calling from some city...

Today was really our last full day of the Eurotrip. We have all day tomorrow too, but we will be traveling from Dubrovnik to London, which is just an overnight layover until our flight Saturday. So since this is the last day we will be spending not in transit, we wanted to make the most of it. It ended up being such a good day, and cemented Dubrovnik’s place in my personal top 4 of all the places we have visited.

Anyways, the day got started when I woke up around 8 am, when I heard Scott’s alarm go off. I knew he wanted to get up early to blog on the terrace, so after about 5 seconds of contemplation of getting up early, I went back to sleep. That was a good decision because when Scott woke me up an hour later, he had a surprise waiting: breakfast in bed! We had bought eggs the previous night to make breakfast this morning, but he had it all prepared when I woke up, and had cereal, milk, eggs, and iced coffee waiting on a tray for me. We ate sitting my bed. It was a very thoughtful surprise and an excellent start to the day. After breakfast, we got ready for a busy day ahead. 

We started off by taking the bus to Old Town, which took about 15 minutes. The Old Town of Dubrovnik is where the bulk of the tourist attractions in Dubrovnik are located, and it is completely pedestrian only. It is marked by fortified walls that surround the town. These walls were built in the 15^th century as protection again the Ottoman Empire, but they were never needed until the Balkan Wars. In October 1991, the Serbian army attacked Dubrovnik, to the complete shock of the citizens living there. The walls managed to protect those living there for 8 months, until the Croatian Army was able to arrive and fight off the Serbs. The walls still remain today, and now tourists can “enter” the walls and walk along them. Once Scott and I got a look at the walls and forts towering over us, we knew we needed to walk them. The walk also promised impressive views of both Old Town and the sea along the way.

We got off the bus and started into Town. Immediately, we had to walk down an incredibly steep set of stairs. We got in line to buy tickets, which were 70 kunas. However, I asked if there was a student discount even though no information indicated otherwise, and to our great surprise there was- and tickets were only 30 kunas each! Scott and I thus skipped to walk the walls. At first, there is a steep climb to get back above the city, but for the most part the walk only had gradual climbs and descents. The walls are about a mile and a quarter, and it took us about an hour and a half to complete the walk. There were tons of places to stop along the way to take pictures. A couple things stand out. First, the sea of orange tiled houses of every single house in Old Town is incredible to see. During the war, nearly two thirds of Dubrovnik’s buildings were shelled and needed their roofs replaced after the war. You can clearly see which roofs are newer, and which are the old roofs that survived the war. The roofs that were replaced were still the same terra cotta rooftops that were there before. Thus, everything in Old Town looks as it did before the war, but I’m sure those that lived through it won’t ever forget what happened there. You could still see some damaged buildings that were never rebuilt, but for the most part the town was quickly put back together because so much of its wealth derives from tourism.

Second, the views of the water were beautiful. You could clearly see the beautiful blue-green color of the water and the nearby islands in the distance. Looking down at the rocks below, you could see people laying out sunbathing and kids jumping off the rocks into the water. The marina was packed with boats coming and going. At many points during the walk, you could see both the rooftops of the Old Town, and the ocean in the background. This made a very striking view, so I was taking as many pictures as possible. 

Finally, from the top of the walls you could clearly see the narrow little streets that lead into the center of the town. Most of these streets were incredibly steep as they go downhill. Just walking around town provides exercise for those that live here. I also really like that the Old Town is pedestrian only, like so many other squares and centers we visited in Europe. It’s so much more peaceful and easier to see the sites if you don’t have to worry about cars and buses. It’s also much quieter and has much less pollution, and overall it’s a much more pleasant experience. There were tons of shops and restaurants throughout the town, and I’d much rather take my time strolling around these streets than ones full of noisy vehicles.

After walking the walls, Scott and I descended into town and got lunch from a supermarket. We ate on the steps of the Cathedral, which we entered after eating to take a quick look around. After, we had to decide what to do with the rest of our day. We had originally planned to go to the beach at a nearby island. After thinking about it, however, we decided just to go to the beach in Old Town because it was much more convenient. Before doing that, however, we wanted to take the cable car to Mount Srd, which boasts some of the best panoramic views of the city. It was also the first place bombed during the war because of its strategic position overlooking the city. We made the quick trip up in the cable car, and got our to explore. The views were stunning. You could see over mountains (which many other giant mountain ranges behind us), straight into the whole city of Dubrovnik and out overlooking the sea. Dubrovnik is actually much larger than I was expecting, and it looked beautiful at every point we looked at it. We wandered around for about a half hour, trying to take the best pictures. Mostly, I just stared out in awe at what was in front of me.

We took the cable car back down and then walked to the beach. We were excited to find that the beach in Old Town was mostly very small pebbles and even a little sand! We were incredibly hot and sweaty, as it was a very hot and sunny day out and we had been trekking across the walls, which offered no shade. We immediately took turns running in the water to cool off, and then alternated between tanning, reading, and swimming for the next 3 hours or so. The water was not as clear or clean as other beaches we had been, but it was refreshing and felt good after all the walking we did early. 

At about 5:30, we decided to head to the restroom to get changed up. Since it was our last official night of the Eurotrip, we were going to have a nice dinner in celebration. Earlier in the day, we had found a seafood place that looked good and the prices were within our budget, so we headed back there. We sat down and ordered our food: spaghetti with shellfish for me, chicken risotto for Scott. The food was delicious and all throughout dinner we reflected on the trip and talked about our favorite places and moments. It was interesting that we mostly agreed on a lot of the same things. Of course, we agreed that the trip was so much fun and such a worthwhile and priceless experience.

After dinner, we walked around the shops, buying gifts for our special someones. We got gelato, of course, and the weather was perfect for strolling around town for about an hour and a half. At about 8:30, we decided to catch the bus back to the guesthouse to shower and pack up. The trip is rapidly coming to a close. Tomorrow we are returning our smartcar, then relaxing at the beach until heading to the airport at 6 pm for our flight to London. I can’t believe in just 2 days we will be back in the USA.