Mon 15 Sep- the islands Cres and Krk

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Mon 15 Sep- getting an early start on a chilly 15-16 C, windy, partly cloudy day, Ivan took us on a scenic drive along the coast toward Pula, to Brestova, where we caught a ferry to Cres, a beautiful island in the Adriatic. The drive went through several towns like Opatija, Lovran and others on the Croatian Rivera, then southwest along the coast overlooking the Adriatic, with beautiful views of the Adriatic and the opposite coast.
The ferry transports vehicles and passengers, and took about 1/2 hour to reach Cres. On Cres, we drove around enjoying the natural beauty of the island, and the views of the mainland across the Adriatic. Apparently lamb and honey are the major products of the island; the population has decreased since WWII, but during the summer, thousands of visitors come to stay, many returning year after year.
We met a 95-year old priest in Beli, who is the oldest in Europe still giving Mass, and enjoyed a glass of plum wine with him. We saw an old olive oil production facility, which was a huge round stone that was turned by four men to crush the olives; the oil was collected, cleaned using hot water, and skimmed into containers for storage and transport. Ivan introduced us to one of his neighbors, who is currently living on Cres for the summer, and we enjoyed a glass of brandy made from honey.
We stopped by 'Eko centar Caput Insulae Beli' where we saw the endangered Eurasian Griffons (a kind of vulture) that were rescued and would be returned to the wild when they could fly (www.caput-insulae.com, www.supovi.hr); and two pet donkeys, a mother and a month-old cute little colt. The center is run by volunteers from all over the world; our guide was a university student from Zagreb.
The sheep on Cres eat grass that has been flavored by the salt water spray blown up from the Adriatic by the bura (a periodic very strong local wind), so the sheep take on a special unique flavor. We invited Ivan to join us in sampling the lamb at 'Gostionica (Restaurant) Bukaleta' that specializes in it. We had wine, bread with a special cheese spread, mixed salad, mineral water, an assortment of baked lamb, breaded/fried lamb, and roast lamb: 'peceni krumpir', 'mjesana salata', 'domace vino', 'gazirani sokovi', 'mjesana janjetina'. The cost for the three of us was $85. We then drove to the major city, Cres, to walk through the old town. It is a very pretty city, with many old and ancient buildings still in use. We realized that some of the buildings were old before Columbus discovered America.
We took another ferry to Krk Island for a drive back to Kastav; since it was dark, we did not stop by anywhere, but the lights in Rijeka were beautiful to see across the Adriatic. We drove across the bridge linking the island to the mainland, and back north to Kastav.