STYLISH
Proud Paradise
ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE ADRIATIC SEA FROM THE EASTERN COAST OF ITALY IS CROATIA, A LAND OF A THOUSAND ISLANDS. AND ON THE DALMATIAN COAST STANDS DUBROVNIK, A STUNNING WALLED PORT CITY WITH A SPECTACULAR HISTORY, AND A LOVE FOR LIFE. Words by Brian Laban. Pictures by Getty.
Today, Dubrovnik has a real feeling of celebration about it. Without the sheer spirit and determination of the 60,000 or so people who live here, the latest upheaval for Dubrovnik could finally have signalled the end for one of Europe's most beautiful and historic places, but the proud people of this extraordinary coastal city simply weren't going to let that happen.
Since its mediaeval beginning, Dubrovnik has resisted the attacks of pirates and would-be plunderers, even rebuilt itself after the devastating earthquakes that struck in the 17th century - and it has bounced back again from more recent trials.
Thirteen years later, with the region at peace, you can walk through the magnificent old walled town that is the heart of the far bigger urban centre, and you simply wouldn't know the war had happened.
Inside the honey-coloured city walls - almost two kilometres long, up to 25 metres high, and in places six metres thick - the churches, palaces, monasteries and houses are as jaw-droppingly beautiful as they ever were, and as welcoming to visitors.
Inside the walls, through the massive fortified gates, the city is for people, not for cars, and it is like stepping into a calmer world.
In the soft, early evening sunshine, when people come into the town simply to walk and talk, the shining marble surfaces of the broad main street, the near white stone of the centuries-old buildings, give an extraordinary feeling of light and space.
The churches and palaces are fascinating; the shops, in the old red-roofed buildings, are stylish and modern, or quiet and traditional - whatever your taste, it is here. And every shop (as well as every factory), by law must display the red, blue and white national flag.
The people of Dubrovnik, and its surrounding countryside, are proud - and they have much to be proud about. Sandwiched between the blue