Day 2:
We made it into Dubrovnik last night after about 17 hours of travel. We were greeted by our hostess Marija, who walked us from Pile Gate (the entrance to a castle wall, no big deal) to our attic-turned-loft. Along the way, she asked where we were from. Marisa said Oregon, and I began to explain where in the US it was located. Marija waited for me to finish describing its location as the “state directly above *had motion for above* California" before telling me she knew exactly where it was. I haven’t said a word since.
Because of the conversion, our apartment is funky, with really low, sloping ceilings in several rooms. The pros are that it is located directly in Old Town, has a beautiful view of the sea and has a five-star AIrbnb rating. The con is the shower:
Sup?
We both got a little snooze in on the plane, so we decided to have a nightcap at a bar 100 meters from our apartment. I’ll get a pic of it tomorrow, but it’s a (literal) hole-in-the-wall that is situated on the rocky coastline and overlooks the ocean. We each had a beer, and as is customary, we both agreed that it was the best beer we had ever had because any local beer in its native country is the best beer in the world. At the base of the bar is one of dozens of ladders leading to the Adriatic Sea, serving as an entry point for certain former high school swimmers to show off for the multinational tourists.
After our drinks, we grabbed a late-night snack before trying to navigate home. We got lost several times before a drunk local pointed us in the right direction by pissing on the stone wall in an alleyway. We knew at that moment that we had probably made a wrong turn, so hats off to you, buddy. We appreciate the tip.
Our night ended as abruptly as this section of the post, because we each took half an Ambien to mitigate jet lag.
Today, we had a quick breakfast in Old Town before getting on the 15-minute ferry to Lokrum, an island just off of Dubrovnik with ample places to swim, a beautiful view of the mainland and a small nudist beach. Hoping to see some Eastern European supermodels, we laid our towels down adjacent to this stretch of the island. Unfortunately, everyone there seemed to follow the global nude beach rules that require you to: 1) have fond memories of the 1940s, 2) not be a model and 3) make sure that everyone nearby knows that you are naked.
The view from Lokrum.
We ate some lunch, slept a bit more on the rocks, and went for a few beers on lounge chairs that we stumbled upon on the other side of the island. A man approached us with a receipt machine and billed us 50 Kunas per chair. On vacation, international currency is play money and I don’t want to do math. I hope that was a good deal for one hour of chair time.
On the way back, we stood at the front of the ferry. I took a cool video of me saying “I am the captain now” and we got a picturesque view of the city as the sun was setting. I highly recommend the Lokrum day trip for anyone visiting Dubrovnik. It’s definitely not empty, but it's a great escape from Old Town and has plenty of room to stretch out. Old Town itself is like the Times Square of Dubrovnik, with more Australians in their 20s than locals.
At the front of the ferry. Marisa didn't get sick!
The weather is supposed to get hairy over the next few days in this region, so tonight we’re going to try to eat at a restaurant with a view while it's still good. The incoming system also means that we may call an audible on our travel. There are three full days of thunderstorms currently expected to hit Valbona during our planned hiking days, and we don’t hate the rain but we just left Portland.