And we’re back. From another insane weekend of turbo travel. Exhausted, happy, and a little more worldly. This time it was a romantic weekend with my Cynthia. Best friend, almost-lover, rock, shield, love.
We found cheap flights into Dubrovnik from London. And then somehow, through a friend of a friend of a friend, we found a beautiful flat inside the old town for a great price. Fantastic view of the hills and the water.
We spent one day exploring the Old Town – wandering the Saturday market, eating dried figs, walking the city walls and sunning ourselves in 24 degree weather. Shiny old cobblestone streets, beautiful squares and amazing views of the Adriatic sea. Travel like this is good for the soul. Time stretches. People suddenly become more approachable, beautiful, friendly. And you approach life and love with arms wide open – like everything is possible. Even if only for a few days from our busy work schedules, these crazy trips are healthy for the mind. They remind us that there is a world out there just waiting to be explored.
Day 2 we hired our landlord’s husband to drive us into Montenegro. In all honesty, I became enamored with the idea of Montenegro after watching James Bond. It looked so romantic, beautiful, exotic. Well, apparently that whole scene with the train and the outdoor cafe wasn’t even shot in Montenegro! Ha. Regardless, it was a beautiful day of winding roads, mountains and bays. We crested mountain peaks that opened to gorgeous valleys below. Montenegro is stunning. Like an oil painting, all the little uninteresting parts up close come together to form a gorgeous whole: terra cotta rooves, turquoise waters, rolling hills and mountain valleys. Absolutely stunning.
Interestingly, my favourite moments are of the simple times: singing Madonna in the car with our driver/friend Zoran; accompanying Cyn in not-so-pretty-side-of-the-road bathrooms; quiet sunsets; watching a movie in bed; rum and tea in beautiful cafes. It’s the time with loved ones, set in beautiful backdrops, that make these trips so precious.
However, a girl weekend really isn’t a girl weekend without SOME insanity:
- Becoming impromptu fashion models during sunset in the Old Town square of Dubrovnik (we posed with Italian tourists, for photography students, for strangers)
- Being harrased by ODMs (Old Dirty Men – as my Mom calles them) everywhere we went. It was a running joke between Cyn and I that we were Thai concubines visiting with our Russian boyfriends. Ha!
- Ice cream twice in one day.
- Getting engaged to each other on the seaside cliff during a full moon.
- The baby kitten that I agonized over during our first night. Do cats eat bread?!
To view all pictures from the trip, click here
