Dubrovnik -Day 12

Dubrovnik -Day 12
A walking tour through this old charming city. We saw the oldest continuously running apothecary in Europe. This dates to the 13th century. There were old bottles, etc.
Our guide spent some time recounting his experiences during the siege here in 1992. The Yugoslav (Serbian) army had occupied the hills overlooking the city and were lobbing shells down into the center of town. Buildings were destroyed, and food was scarce. He was a young teenager then, and obviously was extremely scared.
There were many churches, and little shops. We could see the different architectures from Venetian, Austrian, and French influences.
Of course, we had to see the "Steps of Shame" from the Game of Thrones. These steps were patterned after the Spanish Steps in Rome, but were used as Cercei walked. Dubrovnik is the set for King's Landing, and many scenes were filmed here. I did not take one of the many tours, but looked through the pictures they showed and recognized the scenes. Supposedly, some of the upcoming Star Wars movie was filmed here also. Maybe Rei and Luke lived here. We left them at the end of Episode VII on top of a Rocky Mountain that certainly could have been in the surrounding area...
Our tour included a ticket to the Wall Walk around the periphery of the walled city. The views were spectacular, and we could see the different roofs inside the city indicating which had been bombed during the siege and renovated and which were original.
We had lunch at a restaurant at the bottom of the wall with our waiter Zlatomir. Pasta for me, seafood risotto for Ann.
After lunch, we found the remaining Synagogue in Dubrovnik. There was never a large Jewish presence here, but of course it is all gone now. We saw some of the old Torah covers, ketubahs, and yellow "Jude" armbands from the war.
Before dinner, we stopped at the hole in the wall bar, which literally steps through a hole in the wall to steps and terraces overlooking the water. A beautiful sight to watch the sun go down over some drinks.
Dinner at a fish restaurant just outside the city walls. We shared a delicious gazpacho and salad. The fresh tuna entree with roasted vegetables which we also shared was such a large portion that one serving was more than we could eat. As we were walking back to our hotel through the old city, we were treated to a beautiful fireworks display over the harbor, courtesy of one of the day's wedding parties.