August 5 2008, Tuesday: My flight to Toronto was cancelled. Luckily, I was able to get another flight into Toronto. Overall, my flight on Air Canada to Zurich was not very good. The in-flight service was working for only 2 hours during the entire 8-hour flight. Click here for pictures.

August 6 2008 , Wednesday: My flight arrived late at Zurich International Airport. It was nice of Kelvin, my old friend to wait for me at the arrival. Not much has changed in Zurich except there are a few more Starbucks! I loved the tram here. They are so efficient.

August 7 2008, Thursday: Today, I walked all the way from Kelvin's apartment to Lake Zurich. It was a good 3-hour walk. Along the way I saw the same old hog that I saw in Zurich 5 years ago! I sat near Lake Zurich and watch the world went by. As I head back to Kelvin's apartment (I walked), I noticed a mini roundabout in the housing area. It's probably there to slow down traffic. Click here.

August 8 2008, Friday: Kelvin took me round window shopping today. Things are not cheap comparing to what I can get in New York. I paid US800 for my Canon HF10 camcorder and I saw the same one selling for CF1999 (approximately USD1,900) in Zurich. Later that day, we went home to watch the opening of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. Zhang Yimou - you made us proud. Click here.

August 9 2008, Saturday: Today is the day. Street Parade in Zurich. Click here.

August 10 2008, Sunday: Steven (an old friend) came to Zurich to visit us. We had a nice BBQ dinner. It was my last day here in Zurich as I was going to leave for Ljubljana that night. Click here.

August 11 2008, Monday: I missed my stop in Ljubljana. I had to wait an hour for the next train heading back to the city. It was quiet in the city - less crowd, less traffic and more space to enjoy the city. Suprisingly, the city is a lot smaller that I thought. Most of the attractions are around the old town. Click here.

August 12 2008, Tuesday: Today I went to Postojna Cave. It was Euro 6 one way going there by bus, and the journey was less than 2 hours. The cave was amazing. It was definitely the highlight of the day for me. However, be prepared to pay Euro 19 for the entrance. Click here.

August 13 2008, Wednesday: I went up to Ljubljana Castle this morning. Nothing really much to see up there although the view from the top was nice. The first thing I noticed as I sat in a restaurant for lunch was that you get an ashtray on the table immediately. But sorry I do not smoke. After lunch, I took a 2-hour train ride to Zagreb (cost Euro 12). I arrived in Zagreb the same day. It looked intimidating because it was so much bigger than Ljubljana. Hostels are so in Zagreb. I walked for hours and I could not find any availability. Finally, I had to settle for a hotel close to the main train station. Click here. (Go here for hostels in Ljubljana and Zagreb.)

August 14 2008, Thursday: I had breakfast at the hotel. I went to Strossmayer Gallery. Pretty nice collections but unfortunately, I cannot enjoyed myself as the rooms were just too hot and stuffy. The air-conditioners in the rooms were just not cool enough. I walked to the main square and the old town area. There were major renovations at the St Catherine's Church and St Mark's Church. That night, I had to have something Chinese for dinner. The food tasted like any take-out restaurant in NYC but only twice as much in price. I decided to stay up all night in the park which is just across the main train station - Trang Kralja Tomislava. Pretty interesting at night. The people were using the park not just for relaxation but also as a public restroom. Men especially, were seen peeing almost everywhere. I caught one lady doing the same! Click here.

August 15 2008, Friday: I took an early bus to Mirogaj. It has one of the most beautiful cemetery in Europe. Simply gorgeous! Most shops were closed for a holiday in Croatia. I could not do anything; so I just sat in the park and did some window shopping. My train to Zadar was an overnight train leaving around 9 pm. I had to take a shower in the main train station (cost 45 kruno, approximately USD11). I had coffee and later, beer in the bar watching the Olympic Games to pass time. I slept almost the whole night through my journey to Zadar. Click here.

August 16 2008, Saturday: I arrived in Zadar early in the morning. It was a cloudy day. It was a pretty nice town. However, it was good that I decided to stay there for a few hours as I there was nothing really nothing much to do. I left Zadar to Split by bus. It was a 3-4 hour bus ride. I cannot believed that the bus would run when the air-conditioner was not working. It was so hot. I arrived in Split and the owner of the hostel picked me up at the bus station. Click here.

August 17 2008, Sunday: I stayed at a very nice hostel. I woke up early this morning, and walked iaround coast and the Diocletian's Castle. Split is quite similar to Zadar except that it's much bigger. I thought I might need another full day in the city, but I managed to cover almost everything in Split. Click here. I took a bus to Mostar that day. It was a 4-hour bus ride. I met a nice lady at the bus station. She told me she has a nice room for Euro15 a day. And, it was a nice room.

August 18 2008, Monday: I woke up in the morning with a cup of coffee in a silver tray from Maida, the lady whom I rented the room from. It was a hot day in Mostar. I walked to Old Town and saw what I came to see - Stari Most. It was simply gorgeous. I thought I could get some souvenirs here but unfortunately, the locals took so much pride in the bridge that most souvenirs have images of the bridge on them. I left Mostar late afternoon for Dubrovnik. I arrived around 8.30 pm at night. Luckily the hostel that I am staying had someone pick me up. Click here. Met a girl from Malaysia, who is currently living in Melbourne. She stayed at the same hostel as me.

August 19 2008, Tuesday: It was one of the hottest days in my entire trip. It was also my last day in Croatia. I walked to Old Town Dubrovnik. It was not an easy walk as Dubrovnik was quite hilly and congested with traffic. Met a nice couple from Italy. We were talking about the signs in the city. There were directions to 4/5 stars hotels but nothing about directions to anywhere else. I spent the entire day in Old Town. I took a walk around the city walls during sundown. It was a good 2 1/2 hour walk round the entire Old Town. Click here.