13. Dubrovnik

We began yesterday evening by watching Stuart in his pre-dinner show and once again it was well received by all. Following dinner it was casino time and a further $10 was won, meaning that we are now $30 ahead for the trip as a whole. The chocolate extravaganza had to be visited and obviously there was just enough room in our tummies to squeeze in a few morsels of sweetie goodness.

We sailed into Dubrovnik just as the sun was rising and are berthed next to Crystal Serenity (again), and one of the remaining Costa ships. With three liners and some 6,000 visitors hitting the streets of Dubrovnik itself it was bound to be heaving, so we joined the shufflers and booked on a tour that was keeping well away from centre ville.
The first stop was the cable car station and after a short ride to the top, we were rewarded with spectacular views of the city and the myriad of islands large and small which make the sail in to port so picturesque.
Along the way to our next stop, Cavtat, our guide gave us a running commentary about Serbia and all things Slavic. He could easily have a job on stage at the Edinburgh Festival as he was funny, really funny and took a potshot at everything (in a gentle way of course), from life under Tito to the manufacture of souveniers in China.
Cavtat turned out to be a real gem and easily one of the most idyllic places that I have ever visited in the Meditterranean.
There has been a certain amount of very limited development in that the cafes along the waterfront are quite new, but the remainder of the village retains it's character with its obligatory church, bakery, fish and fruit markets. We took a leisurely stroll along the peninsula upon which it has been built, the pine trees lined the shore providing welcome shade from the heat of the sun, there were no other people around and the only sound was of the crystal clear water lapping gently against the rocks.
I could easily have spent a week here and who knows, maybe sometime I will.

We are scheduled to depart shortly for the final leg of our sea journey up to Venice. We all have or fingers crosed that the weather will remain sunny and warm for one more day so that the sail in and exploration of the streets and canals can be fully enjoyed.