Sometimes you just gotta take off your shoes and feel the ground touching your skin. It’s even better when it’s raining and you are walking the streets of the old city in Dubrovnik.

James and I walked around atop the old city walls and gazed at the breathtaking views of the red rooftops and the water in the distance. About two-thirds of our way around the wall, we got caught in a torrential downpour! Luckily, we were close to a staircase that led to street level and we managed to get down without sliding onto our rear ends. We found shelter underneath an archway, but, after about ten minutes, realized that the uneven ground below us was allowing the rainwater to collect into a huge pool of water. James stepped up onto a wooden plank lying by the wall and I jumped up onto a precarious bench and nearly flipped off. After a few minutes of laughing at how ridiculous I looked perched on the bench, we realized that the rain was not letting up. We were going to be in worse shape if we stayed trapped in the middle of the ever-growing lake forming around us. So, off my shoes and socks went (because really is there anything worse than wet socks?), and James and I started running through the winding streets towards the main plaza to meet up with Dean. We ran, we splashed, we yelped, and we giggled. And boy did we get some stares from the people we passed. We finally made it to the entrance of the museum where we dried off. One of the guests on the cruise, Steve, caught me in this great candid photograph, clutching my shoes and heading for shelter.

As if the afternoon couldn’t get any better, James finally found his Lesniak! James had been looking for proof of his family name meaning hazelnut in Croatian. We found jars of hazelnuts with his name on them, Lesnjak gelato, and plenty of Lesnjak chocolates which we bought up to bring back to our colleagues in Pittsburgh. The day ended with a fabulous performance of Dalmatian folk dances and klapa singing. The costumes and the performers were colorful, passionate, and energized. It was hard to stay still in our seats!

It was another magical day.
This trip happened October 7.