Daisy does Dubrovnik (and Split)

Daisy’s off again … Here she is:

We arrived in Dubrovnik yesterday after a nice drive down the coast. The funny thing was, we hadn’t realized that we would be driving through yet another country. There is a small strip of land cutting through to the coast that is part of Bosnia. So there you go; the list of countries grows. But there was no lengthy border checks holding up traffic in or out of Bosnia.
If Paris is the land of patisseries, and Prague, the land of amazing copper topped buildings, Dubrovnik is the land of ancient terracotta roofed buildings and stone steps. Stone steps everywhere. And orange rooftops. I think in a day you might easily walk 10 kms of steps. I don’t mind. It’s good exercise. Although not so great for the poor old dear who I saw take a tumble today. That must happen a lot.
If you had asked me yesterday, what I thought of Dubrovnik, I might have answered, “I prefer Zadar”. That would not have been because we walked about 500 steps in the first 1/2 hour of our arrival, or because we had to haul our luggage up about 55 stone steps, but because it is sooooo crowded. Man it is packed. But today, we found quieter streets exist away from the millions of posers and snappers. Everyone, including us, needs those pics and selfies.
I had been desperate to jump into the sea after all this time inland and dry. I finally got to do that this morning. The Adriatic Sea is known for being cold, but I would say, no colder than any Aussie beach that I have swum in. It was fine once you were in. It was Banje beach we went to, and a pretty scrappy beach area but sort of sandy. Tomorrow we are going to one where it’s concrete and stones.
Then Thursday we have booked ourselves in for some island hopping on a boat. Let’s see what that brings.
I forgot to mention, the climb up all those stairs with our luggage….was worth it. The apartment is more lovely, more like a house. It has great views, its own private garden, two big bedrooms with king beds, a good size living area, kitchen and good size bathroom. Very big entry…with another dozen or so steps.
I’d also like to add my thanks to ttvers who have been readings my posts and especially to those who have sent replies and messages. Thanks, Juz, Bobi, Sara, Von, Oswede, Smythe, Dave and Windsong for keeping the ttv lifeline. And anyone else out there. I hope I haven’t forgotten anyone. Special thanks to my B&B friends for keeping the torch burning brightly.

Again if anyone wants to see more pics of desserts or videos, you can check out my fb. Cheers from a full tummy traveller,
Daisy

Street view from Daisy’s place.

A million steps and counting. I will have mountain goat legs.


Just let me get into that sea.



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41 Comments

  1. Daisy – they had another B&B segment on HYBPA on Monday. It was hilarious. I did not realise Wayne Brady was in it now!

  2. Woolif and I have just hopped on a Three Island Cruise trip. If you ever book a ferry, don’t be sucked in by the “you can have shade or sun” line. It’s hot and only a few crispies want the sun. We will get enough of it on the beaches.

  3. Great to see you having an awesome time Daisy.
    I spent a day in Dubrovnik off a cruise last year, we visited the Old Town only and i really enjoyed it. The city walls walk it well worth doing, (but do dress appropriately for the heat and steps!). I left wishing wehad more time to explore more of Dubrovnik.

    • Thanks, Erin. Yes, there is a lot to see if you have time, but also you can get away from the crowds if you have time.as for dress, we like that it:s pretty casual. But if anyone is filled up that’s ok too.

      I’m loving this day island hopping.

      • Oops. I was hurrying as the ferry was parking. I didn’t check what naughty autocorrect had done.
        What I wanted to say was, “dolled up”.

  4. I was in my element today. In my bathers, boating around the islands.
    But here’s where Woolif and I have a regular tug of war. I love the beach and the sea. I just love it. And he is always saying things like, “Let’s go now”.

  5. Your trip has been absolutely amazing. Thanks for the vicarious experience!
    Beautiful view from your apartment. Good on you for doing all those steps. I don’t know if I would have made it. Probably would have had to stop a few times on the way up.

    • Thanks, Smythe. 😁 If you want more of a taste you can see video on my fb page. Grace Begley.
      Juz asked me to blog so I hope you enjoy it.

      Here is one of my top days, no my favourite..the island hopping. Woolif said, “Boat rides are boring”. 😂😂😂

  6. We’ll be hauling luggage down more than 50 stone steps in a few hours, and Woolif will have the daunting task of driving out of Dubrovnik. We will stop and get some fruit as we leave. We bought nectarines and apricots from one of the many roadside stalls and they had that, “Hello. This is a real nectarine” taste. You’ll know what I mean if you’ve ever eaten fruit that had been in storage. It’s actually delicious. Another thing we have enjoyed this trip, since leaving Paris has been the price and the taste of berries; all kinds. They are really juicy and cheap compared to the ones at home. You can even get a whole, good sized punnet of raspberries for about $4 or $5.

  7. Travelling from France, toilets in roadhouses were sooo much easier when you don’t have to pay. It’s funny how often the toilets and their systems differ, so that every time you go, it’s like, “Now what”, but it’s deffinitely easier when you don’t have to find coins and use a turnstyle, but you can just go.
    PS, don’t walk into a cafe or restaurant and use their toilet, especially in France.

  8. I apologize for errors in typing, eg “deffinitely”. I am often typing in thr car, on my phone (not driving) and the key pad is so small. Also I can’t see the screen to well due to reflection.

  9. Split :
    https://t.hmwy.io/Y45FYOLRqY

    The apartment didn’t disappoint. It’s big enough abd quiet, and I appreciate how the young owners greeted us and were anxious to please. Not sure about Split though. In one direction from us, it’s very quiet; a larbe reserve and a marina, the other side, where the old town is, seems like Croatia meets Bali. It’s a port packed with bars, restaurants, stalls, stands selling island tours and crowds. My first impression of Split is not good, but I didn’t really like Dubrovnik or Strasbourg much at first sight. Although the Croation coast is known for its beauty, there are so few places to swim and that’s disappointing. It’s not like Australia where if there’s coast, you can swim. In Croatia you have to search for it. What might have have once been great beaches have long been marinas packed with boats.

    We will head out this morning and I am sure we will find something nice to report back about Split.

  10. Most of the young girls (teens up) in Croatia have lovely figures; no fake tans or fake anything, and not tattooed. No extra weight and they easily wear their bather pants backwards with no overhanging or jelly bum. no saddle bags.
    In Czechia the teens/20s were very slight.
    They are about 3 or more decades behind us in average weight.

    • I think it is related to lifestyle and take away because the girls look like most of the teens in Australia pre Hungry Jacks. Ane the Czech girls remind me of how waifishly slim the Thai girls were 50 years ago before Western take away.

  11. Split. This morning we went to the Radisson beach club again. It’s a lot more comfy and the water is perfect there. I gave my new pink one piece a run. Also comfy.
    There was a very annoying woman there; parrot lady, who wouldn’t stop talking. First, in a parrot voice, she shared a long, loud telephone conversation with everyone within 4 or 5 metres, then she just kept saying everything that came into her head, non stop. Occasionally she stopped talking to hum or just make some other squawk. I really wanted to tell her to shut up. But I didn’t. Her poor family.
    Later a little storm came, so we caught a taxi back, freshened up, and went to the old town/port for lunch. I had forgotten my phone so no pics of parrot lady.

  12. So you can see now that people annoy me. Although I suspect the parrot lady was annoying everyone. I was annoyed again this morning when the ferry ticket said, “The boat leaves at 7.40 but you must board by 7.20. So by 7.20 Woolif and I are in front of a queue to the right of the gang plank, leaving it clear for deliveries, when a guy comes along and stands to the left, ready to hop straight on. Yes Woolif and I both told him about the obvious queue. And he said, OK, I’ll wait, and went in straight after us. Then we are sitting in our seat and see people rolling up at 7.40 , with back packs, wheelie cases etc, to get on the boat. People that’s not 30 minutes before departure.
    So you can see I am chirpy most of the time but people annoy me.
    Bobi, I thought you might enjoy this one. When you are travelling it seems like people are poos.

    • I love a good whinge about people because, you know …. people.
      I hope the meme loads because I think you’ll enjoy this one.

      • Yeas, Bobi. Just like that.
        Yesterday we saw people rushing to board their car ferry. The drawbridge had already been drawn closed, when running across the wharf comes one couple, then another. Foot passengers use the same entrance as cars. The ferry…abig one…opened the whole back gate again for them. You know boarding starts 5 hours before departure, so they don’t have much time to make it. 😛

  13. If you like to swim in Hvar, you need more than a day so you can find a beach. Like a lot, or most of Croatia, marinas hog the coast. The water is perfect though, even where there are lots of ferries, but it’s a major ferry destination.

  14. Probably my last swim in Croatia. Tomorrow we (meaning Woolif) drive the car onto the ferry and sail to Italy, then Drive to Florence.

    For anyone going to Croatia, I recommend Dobrovnik and Zadar. Split itself is faily shabby with a lot of terrible graffiti that could really only be called vandalism. If you stayed in Split I would recommend island hopping or the beach club in front of the Radisson for swimming, but the Radisson hotel itself looked rundown and grubby.

  15. I forgot to mention Lopud island, a ferry trip away from Dobrovnik. It’s really nice and , looks good for a few days to a week getaway for those loving beaches with a Croatian feel.
    That doesn’t mean a Croation gives you a feel.

  16. Yesterday we had to line our cars up at 3.00, then start driving them on at 5.00. They started to move the cars in at 5.15. We were 4th in line because I’m a get there early-bird. Would you believe it? There were several cars around and in front of us, at the head of three queues, who had not shown up, even by 5.30. What tha??? So hundreds of cars behind them couldn’t load. What’s italian, or Croation for selfish dickheads?

  17. The reviews for the SNAV crossing between Italy and Croatia include some damning comments, but we found it really nice and even quite easy in spite of dickheads who blocked the loading of cars. We had a comfortable cabin, with good beds, shower, toilet and a nice big window. The food was good too. But we chose à la carte, not buffet. So if you are ever between Italy and Croatia, I say go for it. I’m a sooky princess so if I liked it, only the King and Queen wouldn’t.
    But get a cabin. Some people just bought a chair, and some slept anywhere. Forget the buffet. The restaurant was good. In this picture, Woolif has already eaten two of my prawns and a stack of calamari. They prawns were sweet and fresh and the calamari was perfect.

  18. This was really smooth. Much better than a train trip. The beds look narrower than they actually are. So does Woolif. 😛.

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