Port 53 Dubrovnik, Croatia

by Ed · April 25, 2022

Dobro jutro!

We had a long glide into the bay at Dubrovnik, Croatia, on Apr 21st, 2022. It was an overcast, drizzly morning…again.

We pulled up alongside this magnificent bridge and what I will call an oligarch’s megayacht, pirouetted 180 degrees, and backed into our berth.

Joy and I are on the same excursion today – touring the ancient city in “The Story of Dubrovnik”. Our bus drops us off at the Pile Gate (pronounced peel-eh), and this is what we see! A remarkable fortress set on a secluded stony rock! This is the site of the Red Keep in Game of Thrones! Little did we realize we were walking into a Game of Thrones (GOT) haven!

Our Oceania representative on our tour, Sumitra, didn’t bring an umbrella, and the rain was coming down far too heavily for her non-waterproof jacket. So I gave her my place under our umbrella. She and Joy fit well under the umbrella!

We approach the Pile Gate to enter the old city. Another GOT site!

Once inside we went down the steps. There is also a ramp! Who would have known an ancient city would have some wheelchair accessible amenities? And this is another GOT site!

Several shops in town reminded us this is a GOT haven!

Tony, our tour guide tells us this location was an orphanage. Children who were not adopted by age 6 were sent out to be workers or slaves. When this orphanage was shut down it was bricked shut.

We went to see what they called “Cat Square” which means this church’s patio. Typically the patio has numerous cats hanging out, but with today’s rain there are none to be found.

Inside this church is a lovely altar with an excellent painting of The Last Supper above it!

A block away we find this statue of Dubrovnik poet Ivan Gundulic. The four panels around his base depict scenes from his work. Thar be a griffon thar!

These steps mimic the Spanish Steps in Rome. They are better known now as Cersei’s “Walk of Shame” steps from Game of Thrones. A Jesuit church sits at the top of the steps. I’ll show you a better picture in a bit.

This is the view most people may remember, looking from the top down the steps during Cersei’s GOT Walk of Shame scene.

This building was the Palace! Now it’s a museum. Each of the columns is topped with an entirely different set of carvings!

This little lady was cute! She didn’t even care that she was walking through the deepest water! Her mother was calling but she was ignoring her!

This is Orlando. The post he is standing against is in the middle of the square, in front of a church, and was commonly used as a pillar of shame. But he was also used for good! His right forearm was the standard of measure for one cubit of fabric! He’s not in jail – they are protecting him for some reason. He is exhibiting some fractures, probably from the recent earthquakes.

This is the main street called Stradun. It is the widest street and runs east and west from wall to wall. If you can find the Stradun, you can find your way to the Pile Gate! From any street in the city if you walk downhill you will find Stradun Street – all paths go uphill from here!

That’s Orlando and his post on the left.

Walking out the east side is walking out the Fish Market Gate. This is a lovely little harbor! On our left the city wall winds in and out. The Dominican Monastery stands tall!

Looking to the right we see more of the city wall ending in St. John Fort on the far left.

We were told St. Ignatius would be watching over the gate, holding a model of the city in his hand.

Back inside the wall, at the square at the end of the Stradun Street is this clocktower! It has an analog clock as well as a digital clock that updates every 5 minutes. It also has a moon phase indicator. The bell at the top is struck every half hour by one or two hammers…

…held by statues! The last time we saw anything like this was in St. Mark’s Square on Venice!

We wander the streets during our free time. I believe this is the Treasury Church. The statuary is excellent!

Stepping inside, it is clean and elegant!

We trek up the steps at the Walk of Shame site. At the top is the Jesuit church I mentioned earlier.

And sharing the square with the Jesuit church we find the St. Ignatius Church! This is an impressive and imposting structure!

The interior is stunning!

Over the altar is this ceiling painting. This is absolutely gorgeous!

Back on the bus we have to drive a long way to get to a spot where the bus can turn around. We have the opportunity to see the town we just visited from a higher vantage point! That is St. John Fort in the foreground, and the harbor to the right. St. Ignatius Church is visible with the darkened sloping buttresses. Far to the right, difficult to see, is the tower of the Dominican Church.

We approach the port, and here is my gratuitous shot of Insignia!

We push away from the dock. The Captain sound the horn three times. The MSC ship echoes. The Captain thanks him with one horn, and the MSC acknowledges with one horn. This is the first time in over 10 years that I finally heard the full 8 horns like this! Early in our cruising days we heard it frequently, at not quite all, but at many ports!