Furzwo, Writers and Photographers, Travel, Nature, Business, Human Interest

Dubrovnik is a small, 30,000, city on the Adriatic coast. It is a walled city, the wall was built in the 1300’s to protect the citizens from invasion by surrounding kingdoms. The wall includes a drawbridge at the Pile Gate. In times past the draw bridge was raised each night and the key given to the prince. I wish they would raise the drawbridge in the morning and protect us from the hoards descending from the cruise ships. The passageways in old town are very narrow, electric carts move goods instead of cars and trucks, so when 3 or 4,000 cruise ship passengers descend on the city it is crowded beyond belief. Add a few walking tours to the mix and wandering becomes a challenge.

The architecture of the old city is remarkable for the sameness of the buildings. In 1667 the city was destroyed by an earthquake, with everything rebuilt at the same time, using similar materials, a very plain vanilla look is the result. The tile roofs show a bit more variety as the city was shelled by the Bosnian and Montenegro armies in 1991 and 1992. Over 260,000 roof tiles were replaced, as well as much other damage repaired to restore old town to its present glory.

The weather has been less than charming with thunderstorms last night, rain this morning and another thunderstorm this afternoon. We were blessed with a break in the rain that allowed us to walk the top of the city wall. The views of the Adriatic and the city from the wall are not to be missed.

When the next rain shower passes we will head out again to look for something other than pizza or ice cream for dinner. While I like both, I would prefer a more traditional Croation meal. Perhaps fresh seafood..