive oil cooperative Mi Olive. The hike was challenging, the wine surprisingly excellent, the lunch fabulous to include the free cherry brandy, the beach uncomfortable but refreshing water temperature, and very good olive oil.

After the ceremony we returned to Split and stayed in very nice rooms in the central promenade not far from Diocletian’s Palace. Only downsides to the rooms were 2^nd European floor (3^rd US floor) without an elevator and occasional loud, clubbing patrons. We also sampled several traditional Croatian dishes to include pasticada, black risotto, soparnik, and rafiioli. The quality of the wines was the biggest surprised. Disappointed we weren’t able to bring back a sampler case. Would definitely return to Croatia’s Adriatic coast.

We took a tour of Diocletian’s Palace through Viator. Learned that he was not a very nice person but then again, how many emperors were? This was the third time we’ve used their services in 3 different countries and had positive experiences every time. The following day we used Viator again for an all-day adventure that included the town of Trogir, the Krka National Park and Waterfalls, and finally a short boat trip to Skradin. Walking through 1000+ year old towns and villages is always fascinating as we have nothing to compare it with in the US. The waterfalls didn’t disappoint either. The only disappointing feature was being stuck on the bottom deck of the river boat and not being able to view the scenery as it passed.

The eye saga continues but now with a different ophthalmologist at Walter Reed as my primary Doc is on a 4-month deployment. Instead of directly proceeding with removing the granuloma, had sub-tenon injection of Kenelog (triamcinolone) followed by a YAG laser procedure a few days later to resolve posterior capsular opacification (PCO) –  often referred to as “secondary cataracts”  which can develop after cataract surgery. Remaining consistent with the typical eyeball response to a new treatment, the constant irritation subsided significantly once the initial inflammation subsided. It was the closest to a pre-detachment feeling experienced in over two years. Unfortunately, the irritation has returned, sporadically, but not as severe when it does manifest. The train continues but hope is at a higher level that the underlying cause can be treated and ideally, eliminated.