September Report Cards

From Auckland, NEW ZEALAND, April 30, ’06. . .
• I spent 10 days in a lovely B&B in an Edwardian-style house called Epsom House (18 Crescent Rd., Auckland, 1003, New Zealand; phone 025-834-779, e-mail kathy@epsombb.com or visit www. epsombb.com), located just a block down from One Tree Hill Dominion (park) in Auckland.
Kathy & Rick Van Bokhoven are delightful hosts and more than helpful. My room had a beautiful 4-poster bed and an adjoining marble bathroom. The cost was US$68 a night for a single.
— Ellie Johnson, Santa Barbara, CA

On SLOVENIA & CROATIA, April ’06. . .
• Penzion Bledec (Grajska 17, Bled, Slovenia; phone +386 04 5745 250, www.mlino.si), also a youth hostel, is not far from Castle Bled. Recommended by Rick Steves.
Nice, large rooms and the nicest bathroom we have seen, with a glass-enclosed shower. Advance planning can get you two bunk beds and only two in a room, with bathroom en suite. Room for two persons was SIT5,175 ($28).
Has Internet service.
Breakfast comes with the room, but dinner can be purchased at the restaurant on site. Lovely restaurant with great food. Dinners €7-€10 ($9-$12) including dessert.

• Gostilna pri Križmanu (Tublje pri Hrpeljah 24, 6240 Kozina, Slovenia; phone +386-5 680 0700 or e-mail gostilna.krizman@siol.net). The town of Kozina is west of Postoja on the road to Koper.
Our very good room there cost €32 ($41) for two persons plus $5.50 for breakfast. Full meals €4-€8 ($8-$10) and breakfast, €4. Very good food.

• Villa San (Tiha 2, 20000 Dubrovnik, Croatia; phone +385 [0] 20 41 18 84 [ask for Almira], www.villa-san.com) — located outside Pile (gate) in Dubrovnik next to the wall.
Very quiet rooms. You can rent a room or apartment; choose from 60, 52 or 38 square meters in size. All are spic-and-span. Price depends on the season. We paid 300 kunas ($50) for two for a room with a private bath. The price includes a place to park!

• Villa Ivanka (Hrv. Zrtava 123, 21218 Seget Donji, Trogir, Croatia; phone +385 21 88 0109, www.inet.hr/~svukman) — located about one mile from the center of Trogir.
Rooms and apartments. We had a nice room with balcony and a separate shower/bathroom. The rate was 250 kunas ($43.25) for two. You can rent with the use of a tiny kitchen also.
During the war, the owner hosted United Nations staff who took food and blankets to Sarajevo.

• Restaurant Sampion Brela (owner Roman Celic, Stjepana Radic’a 21, 21322 Brela, Croatia; phone +385 [0] 21 618 680, www.sampion-brela. com) — located just north of Makarsk (between Split and Dubrovnik) on Rte. E65.
They speak English. We had hot tea, a large cup of tomato-with-rice soup and seasonal salad (lettuce, tomato and cucumber) for a total of 30 kunas ($4.95). They also have a full menu.
— Cherie Scudder, East Bethany, NY