There was only one rule that we made when we decided to move to Europe: With all the countries available at our door step for travelling, we were only going to visit a country once. After our trip to Croatia, we may break this rule. We have fallen in love with this beautiful country. With gorgeous landscapes of mountains, oceans, beaches, vineyards, gelato, and seafood, what is there not to love! Croatians are very proud, very friendly and outgoing. They are always helpful and smiling: if Canada was a Mediterranean country, it would be Croatia. Most speak excellent English, and many speak several languages very well. We encountered one restaurant host whom we heard effortlessly speak English, French, German, Italian, and Croatian (obviously).
We started our trip to in the capital, Zagreb, catching up with an old Vancouver neighbours from Burley Drive the Mikulics. Starting at the main square, Trg Josipa Jelačića we did a short walking tour to the large outdoor Dolac fruit and vegetable market where they weigh items with old fashioned weights. Then a beautiful gothic cathedral beside the remnants of a medieval town, followed by Stone Gate, an outdoor church with a road that runs through it. Then off to Markov Trg with the parliament buildings and a church with the wildest tiles on the roof. After all that walking it was time for lunch on a pedestrian street. After a hearty dinner of fire roasted lamb and a good sleep, we picked up our car and began the journey south to Dubrovnik.
A new highway is under construction which made the trip pretty fast (which was met with the occasional but inevitable, “Dave slow down” once in a while). It is quite the project, and will eventually go all the way to Greece. The scenery was beautiful.
We arrived in Dubrovnik late afternoon and immediately set out to find a place to stay. A room (or sobe) in Croatia in June (the off season) is easy to come by, relatively inexpensive (30-50 euro per night for a double), and can be booked from any local tourist office. Because it was the off season, we didn’t book rooms in advance and enjoyed the freedom of not worrying about making it to the next destination.
Drubrovnik old town is situated on a peninsula and is surrounded by a old fort wall. Although in tha past, the shelling of beautiful Dubrovnik old town is still fresh in the mind of many Croatian people: two out of three roofs were damaged by shells, 314 direct hits onto the marble streets, 111 hits onto the fort wall itself, and nine historic buildings were gutted by fires. Restoration work is still ongoing, and is being done in the traditional way using local materials and craftsman as much as possible. The results are nothing short of miraculous.
A walk around the city walls, built in the 13 and 14th century to guard against invasion by the Turks, is a must. The views over the town and sea are spectacular. It was also from the wall that we noticed a little restaurant, far off the tourist main streets, with a nice garden terrace under the shade of vines. The restaurant was aptly named Madam PiPi, in honour of its unforgettable (and delightfully scandalous) fountain in front. Evenings in old town are magical. There are beautiful sunsets and an abundance of night life. We enjoyed cocktails at Buža, a must-have-drink place just outside the wall, and dined at Luongo’s at the harbour. The tripod Kim got for her birthday was out in full force, capturing the cityscape and night life. And no night in a Croatian town is complete without the mandatory gelato.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments: