Ken Munsie: 206. Winter Arrives in Dubrovnik

Yesterday winter struck Dubrovnik with a bang - waking up in the morning and drawing my curtains, I was presented with a city covered in six inches of snow. And for this Aussie tourist - used to maybe the odd mild winter frost back home - what a delight ...

Not the thick blanket of snow covering some European and USA cities during this cold snap, but for this city perched on the Adriatic Coast - who has not seen snow for well over a decade - this rare fall is quite a talking point.

My street in Baben Kuk ( ten minutes from the Old Walled City )

So rugging up into long johns, jeans and four layers of upper clothes plus scarf and beanie, I head out to get my first experience of walkin-in-da-snow ...

Down 66 steps to the King Zvoninimir Promenade - this mall runs about 500m down to the bay and is lined with cafes, restaurants and bars which, during the summer months, would be packed with noisy tourists - but today only a few bold citizens venture out for a coffee break and walk ...

Many of the boutique hotels and smart guest lodges are now shuttered up for the winter - I think I may be the only tourist in the village - and up until today it has been a delight sitting out in the sun at my fav cafe having my morning coffee free of the babble and rabble - with just the locals to smile with and say my g'days to ...

Probably not enough snow to built giant snowmen - but for many of the kids living in Dubrovnik this is the first time for them ( and me ... ) and it was great fun watching their joy and screams of delight as they had snowball fights and built the odd ( and in this case rather green ) snowmen ...