Dubrovnik and Split, Croatia (April 8th-12th, 2007)

At this point, I'm just happy to get this post up. Hopefully I'll come back and add more, but don't count on it. There are way too many trips that I still haven't written about.

We went to Croatia and called Dubrovnik our home base. It's quickly becoming a tourist hotspot and a place to be seen, so if you get the chance, visit it quick, before it gets out of hand. I can understand why it's booming...it's beautiful there.

Dubrovnik has a great old town that's walled in and is so...it has so much history, character...it's so different from North America, I loved wandering the streets and alleys. It's residential and commercial at the same time. Completely touristy yet authentic.

The bell tower at the center of the old town. If you look really carefully, maybe you can see the bronze sculptures of the two boys hammering away at the bell.













The old town. Look at the ground. Cobblestone, but not enough of a gap between the stones that you would wreck your heels.




The cafes are filled up even late into the night. I love it.




On the island of Lokrum, just off the coast - a 15 minute ferry ride from Dubrovnik. No smoking allowed! You wouldn't want any forest fires, would you? The island is small enough to visit in an afteroon. There's beautiful paths through the forest and great places to have a picnic and to go swimming in the sea. There's even a little tide pool where children can go swimming. Someone's kindly installed a rope for the kids to swing on!










This is the courtyard of a former monastery. Just look at the lush vegetation.


Dubrovnik as viewed from the top of Lorkum. You can imagine what it looked like a long time ago. A-ma-zing.





Now back on the mainland. Lorkum island in the distance, with the beautiful red terracotta roofs of the old town in front.




A side trip to Split. Taking a local commuter bus (think: Greyhound, but Eastern European style) and going through Bosnia (borders are all weird there). Like any European city, there was a historical centre, but I would say that I enjoyed Dubrovnik better. If you want to go shopping, go to Split. If you want a feeling go to Dubrovnik. Either city will get you access to beaches and islands. Bottom line, you need awhile in Croatia to see everything and have a car at your disposal if possible.


The bell tower in Split. We'd taken a commuter bus there (not very pleasant in the hot, hot sun - too many people and not enough air circulation) which did give a nice view of the coast (it drove all along it).




The open forum outside of the tower. You can see that there are cushions on the steps. A cafe was smart enough to use the space for themselves. What a great idea.



At the top of the tower, looking down.











If you go to Split, I would highly recommend walking (so much more interesting than cab or bus) out to the Mestrovic Gallery. While you're out there, hike down the hill to the coast.

Random vibes from Dubrovnik...could potentially be one of my fav trips of Europe.


I really hope that this guy owns a little store and on has hung a sign on the front door that says "gone fishin".







"somewhere beyond the sea
somewhere waiting for me
my lover stands on golden sands
and watches the ships that go sailing..."