Sunday 17th May 2009 Kufstein - Opatija

Wake up to another brilliant blue sky
I enjoy my breakfast before walking down to the coach. I am going to drive off the motorway for some of this morning and quickly clean the windows on the coach before driving to the hotel to pick the passengers up. The hotel also kindly fill up my drinks water container. These Setra's are good for this as you can take the container off the coach, it is on wheels, and fill up anywhere.
Austria is my favourite country and on a morning like this it is an absolute delight to drive in.
The sky is a clear blue, the meadows a lucious green and there is snow on the mountain tops. Stunning.
We drive out towards Kitzbuhel and over the Thurn Pass and onto Zell am See and then the motorway south to Slovenia.
As soon as we are on the motorway we stop at a lovely service area before proceeding on what must be one of the prettiest motorways around towards Villach and the Slovenian border.
I am not sure where there is to stop in Slovenia so decide to stop for lunch in the last service area in Austria. It is a bit busy here but nice enough. I can recommend the lasagne!
We cross into Slovenia without stopping and I'm soon struck by how the road system has changed. I was last here two years ago and apart from a stretch of motorway south of the border the rest of the road to Ljubjana was a constant set of roadworks and single lane roads. Getting through Ljubjana was a nigtmare and something I wasn't looking forward to.
Well, now it is all new motorway. And where is Ljubjane? You do not even see the city as the motorway now by-passes it. Fantastic.
There were also plenty of places to stop so I will know in future to keep going into Slovenia and stop for lunch there where it will be quieter.
We have a short stop near Postjona before leaving the motorway and driving the last 30 miles across country. I love roads like this where you see the villages and towns that you miss from the motorway, and having had such a clear drive through there is no need to rush as we are bang on time to be at our hotel by 17:00.
We approach the very modern border control and I follow the bus lane where just before the barrier there are two stop lines in the road. I stop at the first and then see a window open in the booth ahead of me so pull forward to the second stop line about a coach lengths further forward.
I go and see the customs man who sends me to the police booth where they tell me off for not stopping at first stop line!
Our passports are checked on the coach and we drive forward to the Croatian border where the passport man walks over, asks if we are English, lifts the barrier and waves us through! We are in Croatia.
It is only 16km to Opatija from here.
I arrive in Opatija and miss the very last turning I have to take! After turning around we finally arrive at the hotel by 17:20.
I unload the cases and people as a young lady from reception hands out keys and information. Once the cases are off I go in to make sure everything is ok as Ray Goodall asks for his key. He is not on the rooming list. He only booked last Tuesday but the last hotels had his details and this hotel should as well. There is no record of his booking. I say to the young lady to give him my room which I really don't want to do.
When I came to see the hotel I arranged, and offered to pay any supplement, a room with a balcony as I knew I would be bringing work with me and like to sit in the fresh air.
Now I have lost my room and I'm not happy.
I am hot and tired and now have to park the coach miles away. The car park man turns up and I follow him to the coach park which is miles away. I tell him I am staying 7 nights and he asks for payment in Euro's! I pay him in Kuna, about £200 worth! It is 1,400 Kuna to park for the week but they do run you back and forth between the coach park and your hotel. He asks if I want to go back immediately and I tell him I just want to wash the windscreen and then I will be ready. He says he will be back in 15 minutes.
Nearly an hour later he turns up and I am not happy.
By the time I am back at the hotel it is gone 19:00, nearly two hours after arriving, and I haven't got a room yet!
I go to reception who give me a room in the main hotel but they are insistant that they knew nothing of the extra person. I call Albatross (the agency we booked the hotel through) and they immediateley fax over the amended rooming list. I would like to know what happened as it is me that has dipped out.
My room is lovely but has no balcony which I really wanted.
I am just about to have a shower when my phone rings and one of the passengers tells me that one of our group has been taken ill. This lady has had a bad cough since she has been on the coach and is now worried about it.
The reception call a taxi and myself and the unwell lady and her friend wait outside for the taxi that will be here in 5 minutes. After about 15 minutes he turns up! Must be related to the car park man! We are soon driven to the medical centre where the doctor immediately examines the patient. It is Bronchitis and a presription is issued and off we go back to the hotel. It is a bit of a pain going to see the doctor but definitely the right decision as the lady is a lot happier knowing what is wrong and will hopefully feel better when the medicine kicks in.
By the time I have my shower and go down stairs it is nearly 20:30! A couple of beers taste good before a quick dinner in the restaurant. The dinner is a wonderful buffet and you can go in anytime between 19:00 and 22:00, a system I like and find relaxing.
After dinner I have a couple of beers with Martin before going to bed very tired after three long days.