White & Shiny Dubrovnik

7 June 2007

In Gatwick we drop off our little car - affectionately known as the Pug that has carried us 1800 miles (3000 or so km) around England and Scotland, skirting Wales and find a motel room that has everything we want except atmosphere and climate control! The heat is stifling indoors overnight until we come out into the cool of the morning. The flight to Dubrovnik takes 3 hours and we sit next to a guy and his wife from Perth! Flying in, the landscape is reminiscent of Tuscany - stark hills, cypress pine and white stone. The blue Adriatic shimmers.

We are picked up by our host at the airport and drive the 22km to town along the cliff side road. Suddenly he makes a wild turn into a tiny parking bay above the city and bids us to get out. We look below and a flight of stairs that defies imagination lies before us. He points out his sister waving - a speck in the distance and we struggle downward with our bags, better than carrying them up I suppose. Finally we make it without tumbling uncontrollably down (my imagination running off again) and she shows us to the starkest of white rooms containing only 2 beds and an unbelievable view of the harbour and the terracotta roofed old town. Oh - we booked an apartment for 4 nights, I stammer. Sorry not available, is the reply, this your room. So after a quick orientation of how to get to the old town we leave our bags and continue down the stairs.

I try to block out visualizing walking back up. I can't believe there is a place with more stairs than Positano in Italy but Dubrovnik is a clear winner. We cross the fair dinkum drawbridge into the old town. Once inside the dazzling white of the limestone walls and pavements nearly blinds us. The main street has seen so many feet the limestone blocks are worn shiny like faux marble. We are immediately confronted with a map of the houses that lost their roofs, buildings that were completely demolished and direct hits during the war (1991-1995). 90% of the buildings needed re roofing evidenced by the pristine terracotta tiles now in place. Many buildings have been obviously repaired - others just left as is. Ric and I decide to walk around the fortified walls for a bird’s eye view of the place - yet another maze - this time of tiny laneways, many just stairs radiating out from the main shiny pathway.

The view from the top of the wall is nothing short of spectacular. On the seaward side are high cliffs down to the ocean and then views across the red roofs and up 'that' hill to our room. After taking many photos we complete the 3 kilometre circuit and come down into the town. Time to eat - restaurants in every direction, down every lane way, all with a person politely touting for business outside each one. We choose a modest looking set of tables lining one side of a lane, 3 storeys of limestone blocks either side. We order fish and it is delicious - pan fried in butter - sea bass for Ric, bream for me. Afterwards we notice the movies and decide to go - it's 'Piratez s Kariba'. It's in English with Croatian subtitles. It finishes late into the night and there's nothing for it, up we go.

I couldn't help thinking of the fire fighting fitness test that we have to do when we come home - this counted as serious training! 20 minutes later, blood pounding in our temples and sweating profusely we showered and fell into bed for a fitful sleep - broken by building works at 3am – yes, there's still more reconstruction happening - not sure why they do it in the middle of the night though. The sound of machinery and clinking stone blocks reverberates around the side of the mountain at an ungodly hour. Next morning we resolve to move - I talk to guy and he is very smooth - suddenly an apartment is available only 20 euros more per night. We tell him we will think about it over breakfast - pack our bags and head off to find somewhere else - preferably down the bottom of the hill. The tourist info place comes good and we get an apartment in the old town. We've got to go up the hill again and drag the bags down - oh well, last time.

Dubrovnik is the pearl of the Adriatic, so said Byron, and George Bernard Shaw said - if you are looking for paradise on earth, search for it in Dubrovnik! It is such a beautiful place it’s hard to believe it was cruelly bombed by the then Yugoslavians. The Old Town of Dubrovnik was recognized by UNESCO through its inclusion on the World Heritage List in 1979 and the attention of the world may have saved the place from complete destruction. Even though the war continued for 4 years bombings stopped here after 9 months. War, what is it good for? - Absolutely nothing!

Thousands of tourists surge through this place, many following a tour guide for a few hours before jumping back aboard a bus and heading for the next destination. Ric and I have the luxury of a few days and investigate many of the lanes, climb countless stairs and marvel at the history this pace has amassed. As with desirable or strategic locations many regimes have conquered Dubrovnik, the Hapsburgs, Germans, Serbs and Italians. There have probably been others. Curiously the necktie is said to have begun here - Louis 14th stole the idea sometime in the 15th century from the soldiers’ uniform.

We take a charter boat ride with a couple from Birmingham and the deep azure of the sea is even more brilliant from water level. The ride takes us along the cliff edge of the city walls and out around the vegetation covered island of Lockrum - a national park with the remains of a monastery and a ranger's house the only buildings on the island. It looks idyllic but a long way from home. We notice new buildings with unsympathetic architecture are beginning to spring up that threaten to ruin the charm of this place. We find a restaurant that serves whole, deep fried sardines – eyes, guts and all - they are absolutely delicious and we cannot stay away, eating lunch & dinner there for a couple of days. We try just about everything on the menu the octopus salad is probably the best with capers and red onion, yum! We head of to the movies again this time to see Miss Potter - it's very pertinent since it is set in the Lakes District in England and we both enjoy the locations as much as the storyline. The last night we go to the only movie we haven't seen in town at the open air theatre this time - Blades of Glory, it's a crazy movie but we have a good laugh. This cinema is just a vacant block with tiered concrete steps completely surrounded by peoples’ apartments on 3 levels - windows all opening on it. I wonder if they get sick of the same movie showing for a week at a time? A little girls runs in just as the lights go off and sits in front of us she waves at her mum hanging out a third story window just to the right of the screen. The little girl watches the movie while her mum watches her for the whole 1.5 hours.

Today we packed up and are off the Dublin via London to meet Natt for her birthday should be fun. Cathy & Ric