Day 10 & the Croatian Stair-Master!

Breakfast…great fruit…and today fresh pineapple added to watermelon, cantaloupe and grapefruit slices.  Add cappuccino and blackcurrant juice with a chocolate croissant overlooking the Adriatic Sea, and I could just stay right here!

Damir has other plans for us.  Small vans take us up a road built by Napoleon and not improved in over 200 years.  Ok….partially true.  This narrow narrow road was built by Napoleon’s army, and he was thinking of the width of two horses not two vans!  It is a winding and barely passable roadway with hairpin curves where one car has to pull over if another one is coming.  But, it has been paved since Napoleon built it!

At the top of Syd Mountain is a cable car built during the communist years, destroyed in the war, and now rebuilt along w/ museum dedicated to the war, 1991-1995.

The views of Dubrovnik are amazing along with the weather.  It was originally predicted to rain every day during our stay.  What a blessing!

This is our group of 15!

Pictures tell a thousand words so I took photos of photos to show the damage and destruction that rained down on Dubrovnik during the 1990’s.  

 


  

True to the philosophy of this tour company to introduce travelers to controversial topics, a guest speaker who was a 7 year old girl living within the old city in 1991 tells us her story.

But first…some history.  In 1991, Croatia voted overwhelmingly to leave Yugoslavia and become an independent country following the lead of Slovenia.  This was with a population that also included 12% Serbians who largely supported Croatia’s majority.  

Milosevic, the ruler of the Balkans, was determined to bring all Slavic countries together.  Croatia was attacked in the north but Dubrovnik which had no military force formed a home guard but was essentially unprepared.  In October, Serbia and Montenegro began bombing Dubrovnik causing massive damage, fires, and destroying all communication, electricity and water supply systems.

Our speaker told of being awoken by her mother, looking out the window, and watching a missile fly over their home.  Her mother, sister, and she packed a few items, and ran from their house to a near-by basement where 100 people would live and sleep for 3 months.

A few weeks later, 600 missiles landed on Dubrovnik in one day.  In the basement shelter with one toilet, sea water for bathing, and food sent from outside Dubrovnik from her grandmother’s farm, residents passed each day wondering where the next bomb would fall.  Her father was part of the home guard. 

The family were finally placed in a refugee hotel outside the old city where they lived for 3 1/2 years.  One night, a knock on the door delivered the news that her father had been killed.  

Most of the fighting was over in 1992, but the war lasted until 1995 when they could finally return to their homes safely.  She discussed the lasting trauma many residents still have from memories of those difficult years.

Our cable car ride was fun, 

  

and then the Croatian Stair-master Challenge began!  Walking along the top of Dubrovnik’s old city walls is a highlight for any visitor.  Of course, you have to reach the top first!  I don’t know the complete number of stairs, but I counted multiple sets of 44, 31, 22.  

  

  



The views are amazing, but you could also still see ruins from the war and roof tiles replaced.  After 40 minutes of walking up and down steps in the sun, I was pooped! It really felt like a workout on the stair-master!

Next stop…the Buza Bar for some refreshments.  This place is a REAL hole in the wall!  

You enter through a hole in the exterior wall and walk down stairs to a concrete platform poured over a rocky promontory.  Drinks are served, and you can watch people jump into the Adriatic Sea!  Yes, bathing suit clad young people were climbing over railings and plunging into the blue waters below!  It looked like great fun…and No, I wasn’t tempted…but how do they get out?

Our final night in Dubrovnik was a treat as a local Croatian, Doreo, educated and entertained us.  We learned about olive oil…always buy cold pressed since heat destroys the taste and health benefits, don’t sauté or fry with olive oil because of the same, only put olive oil on after food is cooked, green olives and black olives are the same but a green olive turns black in 30 days after the green ones are harvested.

And, of course, Croatian olive oil is the best in the world!

We drank Croatian Prosecco..white wine but no carbonation…followed by a shot of brandy!  Yes, folks, that was GJ’s first true shot because I’ve always sipped in the past.  It was eye-watering and sinus clearing, but I did it with a shout of “Zivjeli”!  That’s “Cheers” in Croatian.

Our next tasting was white wine with a lesson on do not sip…swirl and aerate and drink!  There are no legs; “this is not an animal” according to Doreo.  We had been standing and laughing and imbibing, but now it was time for dinner and red wine!

Veal and pork along with vegetables had been cooked in a traditional manner of “under the bell”.  It is exactly like cast iron cooking in Boy Scouts!  The meat was tender and flavorful but after all the drinks, salad and cheese, and bread, I was full!

We danced and sang while Doreo told jokes and gave guests a hard time.  We all thoroughly enjoyed it!

  

We will be back in Croatia in a few days, but first GJ Travels to Bosnia & Herzegovina.