Wi-fi reception here is very good, so before even getting out of my sleeping bag I checked emails, etc. One in particular caught my attention – apparently our landlords back at home have rescinded the lease that we signed right before I left – no reason given, but we have to be out by the end of July. I’m certainly not planning on cutting my trip in half just because things have changed for them, so must leave it up to Dom to find a new place and pack up and move while I’m over here – I’ll likely be in England my then. Cheaper and out of the city might be nice, with room for a proper garden.

Fried some potatoes for breakfast in the kitchen that we get to use. Went for a short walk on the other side of the river, then came back to wash my clothes from yesterday – they were filthy from all the bike wrestling I had to do on the buses.

Left for a ride just after 10 – followed the road across the river until I came to a ‘recreation area’ – big park-like place. They were doing some work – a couple of guys with weed-whackers cutting the grass in a large field, with 3 others raking the cut grass into piles. Also a team at the river with large bull-dozer – looked like they were maybe building a bridge from one side of the park to the other across a stream that flows into the river.

Rode up a side road that passed a small mosque, then the road ended at some houses. The growing season seems to be ahead of that at home – saw rows of cabbages that were gigantic and ready for harvest. Also lots of beans and peppers – looks like a good growing area.

Could see the ‘Herceg Stjepan Kosaca fortress’ on top of a hill just out of town. Apparently the walk up isn’t that long or hard so I might try it tomorrow.

Rode around a bit more on this side of the river – school had just gotten out for lunch so there were kids everywhere. Checked out the campsite I thought I was coming to when I rode in yesterday (they have very similar names and are quite close to each other) but was glad I stopped at the one I’m at. The other one is also right on the river, across from a fish farm – the run-off sounds like a waterfall, but the camp itself just looked like a small field and not as ‘friendly’ as this one. Also, you’d have to go a much longer distance to get anything from a store, etc.

Got some more provisions from the store – another two packets of dried soup, cheese (think it’s sheep cheese, but not really sure), more fresh veggies and some black tea. When I bought tea yesterday I asked if it was ‘black tea’ and the lady said yes – don’t know what it was but when I brewed it this morning it was not black. Looked up black tea today on google-translate so knew what to look for on the box – I’ll see if I chose correctly tomorrow morning when I have some.

There are some trees here that are producing fluff like dandelions do – it’s floating all around in the air and gets into everything – food, drink, tent. The day started out kind of overcast, but is now sunny and getting quite hot (at least in my tent), but there is a breeze. Luckily the campground has a very nice covered area where we can power-up our gadgets and sit at a big table on cushion-covered benches.

Three little kitties came near and likely wanted food – there was an empty dish at the gate into the next yard. When I went to the store later I bought some crunchies for them and asked our host (Nedzad) if it was ok to feed them. He told me all about them – these three belong to his cousin. Two years ago there was a momma cat named Queen Mother who apparently ruled the roost and had one or two litters of little ones each year for 7 or 8 years. She was hit by a car on the road outside the camp in the winter and he took her inside in front of the fire and called the vet but there was nothing that could be done. She was too badly injured and died the next day – he was very sad. Then a few months later there was a kitten crying at the top of the driveway, and when he next cried he was down by the wall to the river. Nedzad went down to make sure he was ok and he was almost lost in the grass. He was, of course, adopted by the campers that were there, and was name Mr. Spit. They had recently introduced mountain climbing as something campers could participate in here, and the company that makes the spikes (?) was named Spit. The kitty was given a box for his home, and it came from the Spit company, so a friend said ‘that must be his name’. Mr. Spit was a camp favourite and 2 new rules were made – don’t step on him, and never move your car until you’ve checked that he’s not under it! He also was hit by a car on the road outside the camp, and his little body was taken away – boo hoo (and I’m not being sarcastic).

Two motorcyclists have arrived, each with a tent, and a car with two more guys in a tent. The place is almost full!

The ‘It’s okay to eat now’ gun went of a short while ago, followed by wailing from the mosque – actually it didn’t sound that bad. They’ve been eating and drinking at the cafe and the restaurant across the river all day, so I’m not sure how many folks here follow those rules. The moon is almost full, so maybe Ramadan is almost over – I’ll have to ask.

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