Week 84-85: Croatia

We are excited to finally share all of the things we experienced during our getaway to Croatia.

We spent 4 days between Dubrovnik and Split and the rest of this week has been trying to find the right words to recap our adventure. Famous Irish playwright, George Bernard Shaw summed it up in 12 words.

“Those who seek paradise on Earth should come to Dubrovnik and find it.”
– George Bernard Shaw

Keep reading for our much lengthier version–

Friday

After a quick 75-minute flight from Vienna, we landed in Dubrovnik, better known as ‘King’s Landing’, the fictional city in the HBO series Game of Thrones.

Dubrovnik is a city in southern Croatia spilling out over the Adriatic Sea and is among the top vacation destinations for Austrians. According to my research, in 2021, 1.1 million Austrians vacationed in Croatia. Now we understand why–it is beautiful.

Known for its iconic terracotta roofs, the cleanest white-washed limestone streets, and being surrounded by some of the finest coastlines in all of the Mediterranean, Dubrovnik is paradise on Earth.

*The limestone ground was so clean, but slippery in some spots*

Dubrovnik is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage walled city. The walls have surrounded and protected citizens since the 7th century and are considered the greatest fortification system of the Middle Ages since they were never breached by anyone during this time period.

Shortly after our arrival, we checked into V illa Anica (pronounced Uh-knee-cha), a beautiful 300-year-old newly renovated house.

The home was intended to be used as a rest and relaxation place for Roger Joseph Bošković–a famous astronomer, mathematician, physicist, and philosopher, and his sister Anica.

We wanted to stay in a villa just outside of old town so that we would have a place to get away from the crowds and enjoy a more peaceful setting after our daily adventures.

The host, Mimi, was helpful.
The Villa cat, Rico, was friendly.
The villa itself was perfect and we would recommend it to anyone thinking about visiting Croatia.

During the hot summer months, like this past week, the best thing to do during a day in Dubrovnik is to go beyond the old city walls and enjoy the sea. Whether that means sea kayaking around the old city, ferrying to Lokrum island, or enjoying a lazy day at one of Dubrovnik’s many beaches. We are happy to say we did all of these things during our time here.

Our first stop was to Banje beach, located at the eastern entrance of the city wall and just a 15-minute walk from our Villa. Banje beach is Dubrovnik’s most popular beach because it has views of Lokrum Island, the fortress walls, and is just a stone’s throw away from the old town.

If you ever visit beaches in Croatia, bring water shoes. The beaches are rocky, not sandy.

*Standing in the Adriatic Sea at Banje Beach*

45 minutes passed as we drifted around in the Adriatic sea. We were finally cooled off, but the beach was quite crowded so we grabbed our belongings and left.

A few minutes away is a not-so-hidden gem of Dubrovnik. The cliff bar, Buža Bar. The entrance is a literal hole in the wall. As we walked through the hole in the wall, we came out on the other side and found ourselves standing on the edge of a cliff. With only a few umbrellas and chairs, visitors and locals alike flock to this cliff to catch the best view of the city and then fight to find a spot to sit.

We were lucky to grab a table under an umbrella and shared it with two other Americans from New Mexico. Croatia has become a major destination for Americans as well, mainly following the successful series Game of Thrones.

The drinks were pricey, the seating is limited, and I think there are better views, but it was a nice spot to take in the salty air and sip on a frozen margarita.

We saw a few people jumping off the cliff into the sea below, which made for some nice cliffside entertainment.

The combination of our early morning travels, several hours in the sun, and our now salty skin wiped us out, so we went back to the villa to clean up and relax before heading back out for dinner.

Dubrovnik after dark is ideal. The dry heat was now cool and tolerable. At night, everyone who was exploring outside of the city makes their way back in for dinner along the main street, Stradun.

*People walking down Stradun, the Main Street*

Most of the restaurants in Dubrovnik highlight their fresh meat and seafood. As 100% vegetarians and most of the time vegans, we were on the hunt to find a nice place to eat.

We followed the sounds of a piano and it led us to a table for two at a place called Festival Cafe.

During dinner, a friendly cat came up to us.

While Dubrovnik is famous for its bright terracotta rooftops, grand walled city, and Game of Throne sets, it is also home to a ton of cats that roam the streets. At every corner you can find a friendly feline curled up on cafe chairs, lounging on sun-lit terraces, or scurrying across the cobbled streets.

At night, many of the city cats find a place to sleep on the stairs leading up to the church.

There’s a reason why cats are so well-respected in Dubrovnik. Cats are considered the city’s oldest residents. The cats living in the old town are related to the cats introduced in the 14th century to help fight the bubonic plague by catching and killing the disease-carrying rats responsible for spreading the disease.

Saturday

We began our morning on this Game of Thrones walking tour where we got the inside scoop from a local about what it was like to live in Dubrovnik when they filmed the show.

*Pile port aka Blackwater Bay to GoT fans*

When we met our guide, there were about 8 other Game of Thrones tour groups meeting in the same spot at the same time which caused some confusion. The only difference is the price, duration, and order or sites the guide takes you to. We were happy with the one we picked though.

Here are a few interesting things we learned on the tour:

Similar to Austrians and the Sound of Music, Croatians do not watch the Game of Thrones.
The show was casting for local crowd members, but no one was interested in participating.
The character, John Snow, was not very friendly.
If the HBO flag was on the tower it meant they were filming.
HBO bought out entire parts of the city to avoid tourists and other people ruining the shots. Shop owners were given a generous amount of money and happily closed down.
Season one was filmed in Malta, which we visited in week 83.
The directors of GOT rushed through the final season because they were supposed to work on Star Wars. They ended up being fired from the Star Wars job because they rushed through the GOT and it was a bad ending.
The Walk of Shame scene was shot for an entire week.
Cersei was paid 1 million for each episode
Joffrey ended up quitting his acting career because playing his role in GOT was too much to handle.

*A kayaker heading out along the city walls*

For three hours we were taken to the most iconic filming locations and even ferried to Lokrum Island.

On the island, we found peacocks, lush gardens, rocky beaches (of course), a monastery, and the original HBO Iron Throne where we took turns sitting on it.

Our tour came to an end on the island and then we ferried back to the city walls for lunch at Nishta–Dubrovnik's first vegan restaurant.

By 5:30 pm, we were standing at the edge of Pile Port getting a briefing from our guide for our next tour–Kayaking on the Adriatic at sunset! The tour guide said our excursion would last 3 hours, we would kayak for 8 kilometers and we would burn about 500 calories along the way!

After our safety briefing, we tossed our belongings in a waterproof container, hopped in the boat, and set off for our sunset paddle.

As we were en route to our first stop, Betina Cave, we kayaked along the base of the massive city walls. We were able to see the cliff bar and the Banje beach we visited the day before. After about 15 minutes, our guide stopped to tell us a few facts while allowing us to rest our arms for a bit.

One memorable fact was learning Croatia has 1,244 islands and we had only been to one of them since our arrival on Friday. Clearly, 4 days in Croatia are not enough to even make a dent into seeing this country and like every place we visit, we truly hope we can come back and explore more of the islands!

At our first stop, Betina Cave, we got out and snorkeled. We came nose to fin with several small fish. The water was clear, but we snorkeled in clearer water on past trips.

*Eric snorkeling in the Adriatic at Betina Cave*

*Eric and I standing in another shallow cave within the bigger Betina Cave*

*Kayaking to another cave on Lokrum Island.*

We snorkeled for about 30 minutes and then we were back in the boat paddling to Lokrum Island where we were earlier in the day, but this time we got to paddle around the entire thing.

Kayaking was pretty strenuous towards the end of the trip, but it was worth it. As we paddled back towards Pile port, we rounded a corner and became drenched with the setting sun rays as the evening light shimmered across the Mediterranean Sea.

No matter where you are in Dubrovnik, the sunset is surreal.

This was by far our favorite thing we did in Croatia. Eric and I had never kayaked together, but we have rowed together. I guess that came in handy because, by the end of the tour, our guide said we were excellent paddlers!

*Eric’s Garmin watch captured our paddling path!*

Around 9 pm, we were back at the villa washing the salt off and headed back out to grab a quick dinner. Pizza and ice cream were calling our names. We grabbed a large slice and made our way to the Jesuit staircase, aka ‘Shame Stairs’ for GoT fans.

Sunday

Also our final day in Dubrovnik and the hottest day thus far.

After enjoying a big breakfast at the villa arranged by our host, Mimi, we moseyed out towards Mount Srd.

If the weather was 20 degrees cooler, we would have hiked to the top, but instead, we boarded the cable car and reached the summit within 6 minutes. The panoramic view of Dubrovnik from Mount Srd is astoundingly beautiful and gives you a great view of the old town, city walls, Lokrum island, and the whole Dubrovnik coastline. Most people come to this mountain for sunset.

If we could do this trip over again, we would probably have come up to this mountain on the first night for sunset so that we could experience sunset on the mountain AND on the sea. Oh well.

After two hours at the top, we went back down into town. People who opted to stay within the city walls during the day dodged the hot June sun by walking within the slightly cooler alleys or walking into each and every shop just for a few moments of air conditioning.

If you want a photo without people in the background, daytime in the city walls is your moment. Everyone on the main street flocked to the right-hand side where the shade was. So the left side appeared totally empty.

By 4:00 pm, we were on a 4-hour ferry to Split.

We were supposed to take the bus that left in the morning, but Mimi was adamant that we avoid it. Taking the bus would cross through Bosnia, and the border can take a very long time to get through.

We took Mimi’s advice and we are so happy with did.

For 4 hours, we navigated around Croatia’s other islands and arrived in Split just after sunset.

*Looking back at the city on the beautiful island on the way to Split*

Split is another old walled city, but not just any old city. The buildings and alleys that make up the city are actually the entirety of Diocletian’s Palace–an ancient palace built for the retirement of the Roman emperor Diocletian. Now, the palace is home to 2,000 locals, restaurants, and shops. It is the only ruin in the world where people still live and it has been a UNESCO Heritage Site since 1979.

When you go to Split looking for the Palace, know you are actually already standing in it.

This palace also expands underground. The underground was once used as the servant’s quarters and is now overtaken by modern art and shops. This underground is also where Queen Daenerys kept her dragons locked up…another Game of Thrones reference for you.

When we arrived in Split, we checked into our hotel, dropped off our bags, and bee-lined it back outside to find a place for dinner. On our way out, we stumbled upon a local musician who was playing covers of famous songs in the Peristil–the imperial square where Emperor Diocletian once addressed the public.

The atmosphere in this little square was something out of a movie set.

A combination of an unfamiliar city and a clear night sky with music filling the air as people were gathering at every edge of this square turned this moment into a core memory for us. We were mesmerized. We listened to “Stand by Me”, “What a wonderful world,” and “My Way” before we continued on to find a dinner spot.

*A musican was playing for the crowd at The Peristil*

We ate dinner at Bepa, a small restaurant inspired by true Mediterranean cuisine situated in the heart of the old town of Split, on “Pjaca square” or “people square”.

Another long day and late night came and went so we headed back to the hotel.

*A fountain across from our hotel in Split*

Monday

With nothing planned and nowhere to be, Eric and I explore Split with no agenda…other than having to be at the airport by 3:00 pm.

It was another really hot day so we started our day by weaving in and out of the shaded alleyways.

Split is the first city where I actually felt lost. The narrow alleys and tall walls really make you feel like you are walking through a maze. There is even a street so narrow only one person can pass at a time.

We admired the architecture.

We discovered one of the few vegan-friendly resturaunts in Split, Pandora’s Green Box.

Our time in Croatia came to an end and we were off to the airport…in an Uber with no air conditioning 🙄

So we cranked the windows down and the salty sea breeze blew fiercely throughout the car along with my hair flying all around my face. We left Croatia with some very happy memories and like our last two vacations, we hope to come back again soon.

Friday

Saturday

Sunday

Monday

Week 86: Mein Land Dein Land

Week 83: Sicily and Malta