Speaking of weather, here's just a little advice to anyone planning to travel here. As the weather warms, the amount of tourists increases. We've found that the weather was quite suitable for a visit at this time of year, and the crowds haven't been too bad. There have been a few tour groups to contend with in the old city and museums, but more on that in a minute. The water is not exactly "swimming" temperature, but that is just one minor activity here. If you are here for a week or less, swimming in your hotel pool is quite sufficient.
Our first hike was to Ft. Imperial (also known as Srd Mountain), overlooking Dubrovnik at 408 meters. Ft. Imperial is a Napoleonic fort that was integral in the defense of Dubrovnik during the December 1991 invasion by Serbo-Montenegran forces. A group of 31 Croatian defenders held the high point under air, artillery, tank and infantry attack, holding the opposing forces no closer than 300 meters from the fortress. The area is still littered with shrapnel, and the walls of the fort are scarred with bullet and bomb holes.
A museum to the defenders has been established inside the fortress, providing a history of the fortress and city, as well as an outline and displays about the 1991 conflict. During the conflict, over 3000 bombs and missiles rained down on the old city, plus other actions around Dubrovnik. The cable car that ran from the city to the top of the mountain was destroyed, but it is currently being rebuilt. A cross at the top of the mountain was also destroyed, but this has been replaced.
The mountain provides the most outstanding views of the entire city, though there are also outstanding views from other locations, as you will soon see. The hike up takes you up several switchbacks, but the trail is good. Make sure and do this hike earlier in the morning, not only for the best light, but also for the lower temperatures. There are no trees once you get about 150 meters up, and the heat can be surprising, even on a nice day.
We met a friendly herd of cows up top. They were grazing the area, and we watched one try to eat a water bottle. Nobody ever said the cow is a smart animal (or if they did, I am not sure what they meant.) They were fun to see.
After our hike, we walked to the old city and had an ice cream. Sidney really enjoyed hers, as you can see. We then went back to the hotel and rested a little before dinner.
Dinner was at a local favorite for seafood known as Restaurant Posat. The service was excellent and the food to die for. We split a grilled Adriatic rock lobster and a small grouper. We also had a local cheese from the Island of Pot. The cheese was similar to a Parmesan, but with a little more delicate flavor. It was seriously a fantastic meal, and the view of the old city walls as we ate on the balcony was beautiful.
Yesterday found us exploring a couple of museums in the old city and taking the ferry to Lokrum, the island just offshore of the old city.
We visited the Pharmacy Museum, which is the site of one of the oldest continually operating pharmacies in the world (since the 1300's.) It was nice, but continually battling the tour groups in cramped quarters made it difficult to see completely. There are lotions and balms you can purchase that still use recipes that are several hundred years old, but there were too many people there to try to buy anything.
We also visited the Ethnographic Museum, which we highly recommend. You have to go through a few back alleys of the old city to get there, but it is well worth searching out, as it is not crowded and is located in the city's old granary, which is a sight to behold in itself. The exhibits were well-done and informative. Interestingly, there was an exhibit of panoramas from Croatia on display. I wonder if I could get a couple of mine added?
After the museum, we went by ferry to the island of Lokrum. It is a 15 minute ferry ride, and this was the first day of the season that the ferry was making regular runs. Legend has it that Richard the Lion-Hearted was shipwrecked here on the way back from the Crusades. He promised to build a cathedral on the site, but instead donated money to build the monastery on the island.
We walked to the top of the highest point on the island, which, at 94 meters, holds the site of another Napoleonic fortress. This spot provided a lovely view of the sea and the city. We had a picnic here, then continued on our hike around the island.
We spotted several peacocks around the island, which were brought here originally in the 1800's. They seem to have adjusted well to the area, and fit quite nicely with the landscape.
Another location we sought out was the Salt Pond, which is a clear pond fed by the Adriatic that has a very high salinity. We wanted to give it a try, but it was far too cold to see if we could float freely like in the Dead Sea (as they say you can.) It gave us a nice break, and Sidney got to play in the water for a little while.
We returned to the city and did a little shopping before returning to our hotel. We went out for another pizza and pasta dinner, then came back for a nice evening of rest.
Easter Sunday brought Sidney a visit from the Easter Bunny. We then went out for a hike to a couple of peaks just north of our hotel. The first provided a nice view, as well as a church currently undergoing reconstruction. More importantly, we found out that wild asparagus is in season right now, so we scanned shady areas for the rest of our hike, picking and eating as we went.
The other peak was, at 192 meters, one of the tallest in the area of town. It provided lovely views, including this one where we picnicked for lunch. We then walked down to the harbor area, enjoying the views of the bridge along the way.
Sidney spent a little time playing and making friends at the playground beside the harbor. I also took note of a couple of vehicles used in defense of the city in the '91 war.
We then walked back to the hotel for a little dip in the Adriatic before heading to the pool. I took advantage of the scenery to do some portraits of Kimber and Sidney. We then spent some time in the pool and hot tub before going back to the room to pack for our departure tomorrow.
Dubrovnik and the other areas visited on this trip have been beautiful and memorable. I said to Kimber today, "Who would have thought two years ago we would be having a picnic lunch on Easter Sunday overlooking the Adriatic coastline today?" The memory will stay with us forever, I am sure.
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