Our trip to Croatia began with an overnight flight on Air Serbia from JFK to Belgrade, Serbia and continuing on to Tivat, Montenegro where we met our new travel friends with Gate 1 Tours. Our guide, Duka, greeted us and soon we were driving along the coast of Montenegro, followed by a ferry ride across to Croatia. The views were stunning, lovely limestone block houses with red tile roofs and the sky just partly cloudy. It was the beginning of a wonderful holiday I'd booked months before we ever thought of doing our new house-pet sitting.
Our traveling ride for the next 8 days was this very comfortable bus; PK felt right at home since its similar in size to our RV.
While riding the two hours to Dubrovnik it was time to learn about the countries we were visiting and add a few local words to our vocabulary. This was an easy one, and used often.
The closer we got to Dubrovnik the bluer the sky became.
We arrived at our Lacroma Hotel a few miles west of Dubrovnik and though we'd been up over 36 hours we knew better than to give into sleep. So, we instead we took a long walk around this beautiful property and found a pizza and beer place close to the sea. Sunset was only an hour later and we watched from one of the nearby beaches. Most of the hotels in the area were closed for the season which made it very quiet.
Looking across the river was this eye catching bridge and even some old ruins along our walk. That evening was the welcome dinner for all of us and a chance to meet our fellow travelers. We were a group of 32 traveling from all over the states and Canada with a fantastic itinerary planned for our next week. We had three nights at this lovely resort, perfect way to start our tour.
Saturday was spent walking and experiencing the beauty of Dubrovnik. We started at a hilltop over look to enjoy the view, such an amazing walled city! As a UNESCO World Heritage site some ruins date back to the 8th century though most of the existing Old Town is from the 12th century.
The view from the city across to Saint Lawrence Fortress, aka "Dubrovnik's Gibraltar", a formidable fort in every way.
The city is remarkable and so filled with history everywhere. We walked small alleyways and the broad main streets before walking the 800 year old city walls for about two hours. We couldn't believe the gorgeous day we had, especially after learning that the previous week had been cold with heavy rain most days. This was the end of November, after all.
The city is also a sought after wedding location, we saw two beautiful brides that day alone.
The steep alleys are so inviting with little cafes and restaurants tucked in along.
One of the traditional embroidery crafts from the region are displayed on the entry to this shop.
The clock tower anchors one end of the main streets.
Saturday morning cafe time
How lucky to be at the right spot as this group of young traditional dancers and musicians performed in the square.
Everywhere we looked the architecture and history amazed us.
The small marina offers boat rides to nearby islands.
Our views from walking the ramparts
I loved this small orchard and vineyard, I think it was kept by a Franciscan Monastery. Further on got we got this photo with the fortress in the background.
My favorite photo of them all...
Though it wasn't a hot day as happens in summer months, we did get thirsty walking the ramparts and stopped along the way for fresh squeezed pomegranate juice and a view.
More walking....
more looking,
more laughing,
and most of all wondering how such a beautiful walled city was first built.
One thing we noticed right away in the Old City were the large number of cats everywhere. But, as our local guide told us...they love their cats! They are busy keeping rodents out and all seem well cared for and fed.
The late afternoon light and fewer tourists gave a perfect photo of the draw bridge and city gate
After lunch and stopping at a few shops we left the Old Town and walked to the fortress nearby but by the time we'd climbed to the entrance it was just closing. So disappointed.
But we did get some more beautiful views looking towards the city and the Adriatic.
Bride number 2
We returned to the hotel on the local bus just in time for sunset number two with this photo of the hotel's infinity pool.
When we ended our day, my steps app recorded we had climber 32 floors! We'd sleep well that night!
Our trip to Croatia began with an overnight flight on Air Serbia from JFK to Belgrade, Serbia and continuing on to Tivat, Montenegro where we met our new travel friends with Gate 1 Tours. Our guide, Duka, greeted us and soon we were driving along the coast of Montenegro, followed by a ferry ride across to Croatia. The views were stunning, lovely limestone block houses with red tile roofs and the sky just partly cloudy. It was the beginning of a wonderful holiday I'd booked months before we ever thought of doing our new house-pet sitting. 
We arrived at our Lacroma Hotel a few miles west of Dubrovnik and though we'd been up over 36 hours we knew better than to give into sleep. So, we instead we took a long walk around this beautiful property and found a pizza and beer place close to the sea. Sunset was only an hour later and we watched from one of the nearby beaches. Most of the hotels in the area were closed for the season which made it very quiet.
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