So I am actually in Berlin (after a speedy visit to Italy) but I will backtrack a bit to catch up! After leaving Hvar we had an epic bus trip to Dubrovnik (via Bosnia) and arrived at the bus station half-dead. Luckily the crazy guy from the hostel picked us up in his car, and managed to squish all 6 of us (including him), plus 7 suitcases into a 5-seater. It was like a game of tetris.
It was close to midnight by the time we got to the hostel, which wasn’t in the old town but in Lapad, a cool area near Copacabana Beach and we met Mrs. Bergovic who runs the place with her husband. She gave us all apple juice and told us stories, which was pretty funny except for the fact that we were all falling asleep.
Nevertheless we forced ourselves to get up early, and had a delicious pancake and ice cream breakfast (so healthy). They also had, uh, Viagra flavoured ice cream, which was bright blue. Only for the brave I guess…
We got on the bus to the old town, which was already packed with tourists from the cruise ships, and decided to go straight to Lokrum, an island just off from the old town. The water was amazing and we went on a bit of a bushwalk before finding a place to swim. Lokrum is also home to a nudist beach, but we were advised against it.
After catching the ferry back to town we had an incredible seafood lunch by the port.
After lunch Gabi and I decided to go and check out the Synagogue, which was tiny. I don’t actually think it is in use anymore, as the community was fairly small before the war and practically non-existent now.
From there we went to an amazing exhibition at a gallery called War Photo Limited. I learnt about the conflicts between Serbia and Croatia, as well as in Bosnia and Herzegova and also Chechnya. They also had a fascinating exhibition called ‘Eighteen’ by a Jewish Israeli photographer. It was a collection of photos of 18 year-old non-Jewish Israelis, with their story written beside each photo and it was interesting to see how some were so positive about the future of Israel, and some very negative given the discrimination they face.
We spent a few hours at the gallery, and managed to avoid some of the heat, before starting the walk around the old city walls. It took us 2 hours to go all the way around and the views were stunning.
After a late dinner (of cevapi sausages!!) we walked back to Lapad and packed because the next morning we said goodbye to Amy, Gabi and Phoebe and had a painful 11-hour bus ride from Dubrovnik to Zagreb. We arrived in the evening, spent one night at a hostel near the station and then prepared ourselves for yet another day of intensive travels. To be continued...
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