Dubrovnik, The Jewel of the Adriatic!

Tuesday, April 1, 2008
The bus ride to Dubrovnik was full of interesting things to see, the ocean, vineyards, ancient walls, little towns. The 3 1-2 hours went quickly, there were even spots along the way for snacks-coffee.
We arrived at the bus station and were instantly surrounded by people trying to get us to stay at their sobe (rooms). We walked across to one woman's place and there was a cat sitting on the pillow of the bedroom she was offering. I told her I was quite allergic to cats and wouldn't be able to stay there and she insisted that there were no cats as she carried in downstairs! The women back at the station were very competitive for our attention, it was not a comfortable situation!
One man stood back and Keith approached him. He had a copy of the Lonely Planet and Let's Go Europe books that mentioned his place. We immediately were whisked off to his home. It's great!! He has 10 rooms which means lots of other travelers to spend time with, we love listening to their tales and sharing our experiences on the road!
We spent the first night with a German man, the next morning with a darling Spanish young person and this morning with an Austrialan couple! All very interesting travelers who have collectively been around the world!
The couple and their son who own the hostel were very open about the recent (1991-1995) war here in Dubrovnik which devastated the city. The older gentleman took an instant liking to us because he traveled on a ship in the states many times. He even has a JFK memorial plaque in his home!
We have walked extensively around the old town, in Lapat-the neighborhood of the hostel which is very touristy and around the penisula. The old town is completely walled in and we were able to walk the mile and a half around the top. That was very picture worthy!!
We will leave tomorrow afternoon for London and the next morning for Dublin. We will post pictures later, we are unprepared now.
Croatia is very worth seeing, it rivals Prague for coolness!!