Category: Dubrovnik

The walled city of Dubrovnik should not be missed, it is a gem. All of Dubrovnik’s sightseeing is packed within its walls where thankfully everything is pedestrian. Main streets, like The Placa, become unbearably crowded around midday when cruise boats are docked at the harbor—solution enjoy the main thoroughfares early and late in the day. When the cruise boats are in town head for a café or Gundul Poljana, a quieter square with restaurants where the fruit and vegetable market is held.  Allow a day and a half for all the sightseeing in town. Consider a day at the beach taking a boat from the harbor to the island of Lokrum (or a 20 minute walk to the secluded St Jakob Beach). Extend your stay by taking day trips to Bosnia-Herzegovina’s Mostar and Montenegro’s Bay of Kotor. See where we stayed at the end of this blog.

Sightseeing that we enjoyed:

DUBROVNIK CITY WALLS: The premier attraction is a walk round Dubrovnik’s walls enjoying ever changing views of the city and the sea from your lofty viewpoint. People usually walk in a clockwise direction. Once you have bought your ticket and gone onto the walls you cannot go in and out. You can rent an audio guide but the narration is very dull so we just enjoyed the views and map in hand picked out the buildings we recognized. In summer it is very hot so take a hat, water, sunscreen and your camera. There are several cafes on the seaward side where you can purchase refreshments. The walls are at their most crowded when the cruise ships are docked–do not go. The walls often open at 8am, a great time to go. You can access the walls at three points: just as you enter the Pile Gate, near the Dominican Monastery north of Ploce Gate and by the Maritime Museum near the Old Port.

FRANCISCAN MONASTERY (Franjevacki Samostan): Located just inside the Pile Gate. Walk the shaded cloisters to the museum that contains the monastery’s original medieval pharmacy, some relics, paintings and beautiful embroidered robes.

FORT OF ST LAWRENCE (Tvrdava Lovrijenac): Just outside the city walls by the Pile gate you see this huge fort, Dubrovnik’s oldest fortress now used for the city’s Summer Festival.

PILE GATE (Gradska Vrata Pile): The main entrance gate to the walled town…you see St Blaise with Dubrovnik in his arm.

ONOFRIO’S BIG FOUNTAIN (Velika Onofrejea Fontana): This giant circular structure in the center of the square dates from the Middle Ages when it was the town’s water storage cistern.

THE STRADUM (Placa): Dubrovnik’s main promenade is the heart of the city. Lined with shops and cafes this is THE place for an evening stroll.

SPONZA PALACE & MEMORIAL ROOM FOR DUBROVNIK DEFENDERS: With its rounded arches and Gothic windows Sponza Palace dates from 1522 when is was the Customs Office. Now it’s home to exhibitions the most poignant of which is on the left as you enter, the Memorial Room of Dubrovnik Defenders with photos of the many young men who were killed fighting the Yugoslav forces in 1991.

BELL TOWER (Gradski Zvonik): The current bell tower replicates one that was built in 1444, The clock is an octopus with one tendril telling the time.  Every hour (and three minutes after) the time is chimed on the bell at the top by two bell ringers.  At the bottom time the time is shown in Roman numerals.

GRADSKA KAVANA (Town Café): Gradska Café has long been the town’s hangout for people watching, drinks and dessert.

ST BLAISE’S CHURCH (Crka Sv Vlaha): You see paintings and statues of St Blaise, Dubrovnik’s Patron saint, all over town. Legend has it that over a thousand years ago St Blaise came to a priest in a dream and warned that the Venetians were about to invade. The priest mobilized the town who prepared for war.  Since then he’s been the symbol of Dubrovnik.

CATHEDRAL (Katedrala): The original 12^th century cathedral was funded by Richard the Lionhart who was shipwrecked nearby on his was to the crusades. In return for his survival he built a church that was destroyed in the 1667 earthquake. This version is 18^th century Roman Baroque.

DOMINICAN MONASTERY MUSEUM (Dominikanski Samostan Muze): The Franciscan Monastery on the Stradum was the poor peoples’s church, rich people came here. Stroll round the cloister visiting the museum with its painting by Titian and the church which is still used by the order.

SYNAGOGUE MUSEUM (Sinagoga Muzel), Zudioska ulica 5, Tel 020 321 028 When the Jews were forced to leave Spain in 1492 several of them ended up here. By 1546 Zudioska ulica (Jewish Street) had become a ghetto. Today the street is home to the second oldest continually functioning synagogue in Europe that contains Croatia’s only Jewish museum. The synagogue with lattice windows separating the women from the men is on the top floor. Below it is the museum, full of Torah’s and shawls and poignant memorabilia from the Nazi era: armbands and written orders stating that Jews were to identify their businesses.  Only 4,000 of Croatia’s 24,000 Jews survived the Second World War.

SERBIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH (Srpska Pravoslavna Crka), Od Puca 8. Serbian Orthodox Christians were not allowed to have a church within the city walls till the mid-19^th century. Dubrovnik never had a large Serbian population and most of them fled in the 1991 war. Still a few remain. Candles are lit as prayers. Those at knee high are for the deceased while those higher up are for the living. The gentleman selling candles is happy for people from all denominations to buy and light candles.

ETHNOGRAPHIC MUSEUM (Etnografski Musej Rupe): This 16rh century building is where grain was stored. Rupe means hole like those that you peer down to see the huge underground grain stores. When the grain had to be dried it was moved upstairs to what is now the Ethnographic museum.

ST JAKOB BEACH: When you have had enough of museums head to the beach. Our favourite is St Jacob’s, well worth the 20 minute walk from the old town—leave the town at the Ploce Gate, after the Hotel Argentina take a right fork and keep walking till you reach a small church. Walk behind the church and you see steep steps going down to the cove. You can rent chairs and there is a little restaurant and a wonderful view of distant Dubrovnik.

We stayed at APARTMENT VIKTORIJA a 10 to 15 minute walk into town and handily if you want to ride the bus it stops beside the house. The view from our balcony was most spectacular at sunset when the walls and rooftops of Dubrovnik glowed pink against the bright blue Adriatic. Each of the two little apartments are set under the eaves-large enough to each accommodate a bedroom, bathroom, tiny sitting area/kitchen and a rooftop balcony overlooking the offshore island of Lokrum and Dubrovnik. Davorka and her family live downstairs. She is happy to answer questions and make suggestions about restaurants that she frequents. Apartment Viktorija, Frana Supila 59, Mobile +38598427399, €70 – €100, Davorka.pavisa@du.t-com.hr, 2 apartments

Gundliceva Poljana is the home of the city’s fruit and veg market. Here you find the KONOBA KAMENICE a charming outdoor well-priced fish restaurant—perfect for lunch or dinner. In high season you may have to wait for a table. Konoba Kamenice Restaurant, Gundliceva Poljana 8, Tel 385 (0)20 323 682.

We so enjoyed the excellent quality and good value for money price at KONOBA DUNDO MAROJE Restaurant that we at there on 2 of our 3 nights in Dubrovnik. We are big fans of their grilled fish. Konoba Dundo Maroje (restaurant), Owner Srecko Matana, Kovvacka B.B., 20000 Dubrovnik, Mobile 385 (0)91 541 25 79, Tel 385 (0)20 321 021, Dundo-maroje-konoba@du.t-com.hr.