August is Europe's busiest tourist month. Europeans living
inland often take to the seashore for vacation, and as a result the major
highway leading into Dubrovnik was bumper to bumper.
We settled into our accommodation and headed into the Old
Town for a stroll and dinner. There are no cars or trucks allowed in the Old
Town. It's a walled and gated harbour
town built in the 14th century with narrow cobblestone streets, some only
meters wide.
On the main street, the pedestrian traffic was heavy, butt
to butt. With recent stories of terrorists targeting popular tourist areas, we
felt a little vulnerable.
There is much talk of the 1990's homeland war, as they call
it. This is a picture of our hotel on fire in 1991 during one of many bombing.
It's an unsettling sight for us staying there now.
Not only our hotel, but the entire Old Town of Dubrovnik was
severely damaged by bombs.
Though today, all that was destroyed has been beautifully rebuilt
to its original glory. There are restaurants, shops of all kinds, and artisans
flourishing everywhere. The town is
bustling with tourists. Too many tourists for our liking, however, it's
wonderful to see the progress they've made during their short period of
independence.
Take a minute and come inside the gates for a look and
listen to the hustle and bustle of the old city. For the real feel, go full screen and turn up the volume.
Click this link for the next story in this series: Fun in the Sun on the Adriatic
