Whenever you go someplace new, no matter how much you’ve read about it before hand, you never really know whether it will be worth the trip or not. Either way, at least you get to see something new.

Today was a mixed bag of sorts. The morning was supposed to start with a trip to an Arboretum north of Dubrovnik. I say ‘supposed to’ as I did not actually end up there. The drive was fairly easy, parking I just couldn’t figure out. I’m still unsure if I was supposed to take a turn down, what appeared to me, to be a one way street. Seeing as how I was making this decision at 45mph with traffic behind me I made a quick decision to skip.

So, my first stop today was the town of Ston. Ston is known for two things; its salt production and the walls built to protect the salt production. Ston was a part of a republic who’s capital was Dubrovnik and the salt production was considered so important that they spent 18 months building the first walls. The fortifications were upgraded through the centuries and the differences in the medieval walls versus the later updates is noticeable.

Now the walls used to encircle the town of Ston as well as going up and over the hill to the other side of the peninsula to the sister town of Mali Ston, completing the fortifications. Most of the walls still survive and you can walk almost entirely around the town as well as walk to the town of Mali Ston. I sure as heck did not do the second part of the walk! I had enough of walking entire city walls with Dubrovnik and I didn’t need any more reminders on how out of shape I am. I walked the walls around the town instead. Serious restoration efforts are readily noticeable on the walls, forts and even the town itself. I was even able to watch some of the craftsmen preparing stone blocks to be used in the restoration efforts.

The town is fairly small and the walls make it very distinctive. I would say you can probably make a morning of the town but have something else to do for the afternoon.

You may notice the first blue sky I have seen since the beginning of the trip. Don’t worry, it didn’t last!

Now below you will see part of the area where the town produces its salt. They allow seawater into shallow areas and let it evaporate away. I’m pretty sure that there is a lot more to it than that but that museum was closed.

Lunch today was the best meal I have had so far! No matter what you read after this, try it, it’s great and you will enjoy it. Today’s lunch was black risotto with cuttlefish. No, I did not think I would ever try cuttlefish again but I have to say that I’m glad that I did. A short explanation about the risotto, it’s black because the use squid or cuttlefish ink as an ingredient. It is a very popular ingredient, at least here and in Italy. I was not sure what to expect but the cuttlefish had the consistency of slightly cooked mushrooms with none of the chemical aftertaste that I have had previously with it. The risotto part was just risotto. The ink may have imparted a slightly earthy flavor to it, maybe, but it was excellent and there was way too much. The restaurant, Konoda Bakus, also provided me with a starter of fish pâté. Not a huge fan but it wasn’t bad and I’m sure others would like it more than I.

I will try to post the images from my phone but I doubt it will make anyone want to go out and try it. Do it anyways, it looks weird but tastes great!

The second part of my day was a trip south of Dubrovnik to the town of Cavtat. Another seaside town with quaint and touristy waterfront. The drive down is where the sun disappeared and the rain came back. Hooray…

Still the only chance I had for that view.

Cavtat doesn’t really offer much but lodging and restaurants away from the crowds at Dubrovnik, specially not in the off season and in the rain. Still, I made do with what was there, took a wrong turn and walked the long way into town, and was back out within an hour. Did I mention I left my umbrella back at the hotel? Because, you know, sunshine.

Best part was the parking lot.

I triple checked my gear position before I backed out of that spot. You really don’t want to explain that to the rental agency.

Tomorrow my journey in Dubrovnik ends and I head off to the city of Split, about three hours north. I am hoping to find the sun there.