Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Nouveau Riche and Humble Devotion on the Bay of Kotor
Monks, Track Suits, and Europe's Worst Piano in the Montenegrin
Heartland
Since World War II, Europe has enjoyed unprecedented peace…except in its southeastern
Balkan Peninsula. As Yugoslavia broke apart violently in the early 1990s, the rest of the
world watched in disbelief, then in horror, as former compatriots tore apart their homeland
and each other.
Today—just a generation later—some parts of the former Yugoslavia are re-emerging
as major tourist attractions. In recent years, I've enjoyed trips to countries that once be-
longed to Yugoslavia, including Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Montenegro. As des-
tinations, they offer profound natural beauty, a relaxing ambience, and a warm welcome.
Life goes on here. Local people, while not in denial about the war, would rather not be
constantly reminded of it. Many think about this ugliness in their past only when tourists
ask them about it.
And yet—although I realize that, in some ways, it does a disservice to these places to
view them through the lens of war—I can't help but think about those not-too-distant hor-
rors as I travel here. Seeing the bruised remnants of Yugoslavia is painful yet wonderfully
thought-provoking. And, because this topic is about how travel can change the way you
think about the world, I hope you (and my Balkan friends) will excuse my narrow focus
in this chapter.
We begin at the region's top tourist hotspot: the town of Dubrovnik, in Croatia.
Nowhere else in Europe can you go so quickly from easy tourism to lands where today's
struggles are so vivid and eye-opening—one of many heartbreaking sectarian conflicts all
around the globe. Within a few hours' drive of Dubrovnik are several new incarnations of
old nations, providing rich opportunities to study the roots and the consequences of one
such struggle.
Red Roofs and Mortar Shells in Dubrovnik
I was ready for a little culture shock. Flying from France to Dubrovnik, I got it. I passed
through the mammoth, floodlit walls of Dubrovnik's Old Town and hiked up a steep,
tourist-free back lane to my boutique pension perched at the top of Europe's finest forti-
fied port city. Upon reaching my favorite Dubrovnik B&B—a bombed-out ruin until a few
years ago—I was greeted by Pero Carevi ć .
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