Croatia and Montenegro Trip 2024 - PART 2
Updated: Oct 27, 2024
Staying in the picture postcard Old Town of Cavtat, exploring the City Walls of Dubrovnik and venturing across the border into Montenegro!
Dubrovnik Old Town and City Walls
A hot, breezy first morning in Cavtat meant I decided to take the scenic boat trip to Dubrovnik. This really gave a scale of the immense, sweeping coastline, taking around an hours with stop-offs in the neighbouring towns of Plat and Mlini.
A number of houses and buildings were dotted around high in the mountains, and all the while the distinctive fortifications of Dubrovnik were coming closer into view.
We arrived at Gruz port, and several nautical vehicles were populating the harbour. A crowd were watching the waves crash against the shore, and the influx of boats that were arriving.
On disembarking, it is quite a maze to get to the Main Street (stradun) of Dubrovnik, in reality any meandering route will eventually bring you to the centre. I enjoyed an aimless stroll through the streets, Dubrovnik itself is quite small but seemingly you can get a bit disorientated in it, but that was all part of the fun!
As it was hot day and bustling with holidaymakers, I grabbed an Ice Cream back by the waterside. I went in a few churches (as I often seem to do), mainly to cool off, but they were adorned with stunning paintings and naves that I’ve grown accustomed to on trips.
There was also time to look inside the Rector’s Palace, expectedly ornate, with everything from furniture, to cutlery, ornaments, paintings and armoury.
There was also a museum housing war photographs from Dubrovnik’s darkest day on 1 October 1991, when the Serbs bombed the city as a territorial response to protect Montenegro during the break-up of Yugoslavia. There are few signs of the war now with many buildings restored to their former glory.
A massive thunderstorm curtailed some of my exploring on the first full day, so I decided to retreat back to Cavtat on the number 10 bus, and recharge my batteries back at the hotel in readiness for an early start on day 3.
Thankfully, the next morning the previous night’s storm had cleared through and there was bright sunshine once again. This time, I took the bus into Dubrovnik, and this truly delivered with spectacular elevated views, with the road hugging the coastline, looking back at Cavtat and neighbouring towns, and then the fortress of Dubrovnik. From such a height it really illustrates how compact the city is.
First up when I arrived today was the signature city walls walk, which features a few sections of steep steps, but is generally very relaxing breathing in the sea air and the roofscapes that typify the look of the city - this is where you can notice slight remnants of the war in different coloured replacement roof tiles.
You could see the Main Street below, with narrow avenues leading from it, the Clock tower dominating the horizon, a view out to sea and to Lokrum island. Game of Thrones fans were gleefully pointing out filming locations while I was admiring the true 16th-century architecture.
A unique and worthwhile 2 hours exploring the perimeter, and the highlight of the trip so far. Also nestled along the way were a series of drinking areas and the maritime museum, with plenty of history to be learnt about Dubrovnik’s naval ships.
It was late lunchtime when I got back down to base level, and once again it was too hot really to eat anything substantial, so I grabbed an ice cream - this time delicious caramel and ate it in a holiday spirit alongside the harbour. I then browsed a number of the shops secreted within the narrow streets, picking up a Dubrovnik walls model to remind me of my memorable City walls walk.
I then took a visit to the Franciscan Monastery, before grabbing some refreshment in old town. Then it was back to the harbour to watch the world go by and recharge my phone.
The the heavens opened again for a second consecutive day, with water gushing off the stone buildings and making the marbled streets waterlogged and slightly slippery. I found shelter in Dubrovnik Cathedral, where I was able to sit and ride out the storm for a little over an hour.
Later, I managed to get a table for my desired evening meal just out of the storm, and enjoyed a tasty burger and chocolate brownie - yum!
By the time I had finished this, the storm had subsided enough for me to walk uphill to the bus stop for Cavtat, and thankfully I’d managed to mainly swerve getting wet.
Overall, a great couple of days, and by this point I was satisfied I had explored everything Dubrovnik had to offer, although I would return to explore Lokrum Island later in the trip.
I was glad I decided to stay in Cavtat, as this gave me a true relaxation hub away from the city, and would provide a useful gateway to exploring a brand new country!
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