10-18 Dubrovnik, Croatia

Croatia resembles a boomerang with the western part of the country along the Adriatic Sea.  Dubrovnik is near the most southern tip of the country and sits in a protected bay.  It is an historic and beautifully picturesque town and faces the sea at the base of rugged limestone mountains. 

This is a picture from the book I bought that best shows the old walled city.  It is a UNESCO World Heritage Sight.  You feel as though you’ve stepped back in medieval times with the double thick walls and fortifications. 

There is a long history to this town.  It was founded in the 7th century.  The old town was completed in the 13th century. 

Our tour took us to the entrance of old town through the Pile Gate.  At you enter, you see the Onofrio Fountain built in 1438.  It has sixteen spouts coming out of it.   It was built to show how rich and advanced the city was to be able to supply water for the whole town.

We continued on down the main street called the Placa Stradum which was once a river, but later filled in with sand to become the main avenue of this city.  We passed the Franciscan Monastery and followed the Stradum to the end where the Orlando Column stands and the nearby Sponza Place.  There is the baroque church of St. Blaise and the Rector’s Palace built in 1441.

  While there are still some residents living in the old city, most moved out due to the high cost of living there.  The houses on the Stradum have strict rules that do not allow balconies, and they all must have a similar, plain look.

While the Stradum is flat, the small alleys that go off of it lead to steps going uphill. 

We walked up and down many of them.  This shows one from above looking down toward the Stradum.  Most are this narrow with little shops and restaurants in them.  Very charming!

Back down on the square in front of the church of St. Blaise, we learned that he is the patron saint of Dubrovnik and is most revered.  We were not able to go inside church, but our guide told us it is most beautiful and that many couples come from all over the world to be married here.

The bell tower was beautiful, and the bells are cast in bronze with two little bronze figures holding little hammers that on the hour “ring” the bell.  We were fortunate to see and hear it at twelve noon.

Sponze Palace (next to the bell tower) is known for its column courtyard and elaborate stone carvings.  Nearby is the Rector’s Palace which was the center of the political power in the town. The first floor only was open to the public, and behind the barred windows were the prison cells.We saw all of these from the outside only.

We did go inside the Cathedral next to the Rector’s Palace which is the largest in Dubrovnik, but not the most beautiful.  It does have a beautiful painting of the Ascension of Mary over the central altar.

We were also able to go inside the Dominican monastery with its beautiful central garden built in the 16th century. There were young monks dressed in white gowns who were visiting.  One of the most impressive things we saw was a Bible that was handwritten by monks on lambskin.  It was perfectly preserved and absolutely perfect in the lettering and detail. 

We only had an hour free time to explore the rest of the walled city on our own.  Our guide told us we would not have enough time to go up onto the walls and walk around the city.  This is when we wandered around the small, narrow alleyways.  I also climbed the split staircase to see the Church of St. Ignatius.  It was quite beautiful inside. 

We then boarded the bus again for a 45 minute drive to a restaurant, the Konavoski Dvori, in the Konavle region of Croatia.  We learned much more about the history of this country and saw the beautiful coastline.  It was a 3 p.m. late lunch, but worth it for the setting alone.  It was an old water mill next to the Ljuta River.  We sat with two other educators and enjoyed a great conversation and a local cuisine.  The best was the warm, brown thick bread served with a soup, salad and a veal roast with roasted potatoes.  The wine was also good. 

By the time we got back to the ship, we were pretty tired, but went to the Internet cafe next to the dock to get our e-mails, etc.  Had dinner in the Lido and went to bed.  We didn’t leave the port until midnight, so we were glad we had taken pictures of this pretty area as we arrived.

[Note:  more history of Croatia in my notes from tour and more info on site from book about Dubrovnik purchased in town]