Walls of the Adriatic

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I am sitting here in the Dubrovnik Airport waiting for my flight bound for Split. I haven't had much time to write since I've been in Dubrovnik, but this place is drop dead gorgeous. Also, this journal was lost to me for 24 hours courtesy of Croatian Airlines losing my bag. But, hey at least they gave me a t-shirt. I was just happy to arrive in Dubrovnik after our daylong trek from Sofia. Sitting down in Dubrovnik for a cold beer after a shower in my clean Croatian Airlines t-shirt was a refreshing feeling.

My friend and I have hooked on with the other three members of our traveling party for the Croatian leg of the journey. Yesterday, we spent ten hours on a boat hopping around on three islands. It actually sounds a lot better than it actually was. The boat moved so SLOW. It took forever just to pick up the rest of the passengers at the old city docks so we could begin. There wasn't much to do, but make the most of it. On the first island I went for a swim and my friend made the mistake of stomping on some sea urchins. Not the best of ideas. I decided to avoid stepping on them. I'm smart like that.

On the second island there wasn't much to do, so I had some ice cream. And on the third island my friend and I traipsed up this rocky path and found this home that sold food in a beautiful quaint dining area. It had a Mediterranean feel to it. It was shaded by vines and grapes. We played scrabble and ordered portions of ham, cheese, and bread. This way we were able to assemble our own sandwiches with the help of some mouth-watering butter. Birds were chirping, the Adriatic lay in the distance and my pulse dropped down to a relaxed beat. Now if only I could have won the scrabble game.

We ended the day eating pizza and drinking beer in a medieval alley inside the old city. At the end of the night I bid goodbye to the city's white walls and narrow passageways with my first and final slurp of water that pours forth from the big fountain in the little square.

Dubrovnik and Croatia in general felt so clean after coming from Bulgaria. After that it almost felt that I wasn't really in a foreign country. This could have been that unlike Bulgaria they could understand what I was saying. I've already talked to two taxi drivers about Croatian basketball. One driver even showed me pictures of himself on Dubrovnik's professional team. We talked of Drazen, Kukoc, and the foreign influence on basketball. They wondered if I played basketball and what I was doing with my 2 meters.

Dubrovnik is like a movie set with its red tiled roofs and winding roads that hung somewhere between the dark greenery and the blue ocean below. The Croatian people are no-nonsense. They don't banter. They do their job. I like it.

Dancing in a Croatian nightclub was a mistake. At least it was a mistake to not to be wearing shoes. The resulting pain and blisters caused me to miss out on walking atop the city's fortified walls. But instead I stayed below and followed a procession of traditionally dressed Croatian singers I happened to stumble upon. Their voices echoed off the marble walls as I took up a seat and breathed in the atmosphere.

Also, in Dubrovnik I listened to two similar renditions of "Summertime". Once in the pouring rain and another time when it was dry. It seemed to be this blond singer's only song that she sung once every night. At least she sung it well. There was this cool drummer guy as well who absolutely went for it. Yesterday, as the 1878 boat slowly bounced along the sun-dappled waters I realized that I have been on four different continents in the past twelve months. I have never felt more like a world traveler in my life. Where will it all lead me to next and beyond?



Note: This comes straight from the journal I was carrying around with me while I was traveling through Eastern Europe. I was just jotting down my first hand impressions and not intending it for the masses.



added may 17, 2006

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Photos

Dubrovnik
The famous red tiled roofs.

Hidden Away
Dubrovnik was great for its nooks and crannies.

Fountain Scene
See if you can spot Tommy No Papers down there.