First Impressions Of Split
My hotel was in the middle of Diocletian’s Palace, the Roman palace that forms about half the old town of Split.
I took these pictures on my first morning in the town.
It really is an unusual place, which is a cross between modern city centre and Roman palace.
If you stay in the town, try to stay in the old part
On My Way To Split
Dubrovnik does not have a railway station, so it was a ferry to Split.
It certainly wasn’t the typical Mediterranean rust-bucket, that I’ve encountered in Greece and Italy, but a modern high-speed catamaran, that had been built in Australia.
The only problem was that the boat wasn’t big enough, for the large number of passengers going to Split from the islands. But this is to be expected, as it was the only boat on the day I travelled.
Walking The Walls Of Dubrovnik
I took these pictures as I walked the walls of Dubrovnik.
Note.
- I started at the Western end, soon after the walls opened at eight o’clock.
- There was a couple of cafes at the halfway point, where I had a coffee.
- I didn’t walk it fast and I took about two and a half hours
- The stairs in the hotel were the more difficult climb.
As you can start at more than one place, a ticket that allowed you to break the walk might seem a good idea. But then you’d have to climb back up again.
I think that my plan of taking it slow early in the morning, when it was not crowded and a bit cooler, might be the best way to walk the walls.
Beware Of Hotels In The Old City Of Dubrovnik
I took these pictures of my hotel room in the Old City of Dubrovnik.
I get the impression, reading some of the things said about hotels in Dubrovnik, that this is not the only hotel with a nice, spacious rooms and a staircase not for those of a nervous disposition.
An Excursion To Lokrum
As I’d missed all of the full day trips, I took the boat to Lokrum and had a walk round for three hours or so.
Before I was diagnosed as a coeliac and went gluten-free, I couldn’t have done a walk like this.
It was almost, as if my blood couldn’t move the heat away fast enough from my skin and it all overheated. But once, gluten-free and with blood full of B12, the heat transfer was better.
I used to burn badly some years ago, but I don’t now. After Lokrum my face was just a healthy colour.
Intriguingly, my father, who was probably an undiagnosed coeliac, rarely went in the sun and was very much a man for wasting time in his garage or shed.
My son who died, appeared to me to be the most likely to be coeliac and he was always hidden away working on his music.
Dubrovnik Old Port
These pictures were taken in the morning of Dubrovnik Old Port
I got some much-needed sun, that I have been needing all winter.
This is the port for excursions.
Alpine Swifts
At night and in the morning, the air over Dubrovnik is full of alpine swifts.
This picture, which is the best of a bad lot, shows a few ducking and diving by the sea and the city walls.
There were several photographers trying to get the ultimate picture.
Excursions From Dubrovnik
I hadn’t planned what I would do in Dubrovnik and it was only when I got there, I reaslised you could take an excursion to Mostar.
Unfortunately, all excursions seemed to leave early in the morning, so as I only had one full day in the city, I had to miss out.
So if you’re having some time in the city and might weant to have an excursion, book it early.
How Dubrovnik Suffered
The map on the right of this picture, shows all of the damage sustained in Dubrovnik during the break-up of Yugoslavia.
War Damage On A Map Of Dubrovnik
The scale of the damage in the fighting between over the city, is well shown on this map, although most now seems to have been repaired.
The cause of the war between Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro, will long be debated, but as with Syria and Russia, it is usually because a group of nasty men want to cling to power and enough of their electorate can be bribed to back them.
A version of that map should be forcibly tattooed on all the war criminals and their supporters in that insane war.
Up And Down The Dubrovnik Cable Car
I took these pictures as I rode the Dubrovnik Cable Car.
The island beyond the city is Lokrum.
I have this feeling that if you timed it right, the light could be very good on the way down.
The Anonymous Widower 