Blogs from Dubrovnik, Dalmatia, Croatia, Europe
May 18th 2012
Day 7 Venice Shock, horror it's raining and only 11degrees - what a change from yesterday! We bought a two day pass for the boat shuttle so no choice but to go back to Venice for the morning. Could be worse I suppose. It began to really pour it down so we ducked for shelter under the arches of the Doge's Palace, and realised we were in a queue for admission into the Palace so that seemed a good idea. About half an hour later we were inside behind a tour made up of the whole population of France! We eventually got ahead of them and followed the route round the palace. It was actually amazing and we were glad we went. The last boat to the ship was scheduled for 1.00 in time for sailaway, ... read more
May 9th 2012
Ahhhh Dubrovnik ! C'est aussi beau que ce qu'on en dit ! Je comprends pourquoi il y a des milliers de touristes qui débarquent là chaque jour! On a vu des super gros bateaux de croisières... c'était impressionnant. On avait eu un avant-goût de la ville juste avant d'aller à Kotor. Nous avions passé une nuit là pour pouvoir aller chercher notre voiture de location... et ça nous avait juste assez "agacé" pour qu'on ait hâte d'y revenir! La 1re journée a été marquée par du lavage (!) et un souper de fruits de mer au restaurant :) On avait remarqué qu'à peu près tous les restaurants offraient des "assiettes de fruits de mer à partager" et c'est là qu'on a décidé de l'essayer. On avait 2 poissons blancs (aucune idée lesquels... mais ils étaient bons), ... read more
From Croatia to Bosnia to Croatia: Reaching the beautiful city of Dubrovnik
Published: May 18th 2012Europe » Croatia » Dalmatia » Dubrovnik
May 9th 2012
Even though we had a long drive yesterday, we got back into the car today with our friends Richmond (Australian) and Cristina (Swiss) for the 3.5 hour drive south to Dubrovnik. It was mostly the same drive as the day before except for the last part, where the road turns off back to the coast and you have to cross the border into Bosnia & Herzegovina for 20 kilometres and then cross the border back into Croatia (Bosnia & Herzegovina must have wanted to keep some of the coastline). It was a beautiful sunny and warm day. We left early, but by the time we reached Dubrovnik it was just after lunch, so we were starved. As we approached the old city of Dubrovnik, we were stricken by its beauty. The walls surrounding the city were ... read more
April 29th 2012
Day 1 The early morning start was worth it to see the ferry pulling in to Croatia just after sunrise. Dubrovnik is beautiful!! We hadn't even done anything yet but we loved it!! A quick coffee and breakfast and we walked to our hotel which has a lovely view of the sea! The people in Dubrovnik are so friendly and helpful! We strolled down the very rocky Lapad beach (rocky beach but incredibly blue, clear waters) and down a little promenade, then made our way to the old city! Wow! I mean it.... Wow!! Such a gorgeous place! All old cream coloured buildings with terracotta roofs! The first thing we did was climb and walk the city walls. What a spectacular place! I can't describe it so you will have to look at the pictures! We ... read more
January 1st 2012
The Dalmatian coast of Croatia is fast gaining a reputation as the new playground for the rich and famous. But the thing is you have to get there first! In my case the journey entailed catching a midnight bus from Zagreb in freezing temperatures, only to pull an all nighter on the aforementioned bus before a weary group of passengers arrived in Dubrovnik the next morning. The odd midnight bus ride is an unavoidable part of life on the road, and just goes to show this travel caper is not all supermodels and speedboats! Let's rewind just a fraction, dear reader , to bring you up to speed on the journal. The Balkans adventure left off in Ljubljana, from where I caught a morning train to the Croatian capital of Zagreb. It was a scenic and ... read more
October 24th 2011
Saturday, October 22 We had to leave House Tereza early because we had to drop off the car rental in Dubrovnik by 10:30 am. It was great having the GPS system to find both the apartment to drop off the luggage, and then the Imperial Hilton Hotel to drop off the car. After I dropped off the car, I walked back through the old town of Dubrovnik to the apartment--about a kilometre. Our place is up the hill from the entrance to the old town--about a 5 minute walk. We met our host and started to unload the car. We were carrying luggage up the stairs, turned a corner, then up more stairs, more corners, and more stairs! Finally we got the apartment after nearly 70 stairs! We then turned around to go back for the ... read more
October 12th 2011
Ristiretki Balkanille alkaa Vuosia sitten tuli vierailtua muinaisessa Jugoslaviassa ja jo silloin etenkin Adrianmeren rannat viehättivät kovasti. Mieleen jäi myös ajatus rannikon koluamisesta vähän tarkemmin autolla joskus myöhemmin. Sota ja muuten levottomat ajat alueella sitten tekivät pakollisen tauon tähän suunnitelmaan mutta nyt vihdoin aika sitten oli sopiva uuteen retkeen. Syksyn matkaa suunnitellessa useita eri vaihtoehtoja kävi mielessä mutta yksi ylitse muiden toistui vähän väliä. Koska Kroatian rannikkoa on mainostettu yhtenä maailman kauneimmista autoreiteistä, oli se sitten lähdettävä itse paikanpäälle toteamaan. Ja helpoimman lentoreitin vuoksi alkupisteeksi valikoitui Kroatia ja siellä Dubrovnik. Dubrovnikin lentokenttä sijaitsee laaksossa pienen vuorijonon takana rannan suuntaisesti. Jo lähestyttäessä kenttää kävi selvÃ... read more
September 22nd 2011
Fri 16 Sept. Travel day. Return rental car without scratch from me from 18 days on RHS of road. Coast road from Split to Dubrovink is spectacular coastal drive. You are on cliffside overlooking the Adriatic and it's islands most of the way. I did it in the local bus, so it was slow (took 5 hours) & wasn't able to get out and explore some of the more interesting coastal towns. Another curiosity si that you pass thru Bosnia-hertgovna on the way. Many centuries ago the country of Dubrovnik pledged affiliation to the Turks in agreement for their protection. Anyway that sliver of land now belongs to Bosnia-H for some reason. So Croatia in fact has a small incision of Bosnia in it. Accom is up on the hill overlooking old town of Dubrovnik. Fantastic ... read more
September 17th 2011
DUBROVNIK Today we went into the historic city of Dubrovnik, we had been told it would be a highlight of our tour and we were not disappointed. The city was bombed mercilessly during the homeland war (although they call it the aggression) and large parts were destroyed. The city was then rebuilt in the keeping with the original style. We had our usual walking tour with a local guide who explained the history of the city, showed us around and pointed out the best things to visit. After the walking tour we took the gondola to the top of the hill overlooking the city the view from the top was amazing, you could see the wall surrounding the old city, the defensive positions, and the new town and of course you could look out to sea ... read more
Chapter 4 - DAY 10 - Split to Dubrovnik
Published: September 19th 2011Europe » Croatia » Dalmatia » Dubrovnik
September 16th 2011
SALONA ROMAN RUINS We started our day with a visit to the Roman ruins in Split; they are a short drive from Split at Salona Township. It was a bit of a surprise going to see Roman ruins in Croatia, but in its day the Romans had a vast empire. The ruins aren’t as visited as many and we were free to walk around and in between them. There are ruins from the first and second century’s plus the remains of an ancient aqueduct. They are recognised as some of the best preserved Roman ruins in existence and were well worth the visit. DIOCLETIAN PALACE - SPLIT From there it was back to Split to visit the Diocletian Palace. The Palace is the central feature of the Split Old Town which is located around the harbour ... read more
