Balkan Bound: A City of a Thousand Steps

Today was the first full day we spent in Dubrovnik, Croatia so of course we had to get all of the touristy things out of the way. The first thing one immediately notices about Dubrovnik is the absolute beauty that radiates from every crevice of the city and never gets old (and is enhanced by the cleanliness of the city). The next thing you notice are the stairs, the thousands of stairs that basically serve as sides walks here. So we began today by grabbing lunch at one of the many ally way restaurants that are all over Old Town which is the is the walled in portion of the city right next to the sea. Then our tourist explorations began by taking a cable car to the top of the mountain to see the amazing view of the entire Old Town as well as the Imperial Fortress, which of course required walking up tons of stairs to get to the cable car. This allowed us to see the entire city and the surrounding mountains. After this we went for a refreshing drink at "Cold Drinks and the Most Beautiful View," we had to see if this advertising was accurate or not. And our verdict was yes indeed! The drinks were cold and the view was looking out on the Adriatic Sea to where the water met the sky, so I would definitely say it was one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen. Then we did one of the main tourist attractions of the city which is walking around the 14th century wall that surrounds the city and served as its protection. As a history nerd, experiencing this history of the city was incredible. The amazing part is that hidden behind all of the beauty of this city is the destruction from the early 1990s that occurred during the fight for independence. There are reminders all over the city commemorating this war of independence and some of the ruble was viewable from the wall. To finish off the day we got dinner and gelato and if you ever get the chance to order Nutella gelato do it, it was one of the most delicious things ever! To get back to the guest house we of course had to make the journey up the many, many steps that will definitely whip us into shape by the end of our week here. Now with all of the main tourist attractions out of the way we have spotted a few cool local hangout and swim spots to check out during the remainder of our week here. With class beginning tomorrow I am hoping to gain a more thorough background history of Croatia and the surrounding Balkan area.