Early in the morning I wait in a harbourside café in Split, having been told to go back to the ticket office at 7am to find out whether I can sail on the fast ferry to Dubrovnik or whether I will have to wait until tomorrow (which would be no hardship). I am drinking the best Americano and eating the freshest, flakiest croissant (or maybe it’s just so early I can’t tell the difference!). I am going to be a ‘dental tourist’ and have an appointment on Thursday to fix a broken tooth.
I can indeed sail on the ferry, with Rowenna – so bye bye Split and WOW they don’t call it a ‘fast ferry’ for nothing – this catamaran zooms along leaving a trail of froth in her wake. Seems a shame not to have explored more of Split while I was there, especially as the place looks gorgeous with the morning sun dripping gold over the grand buildings along the harbour side. The line of palm trees look so much bigger than any I’ve seen in Torquay. But for some reason, I had a sense of urgency – a need to get to Dubrovnik and just settle down for a few days. I read and hear excellent reports on the place – particularly ‘Old Town’ which is better known as “King’s Landing” in “Game of Thrones” nowadays (and boy, does it play on it!). Kathryn arrives on Wednesday and we will then be staying on Mljet island (or Midget island as she’s been calling it).
On arrival in Dubrovnik, the dock is full of landlords/ladies fishing for punters for their rooms/apartments. I get reeled in by Ivana, who steps in when I reject one woman for being far too expensive. Ivana agrees to €20 per night for my own room – not far from the port, on the flat (not to be underestimated – there are many, many hills in Dubrovnik, and any amount of steps), next door to a supermarket and very convenient – and I’m happy with this. Ivana is one scary landlady though: she is an ex midwife with OCD (just an observation not a professional diagnosis you understand) – widowed 30yrs ago and a single mother of one daughter who lives in Krakow (having achieved a PhD from London prior to this). Besides keeping anxiety at bay and maintaining control by cleaning constantly and chain smoking, Ivana has many cats and one old dog (who never leaves the household perimeter as far as I can make out). Ivana has had a hard life I think.
I do very little for the rest of the day, except some food shopping. Ivana rearranges my food supplies in the kitchen several times during my stay, to keep me on my toes.
I can indeed sail on the ferry, with Rowenna – so bye bye Split and WOW they don’t call it a ‘fast ferry’ for nothing – this catamaran zooms along leaving a trail of froth in her wake. Seems a shame not to have explored more of Split while I was there, especially as the place looks gorgeous with the morning sun dripping gold over the grand buildings along the harbour side. The line of palm trees look so much bigger than any I’ve seen in Torquay. But for some reason, I had a sense of urgency – a need to get to Dubrovnik and just settle down for a few days. I read and hear excellent reports on the place – particularly ‘Old Town’ which is better known as “King’s Landing” in “Game of Thrones” nowadays (and boy, does it play on it!). Kathryn arrives on Wednesday and we will then be staying on Mljet island (or Midget island as she’s been calling it).
On arrival in Dubrovnik, the dock is full of landlords/ladies fishing for punters for their rooms/apartments. I get reeled in by Ivana, who steps in when I reject one woman for being far too expensive. Ivana agrees to €20 per night for my own room – not far from the port, on the flat (not to be underestimated – there are many, many hills in Dubrovnik, and any amount of steps), next door to a supermarket and very convenient – and I’m happy with this. Ivana is one scary landlady though: she is an ex midwife with OCD (just an observation not a professional diagnosis you understand) – widowed 30yrs ago and a single mother of one daughter who lives in Krakow (having achieved a PhD from London prior to this). Besides keeping anxiety at bay and maintaining control by cleaning constantly and chain smoking, Ivana has many cats and one old dog (who never leaves the household perimeter as far as I can make out). Ivana has had a hard life I think.
I do very little for the rest of the day, except some food shopping. Ivana rearranges my food supplies in the kitchen several times during my stay, to keep me on my toes.
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