Traveling Applejax

King’s Landing . . . Er, Dubrovnik

Posted by travelingapplejax on July 9, 2015 · 3 Comments 

After some steep, heavily trafficked hills welcoming us to Croatia, we made our way to Dubrovnik.

It’s a truly beautiful city. The newer houses line the sides of the cliffs, while Stari Grad (Old Town) sits majestically next to the azure waters. High city walls separate the two.

Such gorgeous views! The part that juts out is all Dubrovnik’s Stari Grad. You can see the high walls surrounding it.

I hadn’t known it before, but Dubrovnik is where the King’s Landing scenes from Game of Thrones are filmed. It’s really the perfect set for medieval castle scenes. I’m sure it’s used in tons of movies.

The sea walls are not as thick or as high as those separating the cit from the mainland, but they’re still impressive!

Stari Grad is full of narrow little streets with tons of steps (in the background).

I was a little overwhelmed as we entered Stari Grad for the first time since it was swarming with tourists. My biking sandals clacked and slipped along the smooth stone walkways while I reoriented myself to crowds. As in Kotor, we wandered about the narrow streets, looking at the old buildings and in the tiny shops. It was my mission for the day to find an interview-worthy top since I had a Skype appointment the next evening. Unfortunately this proved difficult in the port town. Every garment that wasn’t a souvenir t-shirt was nautical-themed with lots of navy stripes. I eventually found a passable green blouse, but it wasn’t easy.

The next day we went Scuba diving. It had been over two years since we last dove (in Barbados), so we had to take a quick refresher course and do a checkout dive with some newbies. The best part about that dive was the octopus we saw. Our dive master caught it and let us pet it. It was really soft and squishy. Before the dive he told us, “There are many octopus, but do not be afraid. They are like house cat of the sea.”

For our second dive in the afternoon, we went a little deeper with a more experienced group. It wasn’t the most pleasant dive, though. There was a strong current, and we had to struggle a bit to stay together. There was a cool little cave with a chimney we swam up through, so that part was definitely the highlight. Nevertheless, I’d have to say that my Adriatic diving experience was not among my favorites.

This is what happens to an aluminum can thrown into the sea.

When we were done with our dives, we got to hang out at the resort’s nice pool for a little bit before heading back to our AirBnB. I had my interview, but I haven’t heard anything yet. We’ll see.

The next morning we climbed and climbed and climbed up some super steep roads to exit Dubrovnik and Croatia. Although I can’t say I enjoyed the pain, the views were stunning and totally worth it. Luckily, we hadn’t seen the last of Croatia — we just had to visit Bosnia and Herzegovina before returning.