War Torn

May 16, 2005-Long Memories
(photos:Walking on the wall,
Main St. Dubrovnik,
Still ruins)

This is our last day in Dubrovnik. The Adriatic twinkled and winked at us around every curve as our bus delivered us to the old city. We took the two-hours necessary to walk the wall and listen to the audio explanations. The views were best from up top. We were able to be voyeurs and peek into the private lives of the natives. There was laundry hanging, bedding being aired, satellite dishes and TV antennas sticking up from old red tile roofs, flowered-filled roof gardens and balconies, and a bird’s eye view into school rooms. We had pizza once again at Pizzeria Don Coreleone then took a last walk through the streets.

We stopped in at the War Photo Museum commemorating the most recent civil strife. Color photos leaped out at us and there was no avoiding the controversial point being made. The gruesome, brutal, and sometimes poignant shots illustrated the ordeal of the Croats. A short film emphasized the rancor that still exists. It showed the opening of the exhibit in Serbia where Serbs and Croats verbally battled over the fairness of the depictions. Serbs reminded the Croats that they were the ones who fought the Nazis in 1941 during WWII while the Croats only had a few partisans and were collaborators with the Italians. The Croats answered that history didn’t end in 1941. When we left David had a feeling that the war wasn’t over in the minds of the people and that a tight lid was needed to keep the peace.

The group had dinner at Proto, a seafood restaurant. Somehow we escaped without having to have special food made for us. Everyone enjoyed a delicious vegetarian risotto appetizer with turkey as the main. Dessert was flan.

Most people in our group are coughing. I think they have whatever Drago, the first driver, had. It sounds like a TB ward. To add interest, two British sisters, one of whom lives in the U.S., had their purses sprayed by a stray cat yesterday. We were staying far away from them but their bags were scrubbable and they’re no longer referred to as the “stinky sisters.”

You’ll be proud to know that I won the contest to pronounce “prijestolonasljednica.” I’ll be happy to demonstrate when I return. The prize was an embroidered cloth and red ceramic tile trivet.

Our wake-up call is at 5:15AM. I’ll probably send this email to you from Washington, DC. We’re spending the night at Judi Cope’s when we arrive. See you in Akron.

Toby