Visit to Lokrum Island and Bosnian Dinner

Sunday May 12 turned into another beautiful day.  It started cloudy and we both slept in (lots of stairs the past few days).  By late morning, the sun came out and stayed out the rest of the day.  High of 21C.

While we were finishing our late breakfast on the deck, we met our host, Lidija.  She had been away working during the week.  She told us that the entire apartment building was built in stages by her husband's family starting in the early 1960s.  All units are occupied by family members.  She and her husband and two of their three children live on the floor above our apartment which they rent out.  Her husband is one of the conductors at the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra!  Her youngest daughter plays piano and violin and Lidija showed us a clip of her performing recently with the Orchestra conducted that day by her father.  The other daughter plays flute and is studying pharmacology in Zagreb.  Lidija speaks a number of languages.  She organizes conferences and works freelance. 

She lived through the early 1990s war and told us about the destruction of the Old City.  She said grass was growing on the Main Street (Stratun).   She told us that the centre right party in Croatia that has been in power for awhile did not win a majority in the last election and can only keep power in coalition with a far right party that wants to roll back the rights of women.  The government is in a transition stage- so no one is quite sure how far things will go.  

Usual morning picture from our deck looking at the Old City

Meeting our host on the deck

Garden at the far side of our deck

View of Lokrum Island where we were headed

We walked to the Old Port and caught the 3:00 p.m. ferry to Lokrum Island.  It is only about a 12 minute ride.  Lokrum has an area of 0.72 sq km and is separated from Dubrovnik by a 680 metre wide channel.  

Leaving Dubrovnik

Arriving at the Island- Forest Ranger's House and visitor's centre

Signage with highlights. 

Lokrum Island has been a protected natural area since 1948.  It has been designated as a Special Forest Vegetation Reserve, strictly protected by UNESCO.  People come for hiking and swimming and to get away from bustling Dubrovnik.  The last boat leaves the Island at 7:00 p.m. 

While there has been jewellery found dating to the 5th century BC, the Benedictine monks were its only permanent residents from the 11th to the 19th century.  The Benedictine monastery was built in 1023.  After the 1667 earthquake, the Monastery was rebuilt.   

There is a legend about the Curse of Lokrum.  After 800 years, the last Benedictine monks were evicted from the monastery in 1808 after the decision of Pope Pius VI to meet Ragusa (Dubrovnik)'s request to hand the property to the town's charitable organisations.    The monks had done everything to remain, but to no avail.  The monks cursed the island: "they circled the island in a mysterious procession, clutching lit candles lit upside down.  Leaving a trail of wax, they chanted : Whosoever claims Lockrum for his own personal pleasure shall be damned." A few years later the property was sold to a select few Raglans with deep pockets.

The island has changed hands a number of times with many of the owners dying mysteriously.  In 1859, it was sold to the Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian of Habsburg.  He and his wife Charlotte started to renovate its buildings.  The works stopped after Maximilian was shot to death by a firing squad in Mexico in 1867. 

The island changed hands a number of other times, finally being sold to the Yugoslav Kingdom in 1925.  

The name Lokrum has its origin in the word Acumen, denoting citrus fruits.  The first orchards on Lokrum were grown by the Benedictine monks in the 11th century.

There are many beautiful peacocks on Lokrum.  Allan and I saw at least 35 in our wanderings.  The peacocks had been brought over by Maximilian from the Canary Islands.

Just a few minutes from the Visitor's Centre- our first spotting of a peacock

Strutting about

Along our walk

Allan talking to another peacock

Signage to various spots of interest

We walked over to the old Monastery complex, which also housed Maximilian's gardens.  There are a number of ruins.  There was a free Game of Thrones exhibit inside the Monastery, with a number of posters and maps outlining the history of the island and the various film locations of the TV series.   There were also some interviews with some cast members about their experience filming in Dubrovnik.

Part of the Monastery complex

The monastery and gardens

Just outside the entrance

View of the old Monastery

Highlights on the Island- one of the displays inside the old Monastery

Allan on the Throne

In 1859, the Austrian Archduke Maximilian bought Lokrum and started adapting the monastery into a summer home.  He made arrangements to set up a new landscape garden and brought in many exotic plants.

Maximilian's gardens

We then walked over to the Botanical Gardens which house trees from all over the world.  It is a small garden, but very peaceful.  It was established in 1959 and opened to the public in 1967.  Today the public area of about two hectares boasts around 500 species, mostly trees and shrubs.  

Allan entering the Botanical Gardens

Palm Tree section

Rose Garden-- but a bit early for the roses

Abelia - grandiflora

Toby and the Peacock 

We walked to the "Dead Sea", a small salt lake in the midst of rock on the southern side of the island, connected with the sea by an underground water passage.  There were a number of people swimming there, and I was very tempted.  However, there was a sign warning of jelly fish that might sting.  I decided to air on the side of caution.

The "Dead Sea" 

We walked over to a rocky beach and I started to walk into the water.  However, it was too rocky to go much further without water shoes, which I did not have.  Allan and I sat on the beach for a while, enjoying the sun and the peacefulness of the island.

One of a number of small rocky beaches on the island

We caught the 6:15 p.m. ferry back to Dubrovnik.   

Entering the harbour

We wandered back to the Stradun (Main Street) where a brass band was just finishing a concert on the steps of St. Blaise's Church.  Lots of folks had gathered for the event.

Brass band

We wandered back to the Jesuit Steps (Stairs of Shame from Game of Thrones) and headed up to the Jesuit Church at the top.

Jesuit Stairs

Jesuit Church of St. Ignatius- completed in 1725

Beautiful inside- decorated with troupe l'oeil Baroque frescos by Gaetano Garcia

We had a dinner reservation at Taj Mahal, a Bosnian restaurant using quality ingredients and modern preparations, located down one of the narrow streets off the Stradun.  There was an extensive menu of wonderful sounding food.  A couple at a neighbouring table suggested having at least one of the dishes labelled "traditional".

We started with the Taj Mahal mezze plate- delicious cured meats and cheeses

We then had aubergine by Edina (Edo and Edina are the Bosnian owners)- baked marinated aubergine, roasted pepper tartar, and mint, and the traditional dish of Sweet Ćevap- veal, prunes, dried figs, raisons, apples and almonds, served with some rice.  We each enjoyed a wonderful glass of Bosnian wine.

Aubergine and the Sweet Ćevap in the foreground 

Delicious--- 

Lots of tables outside-- Allan at the table

There are also three rooms inside of Taj Mahal

It was a delicious meal.  The place was full the entire time we were there.

As we walked along the Stradun, a small group was playing Stand By Me in front of a restaurant.  Lots of people were listening and dancing in the nearby square

Heading to Ploče Gate--Dominika Street was one of the locations in Game of Thrones

Moon over Dubrovnik

Walking back to the apartment

On Monday, we head to Split on the 11:30 a.m. bus.  Our adventure will continue there.  We highly, highly recommend a visit to Dubrovnik.