The word Dubrovnik (long o) just rolls off the tongue with an exotic flair. No? I enjoy just saying it for fun. When you think of Dubrovnik does the old George Bernard Shaw quote come to mind? “Those who seek paradise on earth should come to Dubrovnik.” Who is He? and why do I care what He thinks? Exactly. Who needs him when you have me on the ground to mold your opinion of this place?

And mold I will. We got to our room about 5:00, called Murphy for help with my new iPhone 6+, practiced what he just taught me, and then headed out to explore the hotel (the Grand Villa Argentina), grab dinner, and come back for an early night.

The hotel is wonderful and fronts the Adriatic with its crystal clear water. Guests can swim in the pool, jump from rocks or a concrete patio (read: no railing) into the sea, or just enjoy the surroundings from a chaise lounge (read: snap one’s fingers for some attention from a pool boy). The front door is at street level on the 6th floor and the pool is on the ground floor. Quite a grade with pretty landscaping and a zillion stairs should you decide against the elevator.

Dinner was at a local place and delicious. It’s a wonder we decided to take a quick peek at the Old City, a UNESCO World Heritage site, considering my half liter of local red and Dan’s beer, but we did. From what we have seen so far G. B. Shaw might be in the ballpark, it is amazingly beautiful and picturesque here. We grabbed a quick ice cream to fortify us for the 10 minute walk back to the hotel and are now settling in for the night. We got carried away, as usual, and did not make it an early night as planned.

In case you need to find our merry little group on the map: look east of Italy, across the Adriatic Sea, in the very south of Croatia, right on the water.