Last Day

July 06, 2026

Monday - Dubrovnik day 3

Hubs went out for an early morning walk and brought back cappuccino and chocolate croissant. We sat out on our steps to eat, while I blinked at the morning sun. I slept well, but very tired from my exciting birthday yesterday. I’m wearing sunscreen today - the long sleeve shirt I was carrying over my shoulders yesterday was clearly not sun proof. Thankfully my pink skin turned to golden tan overnight so that’s good. This sun doesn’t joke around. The temperatures have been much better this week than last week, so it’s easy to forget about star damage.

We strolled around old town with it still early enough that the sites of interest aren’t yet open. We stopped for a mid-morning coffee and juice break before the Franciscan Monastery opened up.

Fun story from yesterday. The restaurant we ate at for our first lunch in Dubrovnik with the sandwiches and tuna salad: Ana, our server, was very friendly. And we have seen her several times again on our way to our room. Yesterday, we were sure to stop by and tell her that the fancy-smancy restaurant on the top of Mount Srd’s tuna salad was not as good as hers. This made her happy. She said her ex-husband used to work up there. Haha.

The Franciscan Monastery had a beautiful garden terrace and some interesting artifacts mostly about medicine but also some Gregorian chant sheet music that was forbidden from capturing on camera.

Then we went to throw on our swimsuits and swam below Fort Lovrijenac. This is a GoT site as well, but the Red Keep is superimposed on top. It was a lovely little cove where I floated and hubby snorkeled. He also jumped off a cliff, haha, which I missed while I was reading my book.

After swimming, we climbed up to the top of the fort and took in the views. Then we found lunch and split a pizza and garlic bread.

Back to our room to clean up and have a nap before evening adventures. We are closing the trip and discussing the things we wanted to do that we haven’t yet.

We briefly went to Rector’s Palace before they closed.

I decided I wanted to have an affogato. (Espresso and vanilla ice cream). So we went back to the gelato place we went to the first night. I was hoping they would have decaf. They did NOT. I ordered it anyway and hubs drank my leftover melty ice cream espresso (the best part!). Whelp, if my possibly poor choice to have caffeine in the evening goes bad, at least it’s our last night….. 😂yolo

Speaking of yolo, it’s good that we are doing these trips while being fit enough to climb up and down all the things. Who needs a stair master when you can just travel to Dubrovnik. So. Many. Steps. Hubby has had even more flights of stairs in his step count due to climbing every church bell tower that comes available.

We next went to the War Photo Limited Exhibit museum. I’m glad we made time for this and also on our last day after experiencing the joy and warmth of Dubrovnik as a city.

The exhibit featured photos from an artist of:

The end of Yugoslavia

Croatian war 1991-1995

Bosnia-herzegovina (BiH) war 1992-1995

Kosovo war 1998-1999

Many photos featured Dubrovnik and the siege where the residents didn’t have electricity or water for something like over 200 days.

I wanted to learn more about the history of Croatia’s independence, and this exhibit helped with that, though I still can’t speak knowledgeably on the subject. I found myself reading looking for the good guys vs. the bad guys, but as is the case most times in war, there is good and bad on all sides.

In the end, Croatia is an enormously warm, welcoming, and safe country to visit. I would recommend it to anyone. We have enjoyed our time so much.

I’ve been telling the hubs at each stop what lovely travel arrangements he found and made. Picked out the best spots. Great rooms. We had fantastic meals every time except for one very-mediocre one. Everyone has been so nice, even in the high tourist areas.

In Split, our guy Stipe referred to Chris as Mr. Christian. So I have been doing the same every time I compliment his travel plans. he should start “Mr. Christian’s Travel Agency”. (headshot provided below)

Croatia = ❤️

After the exhibit, we headed to our final dinner, a lovely spot with traditional Croatian meals. I had Storki Makaruli, a traditional Dubrovnik pasta with meat sauce dish. My favorite is the added cinnamon. I actually had this last night too, at the mediocre place, and I wanted to find what that dish was truly meant to be. And I did. It was delicious.

After dinner, we took a last walk around town, specifically by the ocean.

I’m glad I had that affogato earlier now, because it allowed me the ability to get organized and pack, unlike all the other nights when I collapsed in bed immediately.

Starting our long journey home tomorrow.

ćao