dubrovnik | Our Adventures

“You don’t have to do a lot in Dubrovnik, just walk around and enjoy it.” -Laura Hyatt

Dubrovnik, Pearl of the Adriatic, has been around for a long, long time. It began sometime in the 7th century under the name Ragusa and overtime merged with nearby Slavic settlers to form a fortified city-state. This independent republic became a major maritime power and traded widely. Over time the wall defending the city grew taller and stronger and helped repel many an invasion. The name Dubrovnik began appearing around the 12th century, but it wasn’t until 1918 that the name was officially changed. Today Dubrovnik is a stunning medieval walled city with a well-preserved Old Town and designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is one of the most visited cities in Europe and gained additional fame by being a filming location for the Game of Thrones.

We found a charming little Airbnb just outside of town. The home had been in the family for generations and had only recently been transformed—from its original dirt floors into the beautiful apartment we were lucky to stay in. The owner remembers being in kindergarten when Dubrovnik was bombarded by Serbian and Montenegrin forces in late 1991. While her father left to help defend the city, she and her family hunkered down inside the house. The scars of that bombardment remain visible today: when you look out over the Old Town, the patchwork of roof tiles tells the story, with more than 68% of the buildings having been damaged during the attack.

One thing we had to do was to walk the walls. It is a bit expensive, 40 euros each, but it is so worthwhile. The total distance around is about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) and takes around two hours, depending on how many pictures you take and stops to gaze. We chose to go in the late afternoon and it was such a great decision for the wall was practically empty. When we came to town the next morning, the walls were teaming with people fresh off the cruise ships. I mean they were butt to stomach across the entire wall, just inching their way along. Ugh!!! The wall is not flat, in fact there are over 1080 steps you must go up or down. But every step you see another amazing view….overlooking the Old Town, out to Lokrum Island the the Adriatic Sea, behind to the towering cliffs….this city is stunning.

The next day we arrived early in the morning to explore Old Town itself. We of course found a bakery and a nice cafe with good, strong coffee. Heidi posed on the stairway where Cersei Lannister performed the infamous “Walk of Shame,” a naked walk of atonement through the streets of King’s Landing, forced upon her by the High Sparrow. Of course Heidi wore clothes and instead of an angry mob of people, we had the spot to ourselves. We went into Baroque Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola and saw the oldest grotto in all of Europe. I grabbed my pin at the Hard Rock Cafe, and we walked and walked and walked all about this stunning town.

Tomorrow we grab a plane to Athens, a car to Piraeus Port, overnight at the Piraeus Port Hotel, and then bright and early the next morning we hop on a ferry to our final destination of this trip, Serifos Island!!!!

“There is nowhere to go but everywhere.”
– On the Road, by John Kerouac

We had quite a drive from Bale to Split. The highway system in Croatia is excellent, quite a few toll roads, but worth it as the money goes to keep the highways in such good shape. On the trip we were using Google Maps when the tunnel we were to go through to get under a mountain was closed, and Google Maps gave us no alternative. So we thought we might as well try going over the mountain and that is what we did….up, up, up and up some more, Google now directing us toward Split. At the crest we were afforded views down to the sea all dotted with islands, and then we descended down a steep, curvy road and then Google told us to turn right….down what looked like a goat path, barely wide enough to fit our little car. Trusting Google, we ventured down the path, around some corners and then..BAM!!! There was the highway, and shortly there after we came into Split.

Split is the second largest city in Croatia, after the Capital Zagreb, and home to almost 200,000 people. It is rather industrial and I hate to say it, but most of the city isn’t all that attractive. But down by the harbor is the Old Town and home to Diocletian’s Palace, Marjan Hill Park, cafes, restaurants, and the ferry terminal. We stayed a little ways out of old town at the TIME Boutique Hotel. We turned in our car rental, checked into the hotel and then made our way outside, ready to explore. We love walking, wherever we go, we just let our legs lead us. You see the most amazing sites.

Diocletian was the only Roman Emperor to retire, and since his childhood home was near the current city of Split, he chose here to build his retirement palace. No expenses were spared on this home and it was massive, fortified and a jewel of Roman engineering. Now during Diocletian’s reign, he was not very nice to the Christians. He destroyed their churches, and to those who would not renounce their religion, he would arrest, torture and kill them. But the Christians got the last laugh, for when Diocletian died, he was interned in a huge mausoleum he had built for himself. The Christians, when they came to power, broke into his tomb, threw his body out (never to be found) and turned the mausoleum into a church. The palace eventually became part of the town, and the palace evolved into homes and shops and the town expanded all around it. Today the old palace is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is free to everyone to enter and see what is left of this once opulent palace.

Marjan Hill is an oasis of a park just outside of town. We walked all the way up to the top for a 360 degree view of the city, mountains and islands below. This is such a people park with a zoo, walking paths, beaches, benches, and theatre. It was so fun to meander up the steps and to experience this urban park.