Dubrovnik

Dubrovnik! We booked for eight nights at Hotel Komodor – as much for a break from travel as thinking we needed to stay for that length of time. But it turned out to be a really good decision. When we arrived the weather was picture postcard good: fine but blustery. When we left it was picture postcard perfect: fine and warm. In between overcast and cloudy with a bit of rain which shortened one day (but it turned out fine later and we went to a concert in Stradun in the Old Town. But walking the 2km round the old town walls gave a us an insight into the way the town has filled in every available square inch with buildings (residential, commercial, educational, spiritual, financial) and garden space. Still some damage from the last war remains but work is continuing to reconstruct the buildings blown up and demolished by the Serbian attack from the rocky hills high above the fortified walls. The pace of life here is much slowere than in some of the other cities we have been to and we were able to enjoy walking the Stradun and its side streets, narrow and cobbled, without hawkers and beggars. And everyone it seems speaks at least some English: enough to make our stay easy and our Croatian Language book redundant.
On one day we took a trip to Medjugorje and Mostar (in Bosnia Herzegovina) with a hotel provided driver. (We wanted to do organised tours but because we are just ahead of the full season some of the trips only went if they could get enough takers – so Korcula and Medjugorje were out of the question.) It was only when we arrived back that we found the driver was employed by the hotel as security and his knowledge of English was not as good as some of the others. However we found our way there – he asked for directions – a lot! Just in time to attend a Medjugorje Mass in Italian (missed the English Mass!) which was interesting. Like our other foreign language Masses we knew when to say Amen and when to give the Sign of Peace. From the Mass in the church of Saint James we again, with lots of questions from the driver of locals in the streets, found our way to the small village of Bijakovići at the foot of what is now called Apparition Hill (where Our Lady appeared in 1981 to six children playing on the hill side). With careful stepping to avoid as much mud as possible and to find secure footing amongst the rock, we climbed to the Statue of Mary on the hillside where she is said to have appeared to the children. No crowds here (only about six people) but it was definitely a quiet restful space and we could feel Mary’s presence amongst the icons and headstones left strewn amongst the rocks over the past 27 years.
From Medjugorje we continued on to Mostar a city formed across the Neretva River: one side Muslim and one side Catholic, the way it has been for generations and joined by four bridges, the oldest of which was destroyed during the 1991 war by the Christian Croats. Everyone it seems fighting everyone else! The bridge has now been restored (under a UNESCO agreement to make the Old Town of Mostar a World Heritage site) but made out of bounds for locals so that only tourists get to use it. So say the books and so said our guide who for 200 kuna ( a bit of a rip off really but at least its money going into the town) gave us a one hour tour of the Old Town. Mostar was badly hit by the war – and it’s still not anywhere near recovered. There seems to be still and undercurrent of watchfulness amongst the people.
From Mostar we journeyed back to Dubrovnik about 3 hours away listening to the Drivers CDs which were quite nice and relaxing: sent Shelley to sleep. We asked the Driver for the name of the artist on one of them – he gave us the CD! (It may have belonged to the hotel!)
On another day we journeyed south along the coast into Montenegro, stopping at checkpoints (as we also had to do when we went into Bosnia Herzegovina) to clear customs. This time we were with a tour group and did have a well spoken English speaking guide (who also spoke French). Visiting the Old Town of Kodor and climbing the winding staircase road to 1300m asl gave excellent views over the fijord like landscape below. Amongst the clouds (and just below the Spring snow line which was still lying on the ground) made extended views rather difficult – but that’s a part of what travelling is about: the good with the bad. After a high altitude lunch of cheese, smoked ham (a specialty of the part of Montenegro we were in ) and delicious honey wine, we descended slowly to Cetinje, the capital city of Montenegro and went on a whirlwind tour of the Palace of King Nicholas (now a museum with the abdication of the king and royal line in favour of independence). After the museum visit we visited the old town of Bukva down on the coast again. Being from an island country we walked around the coastal path as far as we could enjoying the sea environment and sand (haven’t seen much of that since we’ve been away). And from Bukva back to Dubrovnik an 11 hour day (which would have been at least 12 hours had we done it in peak season.)
Back in Dubrovnik with time on our hands: a tour of the hidden Dubrovnik (following the Lonely Planet guide) proved non-eventful; but the Rector’s Palace was interesting; Mass in the Church of St Ignatius of Loyola on Saturday night was all over in 25 minutes; a gelato from a ‘Kia Ora Bro’ speaking Croatian; a tour of the Franciscan Monastery; a visit to the Museum of Modern Art (this can not be art!!! Its just the strange collection of a fisherman’s junk!); a visit to Lokrun Island just 700m off the Old Dubrovnik walls and a circum-navigation of the island - and a visit to the FKK naturist beach (?) - which took three hours); and a wander up the hills of new town Dubrovnik to get THAT photograph! All in all we filled in our time - no trouble. This is a lovely city where a good haircut with a lovely hairdresser costs only 50 kuna (£6.50) and enough patisseries for lunch cost 17 kuna (£3); and a Margareta anything from 28 kuna – 39 kuna. At least the beers are cheap (and nice!) if you buy them at the supermarket. (4.90 kuna for 50ml) And locally made wines are worth drinking!