| Ads |
|---|
| Croatia: Dubrovnik - May 2004 |
| Thursday, 23 December 2004 | |
 Surprise! You can see some of our holiday photos at this link: Dubrovnik Photos on the Fong Gallery web site. The flight only took about 3 hours from Norwich. Click for Rough Guide to Croatia travel book which is available from Amazon. I booked the holiday from Tim at McConnell Travel in Boscombe, Bournemouth and the package provider were Holiday Options.  Cavtat Bay I decided not to stay in Cavtat as I would rather we went somewhere new. It seemed nice enough but I guess I wanted to be near Dubrovnik itself as there wouldn't be a huge amount of things to do in Cavtat itself once you have had a wander around.  Hotel Uvala The other hotels are very old-worldy in comparison which is not my cup of tea. I did see many guest from other hotels who would pass by and stare at the hotel. Don't if that was a good thing or a bad thing but it must have made an impression on them.  View over Lapad Bay from hotel window The hotel was the last stop of our transfer from the airport which took about an hour so we only managed to get there in time for dinner by 9pm. We found that the hotel had only been opened for a week or so. Hence the fitness/spa centre was not open, the outside pool was not open and the shower guard leaked water. The staff gave us extra towels to mop it all up every day. As I really liked the design of the hotel I wasn't really put off by it all. We did get over £100 back per person but I am sure everything should be fine by now. Just teething troubles.  Pile Gate This bus was definitely not as packed as the other buses that went to the other side of Lapad Bay. People were always fighting to squeeze onto that bus when it was leaving Dubrovnik's Pile Gate. Our bus was always more gentile so I think this area has an advantange there. The bus ride takes only 20 minutes.  La Stradun  Sunset in Cavtat After a bit of research on the web beforehand, we made way to eat at a restaurant called Kamenice on Gunduliceva Poljana, just across from the Rectors Palace. It was very busy with virtually all the tables full. On another occassion we had to wait about 10 minutes before a table was free. I had the oysters and mussel risotto. The oysters were only 7 kuna each and they were the native variety and very tasty. Angela had some very tender fried squid. We left the city wall walk for another day and just had a beer somewhere else. On the 2nd day we took a short walk past the large supermarket nearby and down the hill into Lapad Bay. The map seems to make everything seem far but in reality it wasn't. Although with the sun beating down on you at 11am it tends to slow you down. The water around the bay and the rest of the coast is so clear and I'm sure swimming in it during the August and September would be great, but this was May and it felt cooler than what I would have liked to be dipping in. After a quick beer we took the number 10 bus to Cavtat (pronounced sav-tat, not kav-tat like many tourists were saying). Cost 12 kuna each. We went there to meet up with some friends of Angela's who work at Hotel Croatia. We had lunch at their house (particularly liked the squid risotto which was all black with the ink) and then popped down to the hotel for a quick look around. It is quite high up and had spectacular views over the sea and bays below.  Yatch Club Orsan We did see a restuarant called Leiut or Leift that seemed very, very full compared to everywhere else so I am guessing that it must have a good reputation. This was only midweek so maybe next time I will go and check it out. 3rd day: 12 May 04. We decided to take it easy today and go for a stroll around the peninsual of Babin Kuk, over to where Hotel Neptune is. We saw someone snorkelling in the crystal clear waters, although he was having some trouble getting his wife to work the camera to snap him swimming around. We aimed to walk around the peninsula and get to Yatch Club Orsan for lunch. It was a nice walk and the lunch was even better. The guide books say that this restaurant is very busy during the season so I was happy to get there whilst we could without too much hassle.  Yatch Club Orsan I've never been a fan of half-board as the concept of International Cuisine has never hit the right spot for me as they tend to be average tasting buffets serving hundreds of people. However, this hotel only holds 50 rooms and I found the food to be really nice and very tasty. I enjoyed all of the food that they had every night but I was puzzled at how expensive the wine was. Not only in the hotels but other restaurants. It was all Croatian and not imported stuff. Try the Osjecko dark beer if you are into stout or Old Peculiar type beers. 4th day: 13 May. The rain and lightening really hit during the night/early morning but it didn't last too long. We went back to Cavtat again. Our friends took us up the hill overlooking Cavtat to a small restaurant that specialised in cooking meat under a bell. Basically it is slow cooked until it is very, very tender. The place was called Konavoski Komin. For 5 adults with starters, main course and drinks, it came to £50. We had coffee and desserts at The Kabelero in Cavtat which was our friend's local. There was some traditional Croation music and dancing on the Stradum that night.  La Stradun It costs 30 kuna to access the wall walk and took us about 2 hours leisurely walk. The views of the rooftops and and down through the narrow side streets are interesting. From the wall you can only begin to imagine what it would have been like during the war when the seige took place and soldiers were firing their bullets and shells from outside on the hills into the inner area.  Pizza at Mae Culpa We had a beer and pizza at Mae Culpa along the back street of Za Rokon, south of Stradun. As mentioned beforem for £3 to £3.50 the pizzas are huge. I would thoroughly recommend people to seek out the little places south of Stradun, and not go into the tourist trap just up and parallel to Stradun called The Prijeko. We had been warned and kept clear. Not saying that they are bad, but probably not the best value or quality. It reminded me of one of the side streets off La Grand Place in Brussels where it is a constant narrow corridor of tables and restaurants, most likely with shared kitchens and owners anyway.  flight home After the excellent holiday we had and spending time in the beautiful city of Dubrovnik, it is with a little bit of sadness to see these kind of scenes from YouTube with regards to the Civil War that occured. However, it is important to see this footage as a reminder. |
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|