Croatia and a couple of Balkans, Day 2, a morning walking in Dubrovnik

The second day of our holiday we had intended to spend on the island nature reserve of Mljet. However the ferries had stopped doing day trips and it was not going to be possible to get back. So we changed our plans and thought we might go to Lockrum, a small island only 10 minutes ferry drive from the Old Port in Dubrovnik.
We caught the bus to the Pile Gate of the old town, stopping to admire the view of the fort and city walls from outside the gate.

Once in the city we stopped at a couple of churches to look at the interiors. First St Saviours where a tour guide was entertaining his customers with a recital on the piano, and then the church attached to the Franciscan Monastery, which was a very grand affair with a relief of the Pieta over the front door.

We continued our walk down the Stadun to Luza Square at the far end, taking in the views down the side streets.

In the square, by the Rector's Palace with it's elaborately carved capitols, sits the statue of Marin Drzic, a poet and playwright living just before Shakespeare. It is lucky to sit in his lap and rub his nose (we didn't try it ourselves).

Finally we had a look round the Cathedral, a light and airy building with a splendid domed roof. It was devastated by an earthquake in 1667 and this baroque church is the replacement for the earlier 12th century one. There were lots of cats in Croatia and people often left food out for the feral ones.

 

Finally we walked down to the Old Port to buy tickets for the ride over to Lockrum. The ferry ran every half hour so we walked out of the southern gate of the city and bought some pizza and a cheese pastry for our lunch on the island. We then spent some time watching a man paddle his dog over from a small yacht so that the dog could relieve itself on the shore!

Then it was time for the short trip across to Lockrum, al of which will be revealed in the next blog.