Dubrovnik - Croatia >>> BLOG

Dubrovnik is rich in monuments - and in little alleys where one easily gets lost too. Getting lost is actually not a bad idea... the town's compact and bounded by walls - so one is never too lost. My idea is to give you an overview of some of the interesting buildings to see. For practical reasons I'll divide them into three groups: those along the Stradun 8the main street, those north of it, and those south.

Along the Stradun, starting from the Pile gate, there's a cluster of interesting places: on the left there are the votive Church of Saint Saviour and the Franciscan monastery; on the right the Onofrio's fountain and the convent of Saint Claire.
The entire Stradun is lined with nice buildings, but the next important ones are at the very end of it, in a little square.
The wonderful building on the left is the Sponza Palace with the historic archives and on the right you see the 18th century church of Saint Blaise.
In the middle of the square there are 2 fountains: the Orlando statue and the small Onofrio fountain, just in front of the Bell Tower.

To the North of the Stradun there are at least 3 worthwhile sacred buildings to visit: the church of Sugurata (not far from the Pile gate), and the Dominican Monastery and Chapel of Saint Luke (near the Ploce gate).

To the south of the Stradun, in Gunduliceva Poljana, which you reach by following the largest alley, there's another wonderful building, the Rector's Palace. Just down the road from it you can see the Dubrovnik's Cathedral and around the corner the charming church of Saint Ignatius.
Continuing along this street you'll find 2 museums: on the left, half way back to Pile, is the ethnographic museum Rupe, while on the left, at Široka ulica 7, there's a museum dedicated to an important Croatian writer: Marin Držic.

For more information visit : http://www.dubrovnik-apartments.com/dmsa.htm

Posted by Tomi at 01:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

The cuisine of Dalmatia and the islands follows the trend of modern nutritional norms.
The brief thermal preparation of foodstuffs (mainly boiling or grilling) and plenty of fish, olive oil, vegetables and self-sown herbs found near the sea is why this cuisine is considered to be very healthy. The cuisine of Dalmatia and the islands follows the trend of modern nutritional norms.

The brief thermal preparation of foodstuffs (mainly boiling or grilling) and plenty of fish, olive oil, vegetables and self-sown herbs found near the sea is why this cuisine is considered to be very healthy.

Dalmatian wines, like olive oil and salted olives, have been highly esteemed since ancient times, which the present names of some of the indigenous grape sorts reveal (Grk : Greek, from the island of Korcula; Prc from the island of Hvar).
Famous wines include Dingac and Postup from the Peljesac Peninsula; Babic from Primosten; Vugava and Plancic from the island of Hvar... then there are Posip and Grk from Korcula; Marastina from the island of Lastovo; Malmsey from Dubrovnik, etc., and also Prosecco (a sweet dessert wine), the very strong grape (loza) and herbal brandies (travarica, grapes with medicinal herbs) and liqueurs (Maraschino, Vlahov).

Although even today every area has its own way of preparing certain dishes, the cuisine of the islands represents a separate world, their distinguishing features having been discovered only recently, such as the cuisine of the islands of Hvar, Korcula, Brac (vitalac, a dish made from lamb offal wrapped in lamb gut and spike-roasted), Vis (spike-roasted pilchards, as during the Ancient Greek period; flat cake with pilchards from Komiza and Vis, related to the modern-day pizza).
Fresh sea fish (dog's tooth, gilthead, sea-bass, grouper, mackerel, pilchards) grilled, boiled or marinated; then there are molluscs (squid, cuttlefish, octopus), crustaceans (shrimps, lobsters) and shellfish (mussels, oysters, date-shells) boiled in a fish stew or as a risotto.
Of the meat dishes, prosciutto is unarguably unrivalled - pork leg smoked and dried in the bora (from Drnis), served with dry, mostly sheep’s cheese (famous sorts of cheese are those from Pag and Dubrovnik) and salted green and black olives, capers and pickled onions.
Lamb is also very highly valued, especially boiled or baked on an open fire (Franjevacka begovica from Visovac, or lopiz from the island of Iz); also, dried mutton (kastradina), roast beef, Dalmatian stew (pasticada) with gnocchi, offered by many restaurants.

Posted by Tomi at 02:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

As well as offering cheaper accommodation and cuisine than southern France and Italy, Croatia is now as easy to reach as about anywhere else on Europe's southern coastline. Croatia is catching the eye of more and more Brits searching for Mediterranean sunshine on a limited budget.

As well as offering cheaper accommodation and cuisine than southern France and Italy, Croatia is now as easy to reach as about anywhere else on Europe's southern coastline.

And according to research by the Cheapflights team, Croatia, and in particular Dubrovnik, is one of the most sought-after destinations among visitors to our website. (www.dubrovnik-apartments.com)

Located further up Croatia's sun-drenched coastline, Split is also fast becoming a hit with budget travellers, and is a doddle to reach directly via air.

As the home of tennis superstars Goran Ivanisevic and Mario Ancic, the coastal resort is renowned for its sporting pedigree.

Split's rich culture, lush vegetation and sweltering summer temperatures also mean the Dalmatian capital is as inviting as any other Mediterranean port.

July or August is definitely the best time to visit the city and its outlying beaches if you're a fan of sunbathing, with average temperatures of 26 degrees making it one of the sunniest locations in Europe.

Though Eastern Europe is rarely associated with sub-tropical flora, Split pulls that off too, with visitors constantly greeted by hordes of cacti, palm trees and agaves.

Culture vultures won't be let down either, as the city boasts a richness of archaeological, cultural and historical monuments that befits its 1,700-year history. The renowned Palace of Diocletian, to name but one of Split's many attractions, features in UNESCO's World Heritage List.

The city centre boasts an array of wine cellars and restaurants offering local specialities.

Though everyone knows it's best to avoid France, Spain and Italy during peak season, the all-year round low cost of visiting Split means you can take in the city's delights in mid-summer without penny-pinching.

That's also when The Split Summer Festival takes place. As the biggest cultural event on the city's calendar, visitors from mid-July to mid-August will be treated to a host of operas, dramas, ballets and concerts.

And in terms of getting there, it's also becoming much easier.

Split is served by a host of airlines from the UK, with no-frills carrier easyJet the latest to open a new route to the Croatian hotspot. It will commence a four-weekly service from Gatwick, with one-way tickets including taxes and charges starting at £25.99.

Posted by Tomi at 11:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)