Fish Picnic/Folk Dancing, September 19, 2008

Today the weather is not as nice as it has been but it isn't raining so we decide to go ahead with the fish picnic excursion. After our morning ritual on the patio we head on down to the city. The little bay at the old town has a few stands that offer different excursions and we have already decided which one we will take. The pamphlet really doesn't give a name, it simply says Elaphite Islands excursion fish picnic, motor boat Karuzo. It was a small boat and we departed around 10:30 am. I'm quite certain that we got a better deal than is listed but haven't written that info down. This excursion will have us stop at Kolocep for a short time, then to Sipan and final stop Lopud.
The boat ride was quite pleasant. The first island was a short stop. We strolled a little but there really wasn't much to see. Clearly the season is over here for most and with only a little more than a half hour, one isn't going to venture far from the main drag. We did look through a few of the shops. Once back on the boat the tables were all set and once we took off they served the "fish picnic". I hadn't had high expectations for this but it was quite good. Two whole fish per person, they were falling off the plate. Yes the head and bones were still there but they were easy to eat and tasty. The bread baskets were refilled again and again and wine or soda was plentiful. Everyone on this little cruise was friendly and the boat staff exceptionally cordial. The highlight for many was of course when one of the sailors tossed some fish bones overboard and the gulls converged. Yikes! After that out came the cameras and overboard went bones. Everyone got a big kick out of the birds swooping in for a chance at the booty. They had a big bowl of apples out for dessert and we all took a few which we would enjoy later.

We walked through some of the shops and I did get several table clothes and gifts from one gal that had an outside stand. She was very happy to have us as customers (Bon also bought several items) and we were glad we bought all of these items from her. (My table cloth looks spectacular on our dining room table and all the kids loved the table runners we got here as well.) We walked up to the church, looked around a bit and then meandered down to the dock. Once back on the boat the crew offered up drinks to everyone so out came the wine bottles and the ride back to Dubrovnik was a gala one.

Once back to Dubrovnik we checked on the Folk Dance that was to happen that evening and made plans to attend. Back up to our place to refresh and then back down to attend the concert put on by the Folklorni Ansambl Lindo. This was another outdoor venue, just a little ways from one of the entrances to the old town. We lucked out as far as seats go. The seating is quite steep-you enter from the top and then descend. We climbed over a railing once down toward the front and ended up with a row of four seats all to ourselves with a perfect view. The folk dancers were wonderful, very lively and we were quite entertained as was the rest of the crowd. The stone walls and the black sky were the perfect backdrop. After the concert we walked to the city and found a little place to grab a bite. We were very comfortable during the concert but now it was getting quite chilly. We found a place that had some seating on the inside so we grabbed a booth and ordered some late supper. Our meal was quite good and I'm sorry I don't know the name of the place. It was just off the main square, towards the sea, sort of down and around a corner. By now not too many people were eating outside. After our meal we strolled back to the cab stand and caught a cab home. Brisk night, sleeping would be good again.