Dubrovnik's City Walls are spectacular from sea: it's a view that approaching sailors and invaders have seen for centuries. Little statues of St Blaise, Dubrovnik's patron saint, cast their eyes on you. Dramatic limestone and dolomite cliffs tower for 40 feet before the ancient stone bricks even begin. Swallows swoop and tend their nests. Plants cling to the vertical cliff surface. And all of this is crowned tiny picture-taking humans far above. A sea-going perspective of the city is something not to miss.
My favorite bar in Dubrovnik is Buža bar. Buža literally means "hole" and the bar is literally a "hole in the wall." If you want a drink there, first you have to find the hole. Second, crawl through (okay, I'm being dramatic. You'll need to stoop a little.). Once you're through, unpretentious tables and chairs sit out on rocks for a view of the sea and Lokrum Island. During the day you can sunbathe. At night you can watch the sunset or the moon-rise. There is cliff jumping. At a bar. Best idea ever. Worst idea ever.
Buža bar is also fun to experience from the sea. Kayakers and Buža-dwellers are part of the same club: tourists who venture outside of the walls. Literally. Crowded wall-walkers peer down from above, jealous of their cold beer (order Velebitsko) and your breezy sea-adventure. Sometimes Buža Bar pirates make an appearance: local kids who jump from the rocks and try to swarm your kayak. If you're not fast they'll cling to the boat, bogging down your attempts to power-paddle past them. Like I said, pirates. Try to avoid the pirates.
After the walls, our next stop is Lokrum Island. Little known fact: Lokrum Island is infested with peacocks. Squawking, showy, salad-stealing peacocks. And this time of year? Peachicks. (A close relative of the Chickpea.) Lokrum is great for a few hours or a whole day. It's near to the city but feels like a world apart (There's snorkeling, cliff jumping, hiking, historic ruins, caves. There's even a nude beach).
But all good things must come to an end. Before you know it you're back at Sveti Jakov Beach, bidding goodbye to your tour guide. Time for a drink?
