Dubrovnik

I arrived in Dubrovnik at around 8.30 pm. Luckily the hostel sent someone to pick me up at the Main Bus Station. I met a girl from Malaysia, who is living in Melbourne. She was staying at the same hostel. We talked for hours sharing our travel experiences with one another.

It was a very hot day in Dubrovnik. As I head to Old Town, I met a nice couple from Italy. We were talking about the signs in the city. Directions to hotels are everywhere, but there is no direction to the Old Town. Walking is not an easy task as the city is pretty hilly. Traffic is pretty bad too.

Dubrovnik joined the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1979. A feature of Dubrovnik is its city walls that run more than 3 km around the city. The Dubrovnik Castle is a fine example of architecture, with a systems of turrets and towers built to protect the city. There's a busy market square area as well as side streets and alleys to explore. Pile Gate is one of the three entrances to Old Town. Stadun or Placa is the main street by Pile Gate. The limestone-paved pedestrian street runs about 300 meters through Old Town, with souvenir shops, banks, cafes on both sides. 

Lokrum is one of the favorite excursion destinations in Dubrovnik. It takes only 10 minutes to get there from the city harbor. Lokrum special attraction is a small lake, Mrtvo More (Dead Sea), a unique lake linked to the sea, with crystal clear water. And, peacocks roam freely here as well.

I took a walk round the city wall before sunset. I would recommend that cause in the daytime it could get pretty hot here. It took me about two and a half hours. Some of the star attractions walking on the city walls that you will probably see around Old Town are: Bell Tower, Sponza Palace, Placa Stradun, Big Onofrio's Fountain, Old Port and Fort Lovrijenac. Views are spectacular on either side of the wall. 

Croatia was internationally recognized on January 15 1992 by the European Union. Its economy turned the corner in 2000 as tourism rebounded. Tourism is a notable source of income during the summer months, with over 11 million tourists in 2008. "We are busy here in the summer, but winter it's pretty much dead here. So we do other things", said a hostel owner in Spilt. I left Croatia the following day thinking maybe sometime in the near future it might be interesting to come back in the winter.