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I said my good-byes to Margie, Joe, and Elvis. From the airport I caught a bus to Split then a taxi to the major bus depot. There I caught a bus to Dubrovnik, a ride that lasted four hours. I was sitting next to the window looking over the edge of cliffs at pine-covered islands in a crystal blue sea. The bus made stops at several towns along the way. At one point we passed through the ten-mile coastline of Bosnia and stopped for a routine border check. A young armed soldier boarded the bus to check out the passengers. He asked to see my passport and eyed me curiously as he handed it back. We made another stop in Bosnia, this time at a roadside truck stop grocery store. All the passengers quickly made a bee-line to the store where they stocked up on duty-free cigarettes (fifty cents a pack) and assorted sundries. Then back on the bus to Dubrovnik. When we reached the depot I grabbed a taxi and said "Excelsior Hotel". Ah, the lap of luxury. The Excelsior is a five-star hotel right on the water. I paid for two nights (about $58 per night) and settled in.
Dubrovnik, a city of 50,000, is the crown jewel of the Adriatic coast. About 5000 inhabitants live in Old Town, a medieval walled city that is almost totally as original as when it was built in the thirteen century. Dubrovnik has a rich history. It was an independent republic up until the 1800's and had a sophisticated limited government. It excelled in diplomacy and at one time rivaled Venice as a cultural and trading center. I walked a quarter mile from my hotel and entered the south gate of Old Town and was transported to the middle ages. I walked through a broad square with a fountain and up Strudun, the main street lined with sidewalk cafes and shops. The street and all structures are built of time-worn stone. In both directions are corridors leading to more shops, houses, and mazes of more narrow corridors winding up stairs and through courtyards. Old Dubrovnik is no doubt one of the most amazing places on earth. After several hours of exploring I had a seafood dinner at one of the cafes. It was the best I'd ever had and was probably caught fresh that afternoon!
Day 8, Monday, April 3
That morning I rented a motor scooter. It cost $45 for two days and the guy even delivered it to me at the hotel. I parked it outside the north gate to the old city and entered. For 10kn ($1.25) you are allowed to walk the circumference of the walls which are still completely intact after many centuries. After climbing many stairs I reached the top and walked counterclockwise. I was now above the roofs of the city. Just five years ago the Serbs were lobbing artillery shells into Old Dubrovnik killing people and destroying roofs, most which were now replaced with new red tile. Several dwellings had been totally destroyed.
Waves pounded against the rocks as I looked down on the Adriatic, now gray under overcast sky. One can imagine the impenetrable 12-foot thick walls staving off canon fire from Venetian warships six hundred years ago. The only conqueror to penetrate the city was the sneaky Napoleon who used the "I come in peace" tactics to enter the city then promptly took over. There are several towers, bastions, and fortresses along the walls, some still containing cannons. There were also many staircases and I was huffing and puffing by the time I reached the point where I had started.
I spent the rest of the day exploring "New" Dubrovnik on the scooter. The city is located on a peninsula and is pretty easy to get around in. During the course of the two days I probably traveled every road at least twice. One dead-end road led to an abandoned luxury hotel. It was either shelled by the Serbs or the foreign owners "got out of Dodge" when trouble started. The tennis courts were still being used by the locals and judging by the beer bottles the beach was being used by the local teenagers. It started to rain that evening and I was sopping wet by the time I rode the scooter to the hotel.
Day 9, Tuesday, April 4
I visited the monasteries and beautiful cathedrals in Old Town. Catholicism plays a big part in this country and judging by the people's moral integrity it seems to be doing its job. Most encounters as you walk down the street are met with "dobre dan" (good day) or "dobre noche" (good evening). Everybody is extremely polite and helpful when you ask for assistance and crime is almost unheard of. I know it is impossible to judge a country based on a one-week experience but here are some other facts and observations about Croatia.
Croatia's population is 4.5 million people. It has a land and coastal mass about size of the state of Maine. (This includes 1200 islands off its coast, 66 of which are inhabited.) Dalmatia (the coastal region) is incredibly beautiful with its blue waters, green islands, and picturesque towns.
Croatia is a democracy and has an elaborate constitution claiming that power stems from the people (not unlike the U.S.). I presume they are copying much about the American political system in that they have the same separation of powers in three separate branches of government. Representatives come from the separate twenty counties. There is a flat income tax rate of 22% for everyone. I was informed that everyone cheats on their taxes, which shows a healthy dislike for government. However, the government remedies this by charging an additional 22% sales tax that is built into the price of merchandise. (The dollar still goes a long way.) Croatia just initiated a small land tax. One person told me he pays about $50.00 a year on his house.
Croatia is developing economically through the free market. Some U.S. companies are there but for the most part they are doing it on their own. The government wants to join the European Union and revert to the Eurodollar next year when everybody else does. However they are not economically developed enough and their membership in the Union has been declined. If you wish to visit Croatia (and I highly recommend it) I suggest you do it within the next few years while the exchange rate is favorable.
Croatians are very nationalistic and hate the Serbs, expelling most of them five years ago. This is due to the war ten years ago leading to the Croatian independence and to more recent Serbian aggressions such as the shelling of Dubrovnik. They like Bill Clinton (because he bombed Serbia) and Americans in general. English is mandatory in the public schools and many people speak it.
Most stores are open from 8 am-noon then close for four hours. They then reopen at 4 pm and stay open until 8. (This was also true for Italy and Spain.) This is because everyone takes refuge from the afternoon heat of the summer months, the proverbial "siesta". They just continue the practice all year round. (I don't think this makes a lot of sense. Besides the inconvenience people have to go and return from work twice a day.)
In the U.S. we have the work ethic. In Croatia they have the avoid-work ethic. My nephew says it is almost impossible to get something repaired. Except for the tourist industry they have not yet developed a "service" economy. Entertainment is meager. There is hardly any live music and television is limited. American movies are played in English with Croatian sub-titles. (I saw Fight Club in Dubrovnik.)
Except for an occasional tourist I did not see one overweight person. (I was the fattest person in the country!) This is not for lack of food. It is probably partially genetic but also the food does not have the additives that ours does. Also fast food is not readily available. The people are "good-looking". (Because I noticed the female gender I must say, on the whole, that the women are gorgeous--slender with straight brown hair and brown eyes.)
Drinking is very popular and may be a social problem--I don't know. Teenagers can drink legally and other than a few drunks I saw staggering in the city most people seem to be under control. The drunk driving limit is 2.0 but hardly anyone gets ticketed--they are just told to go home. You hardly ever see the police and I am told that no-one pays their traffic fines.
Men-women relationships seem very normal and I did not see signs of animosity. Romance was quite evident as I saw many young couples strolling in the cities and going to the clubs. During the week I was there I did not see one instance of sexual harassment and I did not hear any "hey-baby" remarks. I did notice that the women seemed more forward that the men.
There is no political correctness in Croatia because there is not an abundance of idle intellectuals. Most people smoke and no-one seems to care. The government allows the ownership of guns and most people have them. (You never know when those pesky Serbs might invade!) Because the majority are catholic abortion is illegal. There are no race problems in Croatia because everyone is of one race. (Gypsies are not looked on too kindly because they are associated with begging, however they are not harassed.) The Croatian constitution does guarantee equal rights under the law for all people regardless of race or religion.
I bought a ferry ticket to Bari, Italy. My ferry was to leave at 11 pm. The man who rented the scooter gave me ride to the ferry terminal. I was there two hours early so I took out my mandolin and took advantage of the great acoustics of the empty building. A young man with a backpack came in and introduced himself as Miguel from Chile. He been staying at the Dubrovnik youth hostel and had been traveling around eastern Europe for the past two months. We quickly hit it off.
The ferry was a humongous ship, not the flat-bottom variety we have in the Puget Sound. It was raining when we left Dubrovnik harbor and when we hit the open Adriatic Sea the ship started pitching back and forth. That was it for me! I immediately got queasy and laid down on some passenger seats. Miguel opened a window for me and it was all I could do to keep from throwing up during the 9-hour ferry ride from hell. I faded in and out of half-sleep and dizziness as the ship would occasionally hit a big wave and jerk me awake.
(click) ITALY