honeymoon in croatia | dubrovnik.

   

dubrovnik was regal, dubrovnik was grand -- just like we knew it would be. it is croatia's largest city and the one we found most often mentioned in exploratory conversations, back when our plans were in their hatching stage. dubrovnik felt, at once, the most pristine and the most touristed. it's the only city, in two weeks of travel, where we overheard other americans.

our days in dubrovnik, the last days of our honeymoon, were luxurious and varied. we rode the cable car up the mountain face for a bird's-eye view of terra cotta rooftops, boats coming to port, and hazy, distant islands dotting the horizon. we lunched on gnocchi and cherry strudel and red wine. afternoons, we carried books to a cafe on the square, happy to while away the fading daylight sipping chocolate and watching people strolling the marble streets. the first night of the winter festival, we indulged in mulled wine and sausages and christmas cake, and delighted in folk dancers and trumpeted carols. one windy morning, we walked atop the city walls, marveling at all there was to see in a single frame -- clementine trees, rooftop gardens, laundry lines, bell towers, drawbridges, foamy waves licking rocks, cliffs tumbling into the shimmering sea.

what a last stop before heading home. what a honeymoon.