My most favorite place so far

Where do I even begin telling you all about Croatia? To say the city of Dubrovnik was beautiful and amazing just would not do justice. The word fairytale is more appropriate when describing the Old City in Dubrovnik. It was truly like nothing I have ever seen before except in the fairytales I watched as a child.

When we first arrived in Croatia on July 11, I was amazed to see how beautiful the hills were, scattered with old houses that overlooked the Adriatic Sea. My first destination in Croatia was an orphanage in an area just past the Old City. We traveled there by bus, and as we drove there, I was amazed at the beauty I could see everywhere. I really can’t even put into words what Dubrovnik looks like. Pictures cannot even do justice, but I suppose they will have to do for now, until you can all have the opportunity to go see Croatia for yourself one day! When we arrived at the orphanage, I was pleasantly surprised to see how well kept it was. The orphanage is in a beautiful stone house with a large complex surrounding it with trees, grass, and places for the children to play. The orphanage looks over the ocean, as most of the property in Dubrovnik does. I was a little bit surprised to find out that most of the children there were not actually true orphans.  They all had parents, but their parents were not suited to take care of them. The woman who ran the orphanage explained that most of their parents were mentally ill, abusive, or negligent toward them, so they were taken away. It was strange to be calling these children orphans since they did actually have parents. But she explained that most of them are able to be adopted by a new family, and start a new life with more suitable parents.

After leaving the orphanage, we went to the hospital that is located in Dubrovnik to see the pediatric ward there. It was eye opening to see the conditions in the hospital- the rooms were very barren, nothing seemed very sanitary, air conditioning was limited, and sick children lay in their beds alone without any toys or someone to keep them company. It made me realize how lucky we are in the U.S. to have such a great healthcare system. Although these children were receiving treatment, the conditions they lived in could not possibly have been helping them to get better. On a more positive note though, the doctor we met was absolutely wonderful, and kept telling us how much she adored her job and did not care that she did not make much money (Doctor’s in Croatia make less then doctors in almost every other European country). It was refreshing to meet someone like her who just wanted to serve and help others.

After the hospital and orphanage visit, we went back to the ship. I got my things packed up and then headed into the Old City with two friends, Amanda and Megan, to find the apartment we would be staying in for the next three nights. To get into the city, you have to go in one of the three main entrances, and walk through huge arches made of stone. There are walls that completely surround that city that were built hundreds of years ago for protection, and still stand today. Our apartment was right off of the main street in the city, called Stradun. It was the best location we could have asked for! Once we got settled, we decided to go and find some dinner. We ate at this great Italian place (no I guess I didn’t get enough Italian food in Italy!) and I had a delicious pizza. We then headed back to the apartment to meet up with the rest of our friends who were staying with us:  Tiffany, Cassidy, and Rene. Then we all went to this nightclub called Fuego, and danced late into the night!
The next day, we headed down to the beach to go swimming. We quickly discovered that sand beaches are hard to come by in Croatia, and most beaches are made of rock! We ended up at a beach that was known for great cliff jumping, and spent most of the day there swimming and watching people jump from the cliffs (I was too scared to do it myself). The water was beautiful, and you could see this island just a short distance from the coast called Lokrum. After spending the day swimming, we headed back to our apartment to get ready and have dinner. We found a really yummy place that had traditional Croatian food, and I had something called a Dalmatian ribsteak. It was a type of steak cooked in a traditional Dalmatian style (Dubrovnik is located in an area of Croatia called the Dalmatian Coast). It was great! After dinner, we went to meet up with other Semester at Sea kids and headed to a night club on the beach called East West. It was so much fun!

The following morning, we got up early to take a boat with about 30 other people to 3 islands off the coast of Croatia. We spent all day out there, and it was so much fun! I was left even more amazed at the beauty of the country. We spent the day swimming in the Adriatic, jumping off the balcony of the ship, exploring the islands, and getting a glimpse of local life. It was really a wonderful day, maybe even the best day I have had on this trip! After the boat went back to the mainland, we headed up to our apartment to get ready and then meet up with friends to celebrate our friend Amy’s 21st birthday! We went out to a restaurant and, again, had great food, then headed to yet another amazing nightclub. This one was called Revelin, and was in an old fortress that was built hundreds of years ago!

And finally, the last day was upon us, and we were all dreading leaving Croatia. We spent the morning shopping and then the afternoon at the beach and cliff jumping. At the last possible minute, we headed back to the ship. Everyone seemed to feel the same way about leaving Croatia! I think I could have literally stayed there for another month and been perfectly content. I will most definitely be going back there someday, and hopefully someday soon!