Some call it the new Riviera, some the new Capri, and others a jewel of unsurpassed beauty. The medieval walled city of Dubrovnik on the Adriatic Sea has inspired poets, intrigued historians and enchanted travelers for generations. To me, Dubrovnik is a historical treasure chest encased in ancient ramparts, but it is much more: the exotic natural beauty and the balmy climate it is set in, makes all this history seem unreal; I always have to pinch myself to see if I am not dreaming. Dubrovnik is like Venice without the canals, but being in Dubrovnik is like traveling back in time. Because of regulations forbidding advertising on the buildings, the city looks and feels like it must have in its Golden Age. 

Originally named Ragusa, the city's history began as a Roman settlement and for centuries it was a prize sought by Venice, Hungary, Turkey and others. Yet time after time the Libertas, independence, triumphed over other nations' plans to conquer the city.

Enclosed by walls, the pedestrian Old Town is like a glistening marble stage. Locals in colorful costumes and tourists play out their parts among historic churches and public buildings, designer shops and intimate restaurants, ancient sculptures and modern art galleries, fountains, bell towers, monasteries, secret gardens, and the most famous: the ancient city wall and its towers.

The people of Dubrovnik often proudly quote George Bernard Shaw, who visited the city in 1929: "If you want to see heaven on earth, come to Dubrovnik." 

Dubrovnik's Old Town is filled with marble paved squares, red-tiled roofs, steep cobbled streets, tall houses, convents, churches, palaces and fountains, all cut from light-colored marble. The city is framed by the sky and the Adriatic Sea in several shades of blue, from azure, through cobalt, sapphire, navy into indigo. Dubrovnik is surrounded by immense white stone walls, built in the 13th century, with 16 watch towers. They are still intact today and offer the best vistas over the city. 
 

The first thing you notice about Dubrovnik is its whiteness. Or maybe its uncommon purity. Then you notice that all this whiteness is shiny and smooth and you realize that the entire city is built of white marble. The nightly hosing with water keeps the streets and the buildings impeccably clean and the ban on excessive advertising preserves the medieval ambience. In the evening, after the crowds leave, Dubrovnik looks exactly the way it looked in the 13th century and you find yourself in the High Middle Ages. 
 

The Gothic, Renaissance and baroque churches, the Rector's Palace - equivalent of the Doge's Palace in Venice, the 15th century Dominican Monastery with massive pillars surrounding an interior courtyard planted with orange trees and the 15th century Sephardic Jewish Synagogue are some of the special delights of the city. But there is more: the moon reflected on the marble, the salty breeze from the sea, the trickling of water in Orlando Fountain, the shadows of Dalmatian cats scurrying along the narrow alleys. It is such details which make the city cling to the soul and define Dubrovnik as a place of romance and mystery.

Dubrovnik's Old Town, in its entirety a UNESCO World Heritage site, has spellbinding charm and tells many  stories. Although the city dates back to the 7th century, many buildings were devastated in a terrible earthquake in 1667, and were rebuilt resulting in the harmonious style seen today. The architects of Dubrovnik included the best of Croatian masters, among them Juraj Dalmatinac (also the builder of the cathedral at Sibenik and the entire town of Pag) and masters from Venice, Dubrovnik's main rival and trading partner. Architectural beauty is perhaps the reason that the city immerses itself in the arts that manifests itself in galleries and festivals. 

It's easy to understand why the people of Dubrovnik are proud of their city - it just takes one look. It takes a little more effort, however, to understand how deeply this pride runs, and how many, how varied and how rich and justified are the reasons for this pride. It manifests itself in a way that is very easy to fall in love with: the people of Dubrovnik also take pride in their strong tradition for good manners and hospitality. It's not an empty or boastful pride. 

 

Why does the city look the way it does? Why all those walls and bastions? First, it was a refugee colony for the people of Epidaurus (today's Cavtat), who fled from invading Avar and Slav tribes. At that time the land south of Stradun, as the main thoroughfare through the Old Town is popularly called, was an island, offering some protection from attack, but, of course, the walls began to grow up to give those first fearful citizens their shelter. 

 

That was in the 7th century. At that time, these lands were under the protection of Byzantium. Following the Crusades, Dubrovnik became a part of the Venetian Empire, and then the Croatian-Hungarian kingdom. But in the 14th century, by the force of skilled diplomacy, the nobles of Dubrovnik bargained their freedom, and this became a city-state which flourished for four centuries, maintaining independence from feared invaders such as the Turks, and, indeed, cultivating profitable relations with them. 

 

The skill of the people of Dubrovnik in trade and in many other areas led this tiny city-state, then known as the Republic of Ragusa, to become a powerful force in the Adriatic that seriously rivaled Venice dominance in the region. During the heyday of the city's development, art and culture flourished, leading to a love for harmony in design, a love of music, and a love of literature which shaped the Croatian language that we can hear today. 

This love of beauty is visible throughout the Old Town, which is a living museum and famous World Heritage site. It can be seen in the art galleries, on the theatre stages, and in its annual culmination at the Dubrovnik Summer Festival, which will be held for the 58th time in 2007. It can also be heard - Dubrovnik is a city of music as well. Not only classical music, but also taking care of the folk vernacular of the coast and hinterland. 

Beauty is only skin deep, and happily this harmony also manifested itself in a rather liberal political system. For example, the city of Dubrovnik abolished slavery at a very early stage (1418). Alongside this respect for humanitarian concerns also came, naturally, the love of freedom. That's why you'll so often see the word "Libertas" on everything from flags to the sides of buses. 

 

It's hard to believe that this miraculous freedom of the tiny Republic of Ragusa, and this economic and political might lasted all the way to the beginning of the 19th century when the Dubrovnik nobles were tricked by Napoleon to letting his armies into the city in 1806. So it's no surprise that the sense of individuality and collective pride is still so strong. It results, happily for visitors, in a very unique, visible and well-preserved culture that's a joy to uncover.