Ice cream buying tip #1: casually mention that it's your birthday when ordering. Today's weather was absolutely perfect for a hike (warm sun with a cool breeze) so we took the 90 minute trek up Srd Hill for a visit to the Imperial Fortress. Aside from the spectacular views of the city and the shimmering Adriatic, we also got an unexpected history lesson on the Croatian War of Independence that ravaged much of Dubrovnik's historic old town. Walking around here it...

We walked home the long way today as we took an extensive foot-tour around some of Dubrovnik's more natural settings. Our walk followed the jagged coast along an area called Lapad, which is on a peninsula that is connected with a section of the city called Babin kuk. While this area is filled with scenes of natural beauty, much of it is occupied by ritzy hotels and resorts. Go figure. The best part was that the tail-end of our walk offered great views of the icon...

Another travel day today as we left Hvar by ferry before continuing on to Dubrovnik by bus, a long and windy trip that took us through some amazing scenery. A funny moment today when we (unexpectedly) passed through Bosnia-Herzegovina on our drive. The driver announced "passport control", while ours were safely stowed underneath the bus in our packs. Louise proceeded to the front to explain the situation to driver, who lightly scolded her in Croatian before conti...