My Days in Dubrovnik

The bus to Dubrovnik was interesting. Croatia is separated by a very small section of Bosnia Herzegovina along the coast. In July Croatia had just celebrated the opening of a bridge to a Croatian peninsula that allows drivers to bypass the coastal borders as Bosnia is not currently in the EU.  And yet my bus stuck to the coast road. 

So everyone had to get off for passport control, twice, to cross the six miles. And it was a packed coach so they were not quick!!

We of course made it to Dubrovnik eventually. I was picked up at the bus station by the owner of the guesthouse. He was an absolutely fabulous host. I had a beautiful room with a stunning view of the harbour. And he seemed happy to play host, driving myself and another couple into the old town that night and up to the over look above town another morning. 10/10 would recommend the S&L guesthouse. 

So after an evening of exploring Dubrovnik, my next day included a tour back into Bosnia Herzegovina. (More borders. Yea!) it was a day trip to Mostar which has an absolutely exquisite old arch bridge. Sadly the bridge itself is a reconstruction as the original 15th century one was destroyed in the wars.  Our guide told us the history of the areas we were in during the wars at the collapse of Yugoslavia. I was just a child in those times so while I know of it, it was moving to hear the story from the locals. (My host also told us of living in Dubrovnik during the siege there.)

It wasn’t all depressing though. Mostar is an amazing town with a long fascinating history. And just beautiful. It was tearing my up to walk along the old town streets and see the gorgeous crafts and not be able to buy anything. That is the worst part of travelling for so long!! 

We also saw the young men of Mostar jumping from the 29m high bridge. What was once a tradition of boys proving their manliness has become a show for the tourists, (although it’s also said the wealthy of the town paid the poor boys to jump for their amusement in centuries past.) Handsome young men in swim suits wander the crowd for donations and when they determine they have received enough a young man jumps to the river below.  I looked into doing the jump- for 30 euros they will train you how to do it safely and have you practice from lower heights. After seeing how high it was I decided that I didn’t have enough time to try it.

Our next stop was the Kravica waterfalls. It was a beautiful stopping point, with an icy cold little lake at the bottom of a dozen picturesque waterfalls. On the drive home we crossed the border further inland back into Croatia so we could take the new bridge back. Seemed a little pointless to me. But it was fun to take the new route, and it did seem to be a faster crossing point!

My last day in Dubrovnik was a full one as I was taking a late ferry to Italy. The old town walls are complete so I walked all the way around them. The city also has the worlds oldest pharmacy and apothecary museum in the town walls.  I enjoyed a couple hours at a beach beside the town before wandering around some more. 

Dubrovnik has a gorgeous old town. It’s incredible that it’s still lived in and filled with business after hundreds of years. Sadly most of the damage and ruins are from the last 20 years. Almost all the original terra cotta tile roofs were destroyed in bombings. The factory made tiles are lovely, but just don’t have the same impact as ones made by hand, shaped over a workers thigh, one by one. 

Still there were lots of narrow wandering streets that led to amazing little surprise spots. Walking down the Jesuit steps I learned from a nearby tour they were the site of Cercei’s disgrace on GoT, and I found a little bar out side the walls with steps leading down the rock for an amazing swim spot. (Next time)

I was sad to pack up and go. I could spend so much more time here. But I had my ferry crossing booked to Italy. With an 11 hour crossing and boarding to be done well before that I splurged on a cabin. I had a tiny little two bunk room to myself that was surprisingly comfortable and easy to sleep. 

Though I decided a beer in the bar before bed would not go amiss. I actually ran into two women from Quebec that I had met on the Mostar tour, and we ended up chatting for a while which was fun! And in the morning when we arrived in Bari they headed north for their adventures and I went west to Taranto for the final leg of my European adventure.