Dubrovnik in the Rain – and Sun

It’s raining today, Sunday, in Dubrovnik. It may rain a lot this week. Two days ago – on Friday – we had a tremendous rainstorm, with incredibly heavy rain. It cleared in the late afternoon and we went exploring, walking through some areas we hadn’t yet visited. Later, the evening was spectacular: clear, with a tremendous light show, massive lightning far off on the horizon, with no noise (heat lightning, I think it’s called). We sat on our terrace and just stared at the sky!

Then yesterday, Saturday, we had the most incredibly beautiful, sunny day. Like October days on California’s Central Coast: bright, clear skies, warm in the sun and cool in the shade, with the ocean blue and sparkling.

We followed our steps from the day before, walking away from the Old Town and deeper into the peninsula called Lapad. After about 25 minutes of walking along moderately busy streets, past residences and small businesses, we came to the Cove, a long narrow bay filled with the blue water of the Adriatic.

A huge tour ship leaves the port

Pine tress on sharp rocks jutting from aqua water: must be the Mediterranean!

This is the area of massive tourist hotels, some built quite recently. But at this time of the year, at least, it is far less “touristed” than the Old Town, which swarms with sightseers day and night. We strolled on the path that followed the coast; looking past the railing, we could see the waters surging gently against the rocks not far below. The railing was interrupted periodically by concrete steps leading down to the water; while the rocks were jagged and dangerous, concrete had been poured to provide sunbathing areas, and access to the water. Each of these areas was small, and they were naturally isolated, one from the other, by rocks and trees and the curve of the shoreline. This late in the season they were mostly deserted, although there were a few sun bathers stretched out on towels. Quite pleasant (if you consider lying on concrete pleasant!).

Along the way there were no end of tourist “services’: bars and cafes, restaurants and hotels. The setting was spectacular, and after a bit we stopped at the Cave Bar More (associated with the Hotel More). And yes, it really was in a cave, although what drew us there was the terrace, and the little private nooks. We selected one and were glad for a rest, looking down at the water lapping at the rocks, and across the bay to the steep, tree-covered slopes; shade cloth stretched overhead protected us from the bright afternoon sun.

Our little "nook" at the Cave Bar

Our view across the bay -- I'm in no hurry to leave!

We really should have had someone take a photo of us both...

We stayed quite a while, as people in European cafes tend to do, watching the boats come and go and listening to the waves. Oh, and sipping our Cappuccinos (Cappuccini?), the best we’d had since leaving France (really!). And, like all the cafes and restaurants this side of the peninsula, cheaper than in the Old Town.

Before we left we visited the bar itself and, guess what, it really is a cave! Carved out of the rock below the hotel, complete with stalactites and –mites. Fantastic! Our day was getting better and better…

So THAT's why they call it the Cave Bar!

We continued our walk until we reached the tip of the peninsula. This area is dominated by large resort hotels. The path finally ended at the massive President Hotel. We knew we could catch a city bus in front of this hotel (our one foray on the bus took us down here), but the day was too lovely for riding. Instead we hiked back along the path, this time keeping the sea on our right.

Luxury hotel terrace: nice view!

The better hotels have pools, in case you don't like climbing on rocks! Looking north, up the coast

A private villa on the bay

Eventually we made it back to our own neighborhood, after stopping for an early dinner at one of the many fine cafes and restaurants we found in Lapad (again, noticeably less pricy than the Old City!). The sun was low, it was the Golden Hour (aka The Pink Moment), with the skies turning golden and the light soft. And as we walked the now-familiar streets, we kept finding new vistas we had not seen before: openings between buildings and along alleys showing the tree-covered hills to the sea, and the islands to the south.

Looking south; the Old Town is hidden behind those hills

Paula confers with Stanka, our Croatian neighbor

Our neighbor, David; that's our door there, just on the right foreground

Home Sweet Home! (for this month...)

And, finally, the view from our own terrace, familiar now and always appreciated.

Our view over Dubrovnik and the surrounding hills. Sunset.

So rain today? That’s ok. After a day like yesterday? Totally worth it!

Coming up: Probably something about the Old City, although tomorrow we leave for a week in a city up the coast called Split (which calls for some remark about Splitsville, but I'll leave that up to you...)