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Published: August 24th 2006
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We got up early, had showers and packed. We get to see Bren and Nic today, yay! We took photos from the balcony of the Old Town. What a great place to stay, we would have liked to make better use of it, but oh well.
We drove in to Troger to get some breakfast and have a look at the Old Town. It's cool how the town still operates through and around the old buildings. I was worried about the parking so we rushed a little bit, grabbed a pastry for breakfast, and then we were on the road for Dubrovnik.
The first bit of the journey was very slow due to the traffic in and around Split. The rest of the way was ok, although it was slow going through all of the coastal towns. Oh yeah, there was roadworks as well, and we got stuck behind a campervan for what seemed like forever. Despite all of this it didn't detract from some of the amazing views we got along the way. The Split to Dubrovnik road for views probably touches out The Great Ocean Road. Not trying to start a controversy though.
We finally managed to overtake the
campervan only for there to be awesome views at the top of the mountain. We pulled over, quickly took some photos, but you guessed it the campervan chugged past us again.
We pushed as hard as we could to get to Dubrovnik, although it would have been good to take our time and savour the sights. As we got closer there was something on the road that looked like a toll booth, but was an actual border control. I didn't realise that on the Split-Dubrovnik road you actually go through Bosnia-Hercegovina for a few kilometres. Weird that Bosnia reaches all the way down to the coast, but it was a nice surprise. Going back into Croatia I managed to stall the car which was pretty embarrassing considering they weren't stopping cars!
We hadn't organised accommodation in Dubrovnik despite telling Bren and Nic we would, and trying to. We had been in touch with them throughout the day, via SMS and I found a park as soon as we got into town, but it was too far away. So we ended up doing a full circuit of the town, and we missed Ginko and Nic. The second time through I found
a park, and it wasn't long before there was kisses and hugs all round. After five minutes it didn't even feel like we hadn't seen each other for four months. We were so happy to see them both.
Our first job was to sort some accommodation, which didn't take long, and then we went back to the car to clean the inside and pack our bags. We have decided to return the car today, a day early, because there really is no need for it, and it is so hard parking in Dubrovnik.
Once the bags were packed, Ginko and I set off in the car for the rental place, while the girls relaxed at a cafe and caught up over a drink. Mack Rent-A-Car was hard to find, and Ginko even went into Hertz to see if they knew where it was located. They had no idea where they were, and we eventually found it tucked away only eight doors down from Hertz!
The guy in the office questioned me about a scratch on the front right of the car, but we were having none of that so we went and met the girls. Our apartment was ready by
now, so we dropped all our bags off, and then headed out for a late lunch.
The Croatian people we have met so far are so friendly, and in the case of our waitress for lunch, brutally honest. She was great, and proceeded to give her impression on each nationality she serves, apparently Aussies are ok which was lucky.
After lunch we walked it off with a bit of window shopping, before saying goodbye to Bren and Nic (so soon) to go and walk the wall which they did earlier in the day.
My heights phobia remained under control, although it wasn't that demanding. Beck, Kate and I took our time walking the wall taking photo after photo. It's amazing how they build walls around the Old Towns, and as Ginko would attest to the depth of the footings must be great. Apparently after the war they had to rebuild part of the Old Town because of bombing inflicted damage, and this is the reason for the red tiled rooves.
Towards the end of the walk Beck said she saw Wayne Campbell. I was sceptical, but she was positive about it, so I ran back up and sure enough it
was. I introduced myself and we talked for about ten minutes. He is also recently married, and he and his wife are on an extended honeymoon as well. I have to say he came across as a really good bloke, despite being a Richmond player! I was a bit embarrassed to ask for a photo, but I knew I'd regret it if I didn't, and he was cool about it.
After doing the impressive walk we caught back up with Bren and Nic for beers (and a breezer) at a little bar on a rock shelf overlooking the water. Very relaxing. We were soon joined by Pete and Kate (2 Kates now), who have been gallavanting through Europe in a car.
We thought we better find somewhere for dinner after a couple of beers, and in Dubrovnik they make it easy for you. As you walk past prospective restaurants they offer you particularly deals to get you in. One restaurant offered us a couple of free bottles of wine, and we couldn't say no. The meal was ok, but nothing like last night. There was a full table of aussies next to us, which goes to show how many Aussies
travel.
After dinner we pushed on to the Irish pub, where we found ourselves drinking Erdinger, which is a German beer. The pub would definitely be a candidate for having the worst jukebox in the world, but it still had Johnny Farnham which got some air time. This could be the reason why both Kates got a bit tired and emotional, but the vibe in the pub was really good. A group of big U.S water polo players from California rocked in, and the place was full. Soon it was time to call an end to a great day, and head back to the apartment.
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