BOCCE BONDING

Marcel Theroux is right about sharing simple pleasures with others on holiday (“Travel that changed me”, Jan 5). While in Croatia, my hotel offered a free activity programme, including bocce. Intrigued, I proceeded with another guest to the court. Gottwin was an enthusiastic advocate of bocce, having played tournaments in Germany. A young Finnish couple and a middle-aged French man and his wife also turned up.

The Croatian coach formed us into teams and explained the rules. Gottwin ran energetically along the courtside with his measuring device, encouraging us by

passionate arm-waving and yelps of “ja!”. We laughed freely as we knocked our opponents’ ball out of the way. An hour disappeared and we sadly finished.

This made my holiday. Despite differences in our cultures and languages, we’d shared joyfully in our experience. Six foreigners appreciating the happiness each can bring to another. SIOBHAN FORSTER