Dubrovnik, Croatia

   As we sail further into the Mediterranean our Internet get less frequent, so I apologize for the delay of this post! While sailing between Italy and Greece we had classes for two days. We almost are at our halfway point for the Summer Voyage. The official day that marks halfway through our voyage conveniently lands on July 18th, my 21st birthday!! I will be spending my 21st in Greece- I can't really complain about my life right now! The only thing that would make it better is if my friends and family were with me, but I will celebrate with them when I return to the States. 

            Here's a little bit about beautiful Croatia. We spent four days on the southern peninsula of Croatia; we were separated from the main land of Croatia by Bosnia. Croatia had crystal clear oceans and a beautiful city center. We would walk for nearly an hour into the Old Town, the main part of Dubrovnik that is completely surrounded by massive walls. Within the city walls the streets were made of marble and were so polished that they sparkled. Old Town was built on a hillside and stretched to the water. It is very touristy now, similar to Venice, so it was not my favorite area- but I did appreciate its beauty. Before going on about the activities we did, I want to give you a quick insight into Croatia's history that I learned from Robert Kaplan’s Balkan Ghosts: A Journey Through History and Rick Steves’ Mediterranean Cruise Ports. Some of you may remember, but in 1991 Croatia was part of an awful and destructive War of Independence against Yugoslavia. The Croats fought to protect the land of Dubrovnik for eight straight months with hunting riffles and food that was smuggled up the steep hills, into the protection of the city walls. Kaplan said, “In late 1991, a time when fighting raged in Croatia while Bosnia remained strangely quiet, Croats and Serbs alike had no illusion about the tragedy that lay ahead. Why was there no fighting in Bosnia? went the joke. Because Bosnia had advanced directly to the finals” (22.) The general area of Yugoslavia has history that is deeply stained with blood and violence. As we walked through the beautiful polished streets of Old City it was easy to forget about the violence that happened only 21 years ago, but then I would notice the parts of the wall that were chipped from the bombs or guns. Dubrovnik tries to put the focus on their old charming history that is romantic and beautiful. The heartbreaking recent past is not emphasized when you are within the Old City walls, but there is a new museum about the war that I did not have time to see. I am incredibly grateful for my Travel Writing and Global Studies classes because through those classes I learned of the ancient and recent history of Croatia/Yugoslavia before entering the port. It is nice to appreciate a city for what it is, but I find it fascinating to experience a city through its historical and present situation.

            Enough about that, here is what I did. On the first day my friends Katie, Hope (both are students at the University of Virginia), Alyssa (goes to a small school in Virginia), Kaitlin and I got off the ship as early as we could. We walked along the port until we reached the docking area for the yachts and fishing boats. Along this dock were old Croatian captains who were trying to have us go on their boat for a day trip to the Elaphite Islands. We had done some research, exchanged our dollars for kunas ($1=6 Kunas) and found the best deal. For 200 kunas each we got to go on a yacht to three of the Elaphite Islands and spend time on the beautiful beaches. At first we were hesitant on the price, but we had to remind ourselves to convert the kunas to dollars and once converted the price seemed fair. We got a table on the shaded open porch and ate breakfast on our way to the first island. As we pulled out of the port we passed beautiful old houses with red terracotta roofs and white walls (this style is mandatory for the city we were in); we also passed numerous "pirate" boats and cruises headed to various islands. Croatia has over 1,000 islands, so the port was busy.

All three islands were gorgeous. The water was warmer than the beaches in Maui's and was clearer than the other countries we've been to. The Oregon coast has given me low and cold expectations for what counts as a "beach," so the areas we go to constantly blow me away. The fact that you can swim in the ocean and not get hypothermia is always exciting to me, so I spent most of my time just floating. The one thing you did have to watch out for was the sea urchins. The purple sea creatures with long, sharp spines were stepped on by multiple students during our stay in Croatia. I always made sure to do a quick sea-urchin-scan before plunging into the refreshing water. I think I forgot to mention this- but it was over 100 degrees each day, so jumping into the ocean was more of a necessity than an option!! I don't know how I will survive Greece where it is expected to be 110 degrees!! I guess time will tell...

            The next day we walked to Old Town and got croissants and fresh orange juice on the steep back streets. The street was about six feet wide, but the cafe managed to fit tables and chairs into the tiny walkways. The sight of the steep, never-ending stairs built into the hills amused me. As I said before, the city is built on a hill, so in order to reach your neighbors three blocks away you had to climb three steep sets of stairs. The restaurants and cafes that were in the hilled section put cushions scattered on the steps for their customers to sit on. Who needs chairs when you can sit on the sidewalk stairs? We explored the city, enjoying the old shops, farmers markets and abundance of lavender products! After a day in the city we went back and cooled off on the ship. A few hours later we returned to Old Town for the Summer Festival of Dubrovnik's Opening Night. The Summer Festival marks the beginning of summer for the city and the festival lasts 45 days. It was spectacular! We ran into a friend from the ship whose dad was visiting from Germany and his dad bought us all tickets to the festival. We sat on a stone beach and watched the fireworks explode over the port and city walls. The explosions would echo off of the ancient walls and the sound bounced around. It reminded me so closely of the Fourth of July fireworks on Lake Oswego. It made me a little homesick, but grateful to have my own belated Fourth of July celebration.

            On day three we took a gondola up to a lookout that provided a remarkable view of the city walls and the neighboring islands. We took our time admiring all of the different views and notices that this lush city backs against a dry desert, that resembled Eastern Oregon's desert. Seeing the environmental differences just kilometers apart was pretty interesting. We had brunch overlooking the city and enjoyed a wonderful breeze, that cooled the area down to 90 degrees, before heading back down into the hot city. We wandered through the ancient streets until we found Buza, a cafe along the sea with a prime view of cliff jumpers. We did not jump, but it was fun seeing the few brave souls who attempted the long dive! That night we met up with some more friends and went to Restaurant Dubrovnika, famous in the area. It was a relaxing evening with great friends and an amazing view. The fourth day was short and we spent a little time in the city. I would love to go back to Croatia and go to the northern part of the country or sail around the islands.

            This port was different than the rest we’ve been to because the city was much smaller. We ran into our peers more often, but it was nice to see familiar faces. Now that we are nearly halfway done I can say that time has flown by. Time moves so quickly when we are at ports, but seems to crawl by while we are at sea. Classes keep me busy while we sail, but allow me to truly appreciate the sites we are seeing. I am looking forward to going back to Athens; I am curious about the relationship that the citizens will have with the government when we arrive. Last year the protestors burnt down a hotel while we were there and this year they still are protesting. I wrote my application letter for SAS about my 2011 experience in Greece and am eager to reflect on the changes, or lack there of, as I return. From what I've learned in classes and the news, Greece is a very corrupt country. When it comes to taxes there apparently is an unspoken 4:4:2 rule. 40% of your taxes go to the tax accountant, 40% is kept by the individual and 20% is given to the government for taxes. The country relies heavily on bribes and under-the-table transactions. In the richest neighborhood swimming pools are heavily taxed. Only 60 of the 500 houses reported having pools, so the government hired helicopters to fly over the neighborhood and count the unreported pools. After this happened the residences started buying disguised swimming pool covers that make you pool look like a tennis court or garden. This is only one example of the mindset the people have. It is sad reading of the economic crisis they are in, but it will be interesting to experience it first hand for a second time. I'll be sure to give you a report.

Love you all!!

Tori