Dubrovnik: A Tourist in Croatia, Part 4



I can’t imagine being in Dubrovnik in the summer.  We were there when the tourist season was winding down, but it was still crowded.  Yes, Dubrovnik is very touristy and rightly so.   It’s a city with an unforgettable setting of both the land and sea:  nature, islands, imposing architecture, a medieval fortress, and the mighty walls.  It’s like a setting from a fiction novel.  Oops… that’s right, it was the setting of the popular TV series, “Game of Thrones” 5th season.  [If you were a fan of the show, you’d probably recognize the “King’s Landing”.



While it was a photographer’s dream to capture the landscape of both the land and sea from a scenic lookout, the Old Town is the heart of the city.   Accompanied by a local guide, we entered the old town and walked through the main promenade lined with palaces of Renaissance and Venetian gothic architecture from the 15th – 16th century, a reminder of its former glory.  In between, we saw very narrow stepped alleys leading to residential homes.  We visited cathedrals and museums.  And strolling the mile long walls was one of the best attractions.  It gave me a glimpse to Dubrovnik’s long history (with a guide’s narration of course):  From the ‘King’s Landing”, built in the 14th century for Dubrovnik to defend its maritime power from the Ottoman Turks to defending the city from modern artillery (1991 siege).  The new-looking red/ochre roofs may have erased traces of the '90s war.  Even if  you’re not into the history, walking the mile long walls offers an unforgettable scenery. Click the thumbnail to watch the video or click

http://youtu.be/Q8FFYYa8xfw watch it on You Tube.


While Dubrovnik is so compact, it has so much to offer that you cannot possibly explore Dubrovnik in one day.

To be continued...

NOTE:
  1. All photos/video by the author 
  2. Used the term "King's Landing" loosely, it's not the official name of the place.

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