They don't call it "The Pearl of the Adriatic" for no reason. Dubrovnik's perfectly preserved old town almost seems unreal, and my first throught when I stepped in was "Are you serious?" Everything is immaculate and clean and the streets are so polished they literally shine. It's like a brand new cultural theme park except it's been around for hundreds of years and even partially destroyed 20 years ago.
The only downside, and a major one at that, is how much the old town has positioned itself for tourism. There are over a dozen religious structures, museums, historical houses within the 2 km long city wall, and everything requires an admission ticket. Plus every establishment is either a restaurant or souvenir shop with staff outside rattling off menu items and prices. They're merely doing what they have to do for a tourist town - make enough money during the summer season to get them through the winter. However, it's sad to think that this was once a functional city with bakeries, watchmakers, cobblers, etc...
So my first day here was spent exploring the old city and dodging a particularly touchy restaurant owner. My host told me that's a favorite summer pasttime for older Croatian men. Of course it is. There are thousands of fresh scantily clad girls everyday, so leave me and my oversized cargo pants alone. On the way back to the host's home, I ran into a Slovakian guy two doors down who asked me if I knew of anyone renting rooms. He had just crashed his motorbike and needed a place to stay for the night while his bike was being fixed. I'm couchsurfing with my host Mare but she rents out rooms in the summer as well, so I figured I'd let her decide and he could wait with me in the meantime. Mare is a lesbian (all the rainbows and gay themed decor clued me in) but she "doesn't mind straight people" and I was hoping she's not a man hater either. But everything worked out well. I made dinner for us, we chatted and drank a bottle of homemade Croatian wine, she ended up letting him crash for free, and he was off the next day. And now I have a contact in Bratislava when I make my way there in a couple of weeks :)
Yesterday I wanted to make a day trip to Kotor, a town in Montenegro about 2.5 hours away but discovered the public bus schedule was no in my favor. Even with the earliest departuring and latest returning bus, it would have only given me about an hour and half in the city. I was keen on escaping the hoards of cruiseshippers for the day and decided to take a much shorter trip to Cavtat, a small town only 20km from Dubrovnik, and the public transportation was easy and cheap. While Cavtat is still a tourist town, it's less crowded and has some nice bathing areas that are hard to find in the Dubrovnik old town. I can't think of a much better way to cool off than eating a pistacchio ice cream and dangling your feet in crystal clear water.
To finish the day with a bang, I hiked to the top of the fortress overlooking Dubrovnik city. There is a cable car that goes up but I wanted to save some money and get exercise as well. The decision was made as I was eating a jelly-filled donut. A couple of people have told me not to walk because the trail is not in good condition with loose rocks, and I read on a message board that it's imperative to stay on the track because there are still landmines. Then someone else responded the landmines are not a problem, but just watch out for the snakes... And what do you know, not outside of ten steps, I spot a snake by the trail head. No idea what type but it wasn't too long and didn't look poisonous; I decided to soldier on. 45 minutes later and a couple shades darker, I was on top. And I didn't see any other snakes on the way up or down, and obviously no landmines.
Today is my last full day and the plan is to take a quick ferry ride to Lokrum - a nearby island, and maybe enjoy the old city once again in the evening.
The only downside, and a major one at that, is how much the old town has positioned itself for tourism. There are over a dozen religious structures, museums, historical houses within the 2 km long city wall, and everything requires an admission ticket. Plus every establishment is either a restaurant or souvenir shop with staff outside rattling off menu items and prices. They're merely doing what they have to do for a tourist town - make enough money during the summer season to get them through the winter. However, it's sad to think that this was once a functional city with bakeries, watchmakers, cobblers, etc...
So my first day here was spent exploring the old city and dodging a particularly touchy restaurant owner. My host told me that's a favorite summer pasttime for older Croatian men. Of course it is. There are thousands of fresh scantily clad girls everyday, so leave me and my oversized cargo pants alone. On the way back to the host's home, I ran into a Slovakian guy two doors down who asked me if I knew of anyone renting rooms. He had just crashed his motorbike and needed a place to stay for the night while his bike was being fixed. I'm couchsurfing with my host Mare but she rents out rooms in the summer as well, so I figured I'd let her decide and he could wait with me in the meantime. Mare is a lesbian (all the rainbows and gay themed decor clued me in) but she "doesn't mind straight people" and I was hoping she's not a man hater either. But everything worked out well. I made dinner for us, we chatted and drank a bottle of homemade Croatian wine, she ended up letting him crash for free, and he was off the next day. And now I have a contact in Bratislava when I make my way there in a couple of weeks :)
Yesterday I wanted to make a day trip to Kotor, a town in Montenegro about 2.5 hours away but discovered the public bus schedule was no in my favor. Even with the earliest departuring and latest returning bus, it would have only given me about an hour and half in the city. I was keen on escaping the hoards of cruiseshippers for the day and decided to take a much shorter trip to Cavtat, a small town only 20km from Dubrovnik, and the public transportation was easy and cheap. While Cavtat is still a tourist town, it's less crowded and has some nice bathing areas that are hard to find in the Dubrovnik old town. I can't think of a much better way to cool off than eating a pistacchio ice cream and dangling your feet in crystal clear water.
To finish the day with a bang, I hiked to the top of the fortress overlooking Dubrovnik city. There is a cable car that goes up but I wanted to save some money and get exercise as well. The decision was made as I was eating a jelly-filled donut. A couple of people have told me not to walk because the trail is not in good condition with loose rocks, and I read on a message board that it's imperative to stay on the track because there are still landmines. Then someone else responded the landmines are not a problem, but just watch out for the snakes... And what do you know, not outside of ten steps, I spot a snake by the trail head. No idea what type but it wasn't too long and didn't look poisonous; I decided to soldier on. 45 minutes later and a couple shades darker, I was on top. And I didn't see any other snakes on the way up or down, and obviously no landmines.
Today is my last full day and the plan is to take a quick ferry ride to Lokrum - a nearby island, and maybe enjoy the old city once again in the evening.
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