We're always looking for new and interesting places to go, so when two friends mentioned Croatia, we took a close look. It was next to the Adriatic which meant mild weather, had Mediterranean culture which meant good food, and ancient architecture... all of which appealed to us.

Some years ago a visit to this area wouldn't have been possible due to political strife. And before that is was under Soviet influence. But now the formerly Yugoslavia states have had some years of peace and are determined to join the modern western world economically, and what better way than to welcome lots of tourists.

We have had good luck with C.I.E tours in the past providing a balance of economy and service. Of course the guide can make or break a tour and while we have never really had a bad one, this time we lucked out with a charming and knowledgeable young lady. In all honesty we weren't overwhelmed with Albania. But Montenegro, Croatia and Slovenia had all had beautiful ancient towns and a lush mountainous countryside.

Everything was reasonably clean and you can usually expect western conveniences. Our only gripe was the throngs at some of the tourist spots, and with that hindsight we would have gone a little later in fall or perhaps earlier in the spring.