On to Dubrovnik, Croatia!

Here we are in the early morning coming into the beautiful city of Dubrovnik. You can see the really cool bridge that spans the city.




This little beauty (which I called the 'floating city' because it housed 3,200 guests and 1,100 crew) was my home away from home during my cruise. It's formal name was the 'Carnival Freedom'. Here you can see it--safely in port in Dubrovnik, Croatia and it sort of dwarfs the houses and buildings behind it.

Dubrovnik was a most pleasant surprise. I had no expectations or ideas about it whatsoever and it was a truly beautiful city.








The absolute best way to see Dubrovnik is by water. So we took a boat ride that took us around the newer part of the city (which is what you see in the above photos) and then on to the old city. (photos below)










The only way to get into the 'old city' of Dubrovnik is by foot through the main gate. The city is surrounded by 2 1/2 miles of city walls--and it is truly amazing to walk up on the top of the walls and look down--as well as stroll through the old city itself.












These next photos show the clock and bell tower of the main entrance and a bit of the amazing facades of some of the buildings within the old city--as well as a beautiful old church that can be found there:










Of course, this is lil' ole' me inside the old city of Dubrovnik having the time of my life and stopping to strike a pose! (right before we head over to the island of Lokrum, a 10 minute boat ride from the old city, for a swim!) It was so HOT--and the sea was very refreshing. . .



To give you a feel for what it is like to actually BE in Dubrovnik--I am going to share a FABULOUS little link that will give you an actual taste--and then post a Youtube video that shows this wonderful city by night:

CLICK RIGHT HERE FOR A FABULOUS VIDEO OF DUBROVNIK!

And now here's the nighttime Dubrovnik Youtube video:




After a SIMPLY MARVELOUS MORNING in old town Dubrovnik--it was time to catch the boat to take us over to the small island of Lokrum, which as I mentioned before, is only 10 minutes away. (FYI, Lokrum means 'bitter fruit' in Latin)







You can see the tiny little island of Lokrum in relation to Dubrovnik better from this photo:



This little island is uninhabited (my dear hubby would LOVE that) with the exception of the fire marshal who has a permanent home there.



There are some amazing cliffs you can jump from:





These are some great shots looking BACK at Dubrovnik and the surrounding area from the Island of Lokrum:








They have a beautiful botanical garden there as well as an old abandoned monastery:







And there are peacocks running wild everywhere!





After a FABULOUS day in Dubrovnik and Lokrum--it was time to head back to the cruise ship for some SERIOUS EATING, SERIOUS PARTYING, and SERIOUS DANCING. . . I'm TOTALLY SERIOUS!









That final photo was supplied to me by some friends I met on board the ship--whom I will call 'The Millers'. They got a few shots of me 'cutting the rug' with the cute waiters in the dining room and I had to purchase all the photos at a very STEEP PRICE in order not to be blackmailed later on. . . thanks a TON, guys!

Oh--and here's a little bonus I'm throwing to my DEAR HUBBY who absolutely LOVES finding cool and different places to kayak. All I can say is: "HEY BUB! I got your kayaks right here!" Check this out: