The journey home started on Saturday morning at 5:30 a. m., when a cab picked me up at my apartment in Cavtat to take me to the Dubrovnik airport. It was a short drive and easy. My flight to Zagreb was short at 45 minutes, but oddly, we sat on the airport bus a good 20 minutes. Maybe it was 30? We weren't sure why they weren't letting us on the plane, but a lot of people were getting frustrated, hot and nervous about missing connections. Luckily, I had enough time to make up for it. 

Once in Zagreb, I had a 2 hour flight to Istanbul, which wasn't bad. Then in Istanbul, we had to go through security again and get carry on bags checked. There are lots of checks to board before heading back to Chicago, which isn't a bad thing. I had a middle seat, unfortunately, on this flight, but it went ok. I watched a couple of movies and tried to relax. Flight time was just over 11 hours, and by that time, I was ready to leave that plane. 

Customs at O'Hare was easy, but baggage took awhile. I was glad when I finally saw my bag on the belt, because that concerned me as well. I grabbed a drink at McDonald's and then caught the 7:20 Coach USA shuttle to Milwaukee, where my car was parked. I feel asleep on the bus, which didn't surprise me. Once in Milwaukee, where it was pouring, I drove to Sheboygan and reconciled with Bailey! We were both happy to see one another and soon crashed. We spent the night and then left for home on Sunday around 8 am. It was snowing as we went north, and the interstate had some pretty bad spots. I drove slow and kept Bailey belted in. Once home, I unpacked, did laundry, went to buy groceries, decorated the Christmas tree, and fell asleep early. On Monday, it was back to work! 

Coming home is always bittersweet. I'm glad to be home and back into my routine, but also kind of sad. The pictures and videos serve as great memories. I'm glad I didn't buy a Bosnian coffee set, because how often would I use it? I bought the pot as a keepsake, which is fine. I like the memory of drinking coffee in a cafe, a little smoky. I don't miss the smoke, though. Speaking of which, my clothes really stunk. I had to wash one pair of my jeans twice. ha! 

Now, it's getting ready for the holidays and on with life. I'm really lucky that this trip went smoothly.  stayed healthy, didn't get sick or a cold, didn't lose anything, stayed safe, had decent enough weather, and didn't have any delays. I was able to do everything I wanted to do. I loved every place that I visited. They were all interesting and fun in their own way. Dubrovnik is beautiful. Mostar felt like a small town, and Sarajevo had a charm of its own. You can't get much better than that.

Thanks again, for following along, and coming with me. 

Zdravo!

Jamie