What to see in Dubrovnik:
Falling in love with Dubrovnik, the Jewel of the World Cultural Heritage will not require more than a glance. Enclosed with thick medieval walls and fortresses constantly pounded by the sea, it shines with eternal and astonishing beauty. The city walls of Dubrovnik are the best preserved fortification system in Europe. In the Franciscan Monastery in Dubrovnik, there is one of three the oldest European pharmacies. It was there as early as in the year 1317. It is also worth knowing that Agatha Christie spent her honeymoon in Dubrovnik.
The Old City walls
Dubrovnik is famous for one of the most beautiful fortification systems in Europe. City walls are 1940 meters long with 3 round, 12 rectangular and 2 corner fortresses. They also include 15 bastions. The main stairway entry to the city walls is located on the western side. You have a fantastic view from there on the city and Plaza. While touring the city walls which in some places are 25 meters high, you enjoy lots of great view points of the historic centre of town. You can admire those famous picturesque rooftops of the buildings with unusual chimneys. In city walls you will also find the round tower of Minceta. Its location is strategic for defensive position towards land.
Lazareti Quarantine
It is one of the best preserved quarantine building in the Mediterranean region, located in front of the entry into old part of Dubrovnik, on the eastern side. This building was constructed in the 17th century in order to prevent and secure city from some dangerous infections and diseases. All traders and passengers who were arriving on ships had to spend a 40-day period of quarantine in this place.
Fortress Revelin
The monumental fortress Revelin was built in 16th century. It is connected with wooden drawbridge over a wide, defensive moat where today a park is. Inside the fortress there is a three-nave hall for the holding of various gatherings and events and at the top of it there is a large terrace, used for the same purposes as well. Revelin attracts the interest of visitors with its archaeological findings of remnants of the previous fortress with the oldest furnaces for casting bells and canons that were made by the famous master Ivan Rabljanin.
The Old Port
Best site to take a look at the old city port is from the small square in front of Revelin. Back in the days, trade vessels from different corners of the world sailed into this port of Dubrovnik. Nowadays we have here exact replicas of such ships and galleons come in. Besides them also modern "floating hotels" who visit Dubrovnik on their long cruise, anchorage close to it and motorized boats take passengers from those large ships to old port. Over the port dominates the fort of Sv. Ivan which used to prevent city from pirates and enemies. You can also see here the Great Arsenal - the one time oldest shipyard for the construction and repair of state galleons in Dubrovnik. Arsenal was also used to secure port from enemy ships. In case of danger heavy chains were stretched between the fortress Sv. Ivan and Kase.
Dominican Monastery
It is the large complex of the Dominican monastery and church located right at the Street St. Dominic. This monastery has numerous paintings done by the most important members of the Dubrovnik school of art from the 15th and 16th centuries. For example the Veneziano's great "Crucifixion" and Tizian's effigy of St. Magdalene and St. Blasius. There are also some sarcophagi and tombs of archbishops, bishops and members of the nobility. Most famous is the silver cross of King Uros II (1282-1321) on which are four inscriptions in old Cyrillic letters.
Orlando's stone column
Knight Orlando is the symbol of freedom and independence of the Dubrovnik Republic. He has his famous carved image in high stone column standing in the central part of the square. It is exactly is same place where once all important decisions of the republic were proclaimed. Today this place is still used for the opening of the traditional Feast of St. Blasius, as well as the greatest Croatian cultural manifestation, the Dubrovnik Summer Festival. At Orlando's column there are crowds of tourists and guides which mix with the passing citizens, and in this rhythm of city everyday life it seems as among the colorful masses of travellers, traders and pilgrims, who visited Dubrovnik arriving from countries in the East and West, ring through.
St. Blaise Church
Beautiful, historical stone church has been protecting Dubrovnik for centuries from all evil and hardship. Huge fire destroyed former church in this place in 1706, but the goldplated statue of St. Blasius remained intact and even today is kept above the altar. Also over the church of St. Blasius as if on a throne, stands a large statue of the saint. This is one of many statues of this kind in Dubrovnik, where this cult is being present for last 1000 years. There are lots of stone statues above every city gate, on all fortresses and in many places in the city walls.
Palace Sponza
The long history of the Sponza Palace is especially interesting where a carved latin inscription reminds that this structure once served as a customs office and that the Dubrovnik inhabitants traded under a very strict principle: "Do not cheat or falsify the measures; while I am weighing the goods, God is weighing with me". The Sponza palace was also used as a mint for money, treasury, bank, but also as a meeting point for educated men in the hall of the Academy. Today this palace houses the State Archive of Dubrovnik in whose safety vaults there are numerous source documents of thousand year long history of the Dubrovnik Republic and its comprehensive diplomatic and merchant connections with different countries and Memorial room of the defenders of Dubrovnik in the Homeland war in 1991.
Rector's Palace
Rector's Palace is the symbol of golden age of the Dubrovnik Republic. This palace was the base of state authority what can be easily witnessed by many features of its structure and exhibitions in the museum located within it. In the ground floor of the palace's building you can see the infamous dungeons. What is especially interesting is that famous god of pharmaceutics Esculap was "born in Dubrovnik". At least that information is visible in latin inscription on a tablet above the doorway of the Rector's palace. Esculap's image is carved in a luxurious semi-capital, surrounded by laboratories with a distillation device and pharmaceutical dishes. In the atrium of the palace, there is a stone pedestal with a bronze bust of the famous mariner Miha Pracata, the only citizen of Dubrovnik to whom this honour was given in the time of the Dubrovnik Republic, because he bequeathed his enormous fortune valued at 200,000 ducats to charitable causes. Nowadays prestigious building of Rector's Palace has multipurpose city functions. Once seat of the Republic's government, today is used to organize concerts, especially during the Summer Festival, which are held in the atrium. There is also a permanent rich museum exhibition on the first floor. This exhibition has more than 700,000 visitors per year.
Dubrovnik Cathedral
Today's baroque cathedral was constructed on the foundations of a Romanesque sacral structure which was completely smashed by the catastrophic earthquake in 1667. But even before there was Byzantine church standing in this place what was discovered by archaeological exploration of the underground of the cathedral. Today cathedral is furnished with valuable paintings of old masters, among others Tizian's polyptych of the "Assumption of Our Lady" located above the great altar. The rich cathedral's reliquary contains the relics of saints, formed into art works, which are brought out once a year during the time of the ceremonious procession of St. Blasius day.
Stradun
No matter which gate you use to enter the Old City, Stradun or Placa is the central street of Old Dubrovnik. It's the main route and the place where you can best feel the 'pulse of the city', the favorite promenade walk of all Dubrovnik citizens, young and old, as well as of all tourists coming from all over the world. Nobody can miss walking along the Placa as you will be poorer for a memorable experience and contact with the city. This main Dubrovnik artery is a fairly wide street whose smooth cobbled surface is walked over by thousands of tourists throughout the year. Once it was under the sea, it use to be a sea channel, dividing the two settlements upon which the city was founded in the early Middle Ages. Its present look dates after the devastating earthquake in 1667 when the main street was reconstructed. The second time Placa was damages during the Serbs bombardments in 1991 when numerous missiles heavily damaged this cobblestone street.
Fortress Lovrjenac
Lovrijenac Fortress dates back to the 16th century. It is called the Dubrovnik Gibraltar and it is a part of fortification system which rises to a height of 37 meters above the sea cliffs. The walls of this fortress towards land are 6 meters thick and 4 meters thick towards the sea. But towards the town only 60 centimeters thick. This structure was carried out to due to caution against tyranny. There used to be a Latin inscription above the entry gate into the fortress that read "Freedom is not given away for all the treasures of this world". Dubrovnik lived under this motto for centuries almost like an example for the whole world. Today, the Lovrijenac Fortress is used for Dubrovnik's summer festival and for Shakespeare productions.
LOKRUM ISLAND
Lokrum is also known as the island of kings. It has its first writing mention in 1023 as the Benedictine abbey and monastery were founded. According to legend, Richard the Lion-heart shipwrecked in 1192 after returning home from the crusades and found himself cast ashore, safe on Lokrum, and he pledged to build a church on the island indebted for the salvation but at the plea of Dubrovnik citizens, the church was not built on Lokrum but in The City instead. That church is still there waiting for your visit.
The name Lokrum comes from the Latin, acrumen, meaning sour fruit and it's a name that comes from the tradition of bringing and cultivating exotic plants from all corners of the world on the island and this tradition started in the time of the Benedictines. This tradition was nurtured through the whole existence of The Dubrovnik Republic and later on with the rule of the Maximilan Ferdinand of Hapsburg as he had a mansion built on the island in 1859 with a magnificent garden laid out, criss crossed with pathways, full of amazing plants and botanical wonders. So it's not a surprise that in 1959 a Botanical Garden is founded on Lokrum where you can see special and endemic tropic and subtropical plants and other vegetation originating from Australia to South America.
Today Lokrum is a Nature Reserve and a Special Forest Vegetation Reserve. There is also another famous Botanical Garden in Dubrovnik, Arboretum in Trsetno, considered one of the most beautiful in the world. Beside the Botanical Garden there a few locations you should visit on Lokrum mainly:
-Lokrum's special attraction, a small lake, called Mrtvo More (Dead Sea), a unique lake linked with the sea, crystal clear and calm suitable for bathing and it is a favourite resort to many visitors;
- Fortress called Forte Royale, star shaped built by the French in 1806 at the highest elevated point of Lokrum, 91 m, giving a marvelous, exquisite view of the whole island and the city of Dubrovnik.
Lokrum is the favourite excursion destination of the population of Dubrovnik, as well as of many tourists. From The City harbour regular tourist boats run to Lokrum, in spring and autumn every hour and during the summer every half an hour so it's very convenient to visit this fantastic island. It takes only 10 minutes to get to Lokrum.
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