Laundry and a vista

I lazed in this morning, then got ready and went and found an espresso.  I actually didn't feel like breakfast (I KNOW!).  The espresso I worked out only cost me a $1.30, and it was good!  I ambled back through the old town back to my room again to decide what I was going to achieve today.  When I got there I determined that I should do my laundry again as it would be the last opportunity before I go back to Italy.  So I filled a bag, grabbed a map (I already had the name and address of a laundrette), and went on my way.  

I saw the road I needed to be on, then I saw the road I needed to turn onto.  I looked up, and it was uphill with lots of stairs.  I soldiered on.  I think I started at number 19 on the street, and it wasn't till I got to about 37 that I thought to stop and check the street number I needed (as I figured I should have seen it by now).  And you guessed it, I should've gone down the street, not up the street.  Oh well, the legs needed a good old workout.  Actually, have I mentioned how many stairs there are in Dubrovnik?  You don't know the definition of stairs until you've been here!  But I giggle every time I hear a tourist huffing and puffing their way up with heavy thuds.  Cracks me up every time.

But I digress.  I got to the laundromat and put the load on (funny how I don't care if I mix colours with whites when I travel).  Then I wandered around the place.  I found a supermarket and grabbed two bananas and some dried figs.  Then I got a cappuccino from the bar next door to the laundromat, but it wasn't very good.  After that the wash was done, so I put the clothes in the dryer and figured I would go for a walk.  I went up along the coast.  And well, the panorama was simply magnificent.  So stunning and gorgeously clear blue waters.  There was also a cruise ship in the bay just anchored there (as an aside, did everyone see how they're raising the Costa Concordia - what a feat!).

After the laundry was done, the next task was to get a massage, as I could feel my hip was still rotated.  I had seen an ad in a pamphlet for a therapist in the old town so I made my way there.  She happened to be free, and standing outside when I got there.  Her name was Janet and she is Canadian, and her parents Croatian.  Anyway, she specialised in deep tissue massage, so she was the girl for me.  And, she was bloody awesome!  She worked on all the right spots.  She was kick-ass good (much better than the one in Belfast).  So happy I found her! 

I then decided to go for more panoramic views and purchased a ticket to go on the cable car which takes you up to the Imperial Fort.  Having got up late, and doing my laundry meant that I had to wait in queue (because I didn't arrive before all the other tourists), but I stood there patiently enough.  At the top I walked around and saw some amazing vistas and the other side of Dubrovnik.  Stunning, stunning, stunning.  I also noted that the Old Town was bigger than what I thought.  So when I returned from the Imperial Fort, I decided to explore this other part of the town.  I saw a beautiful old church, and unlike Prague, they don't seem to charge you to walk into a church here in Dubrovnik, so I went in.

I explored on, and saw the girl that was sitting next to me at dinner last night.  We updated each other on what we had done.  I was pleased to hear her say that she had just been 'walking around', because sometimes that's how I feel, that I'm not really achieving anything, just, walking around...

Dinner was just some grilled fish, but it came with a traditional spinach and potato dish that was not unlike something my mum makes, that I actually thought was more delicious than the fish.  The dinner cost about $25 though, and for what it was, it was expensive.  Although, you'd probably pay that much for the same dish at home.