Backpacks and Flipflops: Game of Thrones.....10,000 off the boats (kid you not!)....Croatia Coastal Spectacular.....Richard Branson sighted in Croatia.

Croatia Bound....

Left Kotor, Montenegro and headed to Croatia. With bus routes/schedules, it was easier and made more sense to head that way, rather than for Bosnia.

We arrived in Dubrovnik by bus after an uneventful crossing of the border. It took 20 minutes at the Montenegrin section and 10 minutes entering Croatia a minute further down the road. They barely looked at our passports.

The view approaching the famed city of Dubrovnik is stunning and as you draw closer, the magnitude of this walled city becomes even more evident...

Met by people at the Dubrovnik bus station wanting to rent rooms to us. We chose one whose place seemed to be in old town, or close to the walls. Didn't end up taking it, but we got to the center without any hassles and ahead of the thousands of cruise ship passengers that were slowly offloading for their day in the town.

Walked through the gates of old town looking for a room. Within minutes, we had found a room, after asking a waiter, if they knew of any rooms available. Room was clean, basic, with private bathroom, but oh so close to the tourists strolling through old town Dubrovnik.

And then off we descended into the chaos on the streets of OK Town... The town was built in a bowl so you are constantly climbing stairs except at the bottom of the bowl. This is definitely not a place for people with knee or mobility issues!

And, certainly not during a rain storm!

What can we say to describe Dubrovnik... gorgeous, restored, medieval.....a contradiction, bloated, over priced, overdone, victim of its own success.

It is a beautiful rendition of an ancient medieval fortress town, well preserved, restored buildings line narrow, shadow filled cobble stone lanes and alleyways or a caricature that gets used as a backdrop/centerpiece on the Game of Thrones series?

Don't mess with the Queen of Thrones!

While we were there, 7 cruise ships stopped by on one day. Estimates ranged that approx 10,000 passengers were in town... and we can assure readers, most were inside the walled city just wandering around, shopping or eating.

We couldn't wait to leave the place....we've seen more authentic/real old fortress cities elsewhere.... and with less crowds, shopping, food & drink places etc.....10,000 tourists!!! And, prices to match their bank accounts. Things were sky high in town - food, drink, lodging. One could easily go broke staying there. Cost us $20 Can each to walk the fortress wall for an hour or so. Outrageous but you do it to get the spectacular views of what its UNESCO status is for...its roofs.

It was very humid and 32+ C while we were in the city so we needed to find water to cool off. Where do you find this in a city of virtually no beaches and in a region of mainly limestone coastline? Concrete beaches of course!! These brilliantly constructed areas are beautifully designed to incorporate the natural rocks of the area and often include restaurants or bars. Just grab your food or drink then jump into the water and climb up the stairs for more snacks. Fabulous!

For first timers to Dubrovnik, the place is pretty impressive, but not for us and not with hordes of tourists!

So, headed to the bus station and got a bus to Makarska, up the coast, just south of Split. Nice little beach town, on the Adriatic, set against the towering Croatian coastal mtns.

Again, this stretch of coastline is fabulous. Cute, quaint Croation towns hug the shoreline. Clear, rocky beaches abound. Mountains, seemingly, stepping out and up from the water's edge. At one point, we leave Croatian borders and cross through Bosnia Herzegovina. 10 minutes later, we reenter Croatia.

Seems when political-border lines were redrawn, they gave Bosnia Herzegovina a slim, sliver of water/coastline access. Odd thing, it seems to separate Croatia at that point.

Stayed the night in Markarska, even had a Richard Branson sighting here by a waiter at a local restaurant! Haha!

Makarska is another beautiful coastal town with remarkable limestone cliffs overlooking the area

Next morning, caught the ferry to the Croatian island of Brac and the town of Bol.

Greetings from us to you...until next time....the islands of Croatia and back to Split!