August 9 - In Love with Dubrovnik

Every so often I see a photograph of a travel destination and I think to myself, "There's a place I must go." Today I am in such a place: Dubrovnik on the Dalmatian Coast of Croatia.

Croatia is a country with an unusual shape. Although it borders Slovenia, Dubrovnik is on the southern tip of the country and a train trip would take all day. We therefore decided to travel by Croatia Air from Zagreb, Croatia (2 hours from Ljubljana by train).

Our flight on Croatia Airlines lasted just under 45 minutes. For refreshments we were offered sparkling or still water and a gingerbread cookie. At the airport we were met by Pero Carevic, owner of the Villa Ragusa. Our room in his sobe is just inside the entrance to the Old Town. He gave us a welcome to Debrovnik drink and an orientation of the town in his office.

No sooner had we put our suitcases down, we were out the door and ready to explore. To get a good overview of the town, we paid to take the wall walk. It surrounds the Old Town and the views at every turn are spectacular. During the 1991 conflict in Croatia, Dubrovnik surprisingly did suffer some damage. The proud residents rebuilt it in the same style, but many places have new red tile roofs.

Looking over the wall we saw boats of all kinds: yachts, sailboats, glass bottom boats, and ferries. Sunbathers lounged down and on the rocks and many daring ones climbed onto the rocks to leap into the sea to the cheers of others. We enjoyed the view for so long, they had to signal us several times the wall walk was closed.

Dinner was at Mia Culpa, an outdoor cafe serving pizza and salads. The town is full of energy. We saw street entertainers on stilts, with macaws, and musicians. People lined up to run and jump on a ledge and cling to a wall, but we're not sure what it's about.

Thinking back at the end of the day of the photo I had once seen in a glossy travel magazine of Dubrovnik, I can still picture the perfect view it showed of it. Tomorrow we'll see if we can find it!