Split to Dubrovnik, the Ston wall and wine, oyster and mussel tastings

The final days of the tour were jam- packed with fantastic places to visit, incredible scenery and delicious tastings of wine, seafood and local meats and cheeses. Add to that some perfect weather and good company and you can't go wrong.

The journey from Split to Dubrovnik, 280 km on great roads, was stunning and full of variety, starting with views of Croatia's highest peaks, over 1750 metres, and then descending into one of the greenest, lushest and most fertile areas of the country.

Currently, although the roads are magnificent almost everywhere, to get to Dubrovnik it is necessary to cross the border into Bosnia Herzegovina and drive around the coast for 30 kilometres. The Chinese are apparently funding a new bridge across the narrowest part of the inlet so that in years to come, there will be no need to pass into another country. This will mean certain bankruptcy for the many restaurants and hotels in BH. It is a very beautiful area so perhaps visitors will still go there, attracted by cheaper prices. ( you can see the cranes in the far left corner, working on the bridge)

Our midday visit was at a tiny, but very attractive winery in the little village of Ston. Here we had a wonderful introduction to the famous 'Plavac Mali' wine, white and two reds. They were all excellent, and the cute waiter/owner was most generous with portions. With each wine, we had a suitable platter of fresh local produce. With the white, oysters, and with the reds, first prosciutto and cheese, and then mussels. I did not think I would ever eat oysters or mussels, but I did, and enjoyed them! They had only been harvested two hours before 

Zoran had promised us a surprise, and it certainly was, when he arrived in the cellar playing an accordion and together with the winemaker entertained us with some lovely Croatian songs. Great atmosphere!

As with most organised trips, time is usually something one has very little of as the schedule is pretty tight. Luckily, today was much more relaxed and there was no rush to leave the winery, and we also got the chance to stop for half an hour at the Ston Walls, at my request. 

These incredible walls were built in the fourteenth century and at 7 kilometres long, are the second longest defensive walls in the World, after The Great Wall of China. It was really hot and we had had a lot to eat and drink, and yet I felt driven to at least walk up the first part of the wall, to the flag.

Actually, I felt pretty proud of myself for doing that much in a short time, and thrilled to get this spectacular view over the valley and salt fields. It was absolutely stunning. A real must to visit!

Then, it was only fifty kms to Dubrovnik, and the trip was gorgeous, with a brilliant combination of mountains and coastline. The water was such a marvelous colour, and so clear!

The lighting on the calm, blue Adriatic was sensational. It reminded me so much of the Sounds.

Our hotel was luxurious, and although our rooms looked out over bushes and garden, in just a few minutes we were on the beach looking towards the very elegant new Dubrovnik suspension bridge.

Our tour to Dubrovnik started at Pile Gate. A couple of our group were 'lucky' to be chosen by a couple of the hundreds of pigeons, which seemed to be lined up, people watching and picking out the people to target I guess! And they certainly had a vast number to choose from!

The tour guide was unfortunately not great, so after the 90 minute tour, Janey and I enjoyed Dubrovnik much more, exploring the cobbled streets and little alleys, and looking around the Old Port area. It is a vibrant place, colourful and teeming with activity.

We also visited the Natural History Museum, as it was on our special Dubrovnik card. There were some rather strange things on the walls, which neither of us could quite see the significance of, but found very amusing.

Mistakes in spelling were also pretty amusing too

It was getting really hot outside, so we did head into some places of interest to get out of the sun. The Rector's Palace was quite interesting, particularly this 'hand' rail.


As the cruise ship visitors returned to the ships for lunch and other tourists also ate, we headed up to the City Walls in the midday sun - crazy really! Still, it was worth it because they were relatively uncrowded. Being narrow and up to 25 metres high in places,  I would not have coped with bustling crowds there. The views were sensational, totally breathtaking. The sea of red rooves, the puffy white clouds and the sea of blue were just perfect together.

This next shot was taken from Minceta, the largest of the round towers. It gave a great view over the walls, about 2 km of them. I was really pleased I managed them. Being one way, once you are on them , you can't opt out till the middle, where we opted to continue.


The view of the car parks and traffic jams made it clear that you would certainly be ill- advised to visit in high season!

Just near Minceta tower, we had this stunning view of the fort, which we visited later on. The basketball court set into the walls was pretty impressive too.

Unbelievably, tucked into a corner of the tower, were a family of the cutest wee kittens. How I would love to have taken them home. I even gave them the last of my water, very precious on such a hot day, but They didn't drink it, just played with it! There are stray cats everywhere, but it seems they are fed well by locals and tourists. One girl beside me had a pocket of cat biscuits with her😀

Here is the main street which had been packed earlier on. Apparently, there are now 600 ships visiting the city each year, so the street is a street of cafes, ATMs and souvenir shops. There used to be real shops. Of course, from October tonApril, it is pretty empty and many places closed. Typical for so many tourist destinations, sadly.

From the continuation of the walls, we had a fabulous view of the fort and coastline. The turquoise waters were dotted with red and yellow canoes. It was so pretty.

Despite the turmoil, this cat was happy to adorn the shop window ledge. I dont think a single passerby was interested in the goods being sold there!

After a break from the sun and steps, Janey and I headed up yet more steps to the fort. Actually one leg gave way going up there, obviously indicating it was time for me to stop afterwards.

It was quite a climb after having already been around the City Walls. The steps were narrower and steeper, making it much harder work to get up, but the fabulous views from the top made every step totally worth it. How spectacular is this? The island in the distance is Lokrum, which I will visit before I leave. The colours in this photo are absolutely for real!

Our final dinner was at the hotel. I had a long swim after we got back and before the meal. The outlook from the pools is gorgeous.

It was quite sad to say 'farewell' to everyone. We had all got on really well and enjoyed one another's company. I would tour again probably, but with no more than we had, 22. It was a perfect number. A few were missing from this photo.


The meal was a buffet, delicious of course. We were serenaded by local singers, but unfortunately we were not outside enjoying the views, which was the only disappointing thing for me. Maybe for some it would have been too cool.
Anyway, after dinner I went out to the pool, I had swum in earlier, to watch the sun setting  What a grand finale!