We had planned to get a taxi to the bus station and then a free bus to the airport. Once we were in the taxi we acquiesced. 40 CHF was reasonable at this time of the morning and it was about a twenty minute trip….and this is Switzerland!!!!

What are all these people doing here? It’s 4:30 in the morning!!! Then I saw the departure board.

There were twelve flights between six and seven AM!!! Destinations included Split, Thessaloniki, Pristina, Nice, Alicante, Ibiza -warm places.

It was Saturday and the first day of the summer holidays for many. The departure halls were absolutely heaving. Queues were out the door. We were a bit chuffed when one of the EasyJet ‘wardens’ checked our boarding pass and shuffled us forward past about two hundred people. Something about priority boarding, something I had paid for. Yippee!!!

Now that was just the bag drop. Ahead of us lay security, passport control and breakfast!! Of course security is extremely egalitarian and you wait your turn. Must be hard for some. The Swiss had it under control and we shuffled along like demented old people…practicing for years to come. Passport control is all automated so that was pretty smooth. Of course there is always one who can’t work out which side is up but hey it takes all types. The queue that really shocked us was breakfast. The only food in the airport at that time servicing thousands of hungry well-fed priveliged hedonists was a small kiosk which fortunately had two coffee machines and tons of pastries. So polite! So patient! So long!

We waited and our flight was on time and actually into Pula early.

Due to some miscommunications we ended up waiting for our driver for an hour and a half but then the absolutely weirdest thing happened. Just as we were expecting our driver to return a woman turned up with a sign for HOOD. That’s us. ‘Rebecca Hood?’ she asked. Total confusion set in. What are the chances? A few minutes later our driver appeared and showed me his phone with my name on it.

Of course after all this it was still just ten o’clock. Maja met us in town and took us to the apartments where we stored our luggage however our apartment was not ready. We had to wait.

You can only have so many iced coffees and sit around in a cafe for so long. Four hours, ummm. John’s favourite restaurant opened at 12. We waited….in a queue. We got a table…at 1. Waiting..waiting.

I could not believe he got the same table!!! The absolute best!! How lucky is he? Great location, great food, great service, great start!!!

The waiting was over and our holiday within the holiday had begun. Rovinj is where we chill, float in the Adriatic, read a book, laze around, do nothing, recharge.