Day 77 Goodbye Montenegro Hello Croatia!

Wednesday 06/06/2018 Rooms Monika 1 Ulica od Nuncijate, Gruz, Dubrovnik, 20000, Croatia

Today we move on to another home and another country... clocking them up now!

We packed the car and Mila was there to take the key we tried to thank him and tell him the aircon in the main bedroom has got a bad squeak, as he couldn’t understand us, so he called Jecoff his son to translate what we were saying... we asked Jecoff ( not how it would be spelt my version) to thank his dad fir our wonderful time here in Montenegro 🇲🇪 and wish him all the best with his new building behind.... we could see that today they were working on it, now he had finished his contract job.....

Off up the busy Hwy and along the crazy coast line where there is so much building going on, it’s honestly mind boggling just how much is really being built here.... either they are going to make a fortune out if tourism or it will go belly up.... the trouble with tourism is it tends to out price itself then people lose interest in the area because of that and being in Europe unlike Australia they have choice upon choice... and tend to follow trends over here... we do to an extent but not like Europe does and can....

The other issue for Montenegro is it is so hicelty picelty that everything is all over the shop.... no rhyme or reason to where they build... they just fill in land and plonk a building here, there and everywhere..... access roads are goat tracks to a flash hotel or apartment, with some cement laid over it to give traction..... Ours was a typical example of a goat track turned access track with a cement overlay.....it does have Reho in it but it’s coming through fast so there will be some staked tyres before long....

As we near the border there are some huge attraction parks, but like everywhere there is weeds all over th place, rubbish and junk laying around, people just don’t seem to notice we are sure if it... the whole country would look so different if it were cleaned up... we actually did see 3 guys on the roadside cleaning rubbish so that’s a start I guess....

Today we have to go on a ferry across the sea from one little township to the next... we could have driven to Kotor and onto the border but it would have added another few hours, this was the quickest... busy little spot... hundreds of trucks, buses, cars and motorbikes, motor homes and vans use this crossing daily... they have at least 7 on the go the whole time, back and forth all day long... the village we come across to looks interesting but have got time to stop however changed his mind as we needed a cuppa.,. We spot a restaurant sign on a bend of the road and quickly zip to the other side....
once inside it was just unreal... the whole setup was on the waterfront, but set in a really old Olive Grove. Very tastefully decorated courtyard area, but inside was very upmarket... and yes it was a pricey spot trust us.... but it was so nice to have 1 hr of luxury even if it was only coffee and cake shared... yummy chocolate and almond hot cake very unusable texture but very tasty only a little fir me but worth each morsel I had....

Shame we had to go but on we head... the border seemed to take forever to come, but come it did! We finally get to the border well we think it’s the border, it is but it’s the Montenegro border, got through that one ok then about 3-5 is up the road not next to the other one is the Croatian border.... strange they were so far apart... all the other ones were right next to each other.!

Once through we continue onto Dubrovnik, we noticed 3 things straight up, the roads were so much better, there wasn’t as much rubbish only a sprinkling, and the terrain has dramatically changed.... there are pencil pines everywhere, there are still huge mountains but they are near as rugged looking and more drier look.... you would wonder how it could be so different in such a short space, but it is the sam at home I guess a constant change in plant life hills, mountains, etc...

Stopping for lunch at a Shopping centre.... to be honest you would think you were in Brisbane it felt just like a Brisbane shopping complex with all the brand name stores just like home... we needed cash so this was the best place to get it... had lunch while here then off to find our next home!

Driving along the coastline into Dubrovnik was spectacular, views over the cliffs what I could see as I was on the inside walls of the cut ins around the cliff edges, were unreal......the terracotta coloured roofs looked so lovely against the cream coloured brick of the homes... a slight glimpse of the old city from above but hard to really see it well as we were moving very quickly...

The city itself is built on the side of a mountain or as we ventured out it’s up hill down dale everywhere... yet our home was on a higher area on the side of the mountain and the only way down was steps and there are hundreds of those or a long drive around half the mountain to access the lower area of Dubrovnik....

We finally found our apartment which was actually on the main Hwy through upper Dubrovnik the main road linking it to north and south Croatia, so very busy, very noisy and very narrow for a main road... there was a park fortunately for our car..Otherwise I don’t know where we could put it... you see a lot of Apartments that are over the side of the cliff face have a flat cement car park built over hanging the cliff just off the main road... th cars in some spaces look like they are suspended in mid air or that the car is about to fall over the cliff.... good thing most have a barrier even though some are very flimsy.... We are early so I have to phone our landlord who was a nice bloke, told me I could use the kitchen that was on the steps heading down to our car, we were up the steps yep steps more of over looking the whole of the harbour amazing views for sure.... the kitchen was set up for lots of guests like a small restaurant and looking at all the gear in it I would say that’s what is was used for but not now.... such a shame it has a great atmosphere in it.... A big balcony off it with the same views we have... we have a balcony as well only narrow but useable that’s for sure.... our room is ok, has a fridge and a good size comfy bed what more do you want, the shower had room and was ours alone... When booking inmate sure it’s not a share bathroom, if we have to share I guess we will cope but sharing when you need to go at night isn’t pleasant at all....

For some reason we were really tired so we both had a kip then headed off to look, around... we followed a road not far from us but quickly realised it went to a dead end and after searching around found only one way down and that’s step steps...l I said to John it’s not the diet that keeps the Mediterranean people living longer its the bloody steps.... they get a cardio workout every day of their lives....

Once down and it was a long way down we found ourselves at the wharf where there were boats, ships and million dollar cruisers everywhere... it’s the hub of lower Croatia, also a ferry terminal fir ferry’s to Italy from here... unreal what comes in and out of the harbour.... we quickly learn it’s also the main hub fir the TOURIST.... ships galore come in and out of here daily.... bus after bus load of tourists, plus heaps and heaps of mini tall ships and bigger boats that take the tourist cruising they were everywhere. The buses were all lined up letting people off to go on their sunset cruise. One glass of wine a seat and off you go to view the sunsets best offer around the many islands just off the coast around Dubrovnik...... plus there are bay, after bay along this mist amazing coastline of Croatia. We wandered around checking out the sights eventually deciding on a restaurant to have dinner at, quickly realising that yep were are in tourist Mecca, after Montenegrin prices this was a jolt back to reality know that this was for the cashed tourist not the try and spend carefully tourist.... mind you with the thousands of back packers around you would think by now we would know how to find the bargains they do, but we are old and like the comforts and views of a nice restaurant so suck it up and enjoy the offerings....

A lovely view from here but an Aussie couple came in and she the wife who obviously had met the people behind us before was extremely loud and giggled non stop making sure she as heard all over the restaurant. I personally found it very off putting and to be labeled loud Aussies would be so sad but I think we are starting to get a bit of a reputation as loud and very demanding like our co-horts the Americans,... it’s a shame we used to have a pretty good reputation but I think it is going the other way....

Finished our dinner then walked around all the back streets to the Main Street not much on offer at this hour of the night... then we started for home.... and what a walk up all those rotten steps.... we were drenched in sweat and totally had it by the time we hit the last step... I don’t know how many there were but there were a huge amount of them.... all the people who live up these stairs that. is their only access to their homes, no motorbikes can access it or cars only legs up stairs... guess they are used to it....

Big day so tired off to bed another big day tomorrow.Читать далее