1/24 -2/3
Leaving Montenegro we soon arrived in Dubrovnik. The same guy that greeted us in Kotor was waiting (for us?) in the bus station and not having any better options we accepted the lift to his home near the city wall. Dubrovnik is all about the wall and what a wall it is. In all our travels through Europe we saw a lot of impressive walls, but we've yet to see one that tops Dubrovnik's. It's not just the wall itself, it's the seaside cliffs, the moat/canyon that's now a road, the red roofs and the chunky architecture that all combine to make the wall special.
The first night and day we were there the city was being buffeted by 95km/h winds so we stayed low and explored the old town. The most surprising discoveries were some hidden gardens, some explicit statues and no less than three basketball courts - two tucked away and one right by the city wall with a view. The town felt deserted and sterile, but the lack of people was probably both a blessing and a curse. It took us two days to find even a very small corner shop that sold fruit, and decent cheap food wasn't very forthcoming either. On the other hand it felt like we had the place to ourselves, and the next day we didn't have to participate in queues or the slow shuffle around the walls that we've heard some travellers complain of. In fact the weather was perfect with clear skies, warm sunshine and beautiful views over the city.
The 26th of January on the Dubrovnik city wall is also the 'official' date when I popped the question to Hozumi. The half-arsed 'let's get married before your UK tourist visa runs out!' proposal apparently doesn't count, and nor does the missed opportunity at Pamukkale when Hozumi asked me first. Of course, even the 'official' proposal lacked a ring, not for want of looking, but hey, proposing while travelling the world isn't as easy as it sounds.
On the way to Split we crossed in and out of Bosnia and Herzegovina, were met at the bus station by a very old lady who the guy in Kotor had referred us to, then had the really awkward experience of turning down the room she showed us as it lacked WiFi. She kept lowering the price and got quite convincingly upset while exclaiming how little old her had walked us all that way from the bus station.
Split's old town grew up inside the walls of the massive abandoned Roman palace that refugees from nearby Salona decided to inhabit and fortify around 640 CE. It is multi-layered, functional and thriving in a way that neither Kotor nor Dubrovnik can compare to, and much more fun to visit if not as beautiful.
While walking through the park on Marjan hill we met a bunch of rock climbers and managed to get contact details for a company called Hvar Adventures and a person named Vese who we hoped would be able to help us get climbing even during the off-season. We made contact that night, and the very next morning caught an early ferry to Hvar island to go climbing.
Vese was learning the ropes with her instructor friend Goran during a brief window of off-season free time, but they kindly allowed us to join them climbing for the day. Vese and I both achieved our first ever outdoor 5c lead climbs, though I had a scary moment perched on a narrow ledge with a fist-full of slack, trying to reach for a bolt that I had over-shot. The encouragement and advice from below was replaced by a tense, nervous silence for what seemed like an eternity until I finally got the rope through the quickdraw. The next day Goran took us out for another day of training with various belay devices. Thanks to him we can now climb independently.
We had planned to visit Plitvice national park, but we missed the bus and went to Zadar instead. Shortly afterwards temperatures across Europe plummeted, snow started falling in places it really shouldn't, like Hvar where we'd just been climbing in the sun, and with temperatures at Plitvice as low as -20C we decided to skip the park!
Heading North and inland, Zagreb was freezing cold and covered in snow. The first hostel we tried was full, the second we didn't visit because a guy at the first said they never change the sheets and the third was empty aside from a very cheerful, eccentric and English-accented girl hiding out the back.
For some macabre reason I do enjoy seeing how different cultures deal with their dead, and Zagreb's cemetery was quite impressive. Huge dramatic walls are the first thing you see. Behind them are endless graves, but far fancier than I expected, with larger-than-life stone angels, real trees, heaps of flowers, grass beds and even a mini-pyramid.
The first night and day we were there the city was being buffeted by 95km/h winds so we stayed low and explored the old town. The most surprising discoveries were some hidden gardens, some explicit statues and no less than three basketball courts - two tucked away and one right by the city wall with a view. The town felt deserted and sterile, but the lack of people was probably both a blessing and a curse. It took us two days to find even a very small corner shop that sold fruit, and decent cheap food wasn't very forthcoming either. On the other hand it felt like we had the place to ourselves, and the next day we didn't have to participate in queues or the slow shuffle around the walls that we've heard some travellers complain of. In fact the weather was perfect with clear skies, warm sunshine and beautiful views over the city.
A map of shelling damage
Interesting location for a court.
Er.
Another photo to add to my 'cannibal food' collection.
The moat/canyon/road.
On the way to Split we crossed in and out of Bosnia and Herzegovina, were met at the bus station by a very old lady who the guy in Kotor had referred us to, then had the really awkward experience of turning down the room she showed us as it lacked WiFi. She kept lowering the price and got quite convincingly upset while exclaiming how little old her had walked us all that way from the bus station.
Split's old town grew up inside the walls of the massive abandoned Roman palace that refugees from nearby Salona decided to inhabit and fortify around 640 CE. It is multi-layered, functional and thriving in a way that neither Kotor nor Dubrovnik can compare to, and much more fun to visit if not as beautiful.
Some filming underway.
While walking through the park on Marjan hill we met a bunch of rock climbers and managed to get contact details for a company called Hvar Adventures and a person named Vese who we hoped would be able to help us get climbing even during the off-season. We made contact that night, and the very next morning caught an early ferry to Hvar island to go climbing.
Vese was learning the ropes with her instructor friend Goran during a brief window of off-season free time, but they kindly allowed us to join them climbing for the day. Vese and I both achieved our first ever outdoor 5c lead climbs, though I had a scary moment perched on a narrow ledge with a fist-full of slack, trying to reach for a bolt that I had over-shot. The encouragement and advice from below was replaced by a tense, nervous silence for what seemed like an eternity until I finally got the rope through the quickdraw. The next day Goran took us out for another day of training with various belay devices. Thanks to him we can now climb independently.
Hvar is a beautiful place even if you aren't climbing.
The first day's wall. We climbed 2, 3, 4 and 13.
Gearing up with Vese and Goran.
Goran shows us the ropes. The other stuff too =P
Hozumi, you so high!
Hozumi learns to belay a lead climb.
Zadar's sea organ wasn't much to look at but the bass notes produced by the waves were pretty spooky.
Heading North and inland, Zagreb was freezing cold and covered in snow. The first hostel we tried was full, the second we didn't visit because a guy at the first said they never change the sheets and the third was empty aside from a very cheerful, eccentric and English-accented girl hiding out the back.
For some macabre reason I do enjoy seeing how different cultures deal with their dead, and Zagreb's cemetery was quite impressive. Huge dramatic walls are the first thing you see. Behind them are endless graves, but far fancier than I expected, with larger-than-life stone angels, real trees, heaps of flowers, grass beds and even a mini-pyramid.
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