Dubrovnik, Croatia
At sunrise this morning the Panorama made her way south towards the old town of Dubrovnik Croatia. We had been told the night before that the southerly winds called “yugo” would be arriving to Dubrovnik early this morning. Right on cue, the Panorama cruised into one-meter sea conditions outside the southern wall of the old town of Dubrovnik. Maneuvering carefully, our Captain was able to get the Croatian pilot aboard, but the sea conditions were too rough to continue our early morning cruise for sunrise light on the southern wall of this famous medieval walled city. As soon as the pilot boat retreated from the Panorama we turned around and headed towards the protection of the new port of Gruz and our dockside location for the day.
During breakfast, our Expedition Leader made her customary announcements about our day’s activities, which would include a morning tour of Dubrovnik and ample time for exploration inside this walled city. Transportation by bus brought our group to the Ploce Gate, or the southeast entrance to the city. Passing through a traditional curved entrance with two enormous gates open on either side, across a small bridge, only enhanced the feeling of entering a world from a time long ago. Dubrovnik is one of the most visited sites along the Dalmatian Coast and today was no exception!
Our group was divided into two, and each guide did her best to find a small place away from crowds, delivery carts and some of the crowds to tell us the story of this medieval city. There are several dates given to the earliest settlement of Dubrovnik. Archeological excavations done in the early 1990’s confirmed the existence of a Hellenic port located in the western side of the city, near today’s city port. This presupposes the establishment of a community would have been settled near that port.
Since the 7th century, Dubrovnik’s growth has been unstoppable, spreading while building fortifications first of dry stone walls, and in the 13th century with the first stone walls. It became in the time a significant crossroads for safe passage of caravans leading into the interior of the Balkan Peninsula, and safe maritime routes for Italian trade ships.
Our walking tour took us from the southeast gate into the central square of Dubrovnik. From the bell tower we walked down the main street of Stradun to the Franciscan Monastery. The interior offered a brief rest from the crowds in the streets and also houses the oldest operating pharmacy in Europe founded and opened in 1317. Returning to western end of the inner city we had an opportunity to head up and walk part of the actual city walls that surround Dubrovnik. They represent some of the most beautiful and well-preserved medieval fortifications in Europe. The walls are 1,940 meters long, 23 meters high at some places, and the width at the base varies from 1 to 5 meters. There are also three round and 14 square towers, 2 angle towers, 5 bastions and one fort, along with defense on the western side by the freestanding Fort Lovrijenac.
Our guided walks took our groups along the seaside of the wall where we had incredible views of the city below. Here we could see the damage from the dreadful siege and bombings of 1991, where many roofs were destroyed. Looking out over the city it was easy to see the bright, shiny new red orange tiles of the replaced roofs. The restoration of Dubrovnik was very important to the Croatian people and was completed very quickly, and today there are reminders of the deep and painful wounds of this recent conflict, but for our visit what we experienced was a look, albeit brief into a beautifully preserved medieval city filled with many fascinating traditions of this region of the Dalmatian Coast.
One of those traditions is a great passion in Croatia and can be experienced in the unique fashion of a capella singing, Dubrovnik-style! Just before dinner our group was once again brought back into Dubrovnik by bus and we made our way to the Dominican cloister where we were swept away by the singing of the a capella group, “Klapa Ostro.” The voices of these eight men transported many of us into a world of enchantment that can be the human voice. These men are long time friends who have been singing together for more than ten years. For nearly an hour, in the lovely setting of this centuries old cloister, the voices of these long time friends, mixed with swifts coming in to roost, and the late afternoon light moving across the cloister walls….what a moving and magical way to end our last hours in Croatia.
