I was completely overwhelmed by the beauty of this place and how spectacularly CLEAN it is and unpolluted with any buildings or signage that take you out of the experience of this historic city.   They hose down the cobblestone streets every night to keep them clean, and between that and whatever else they do to maintain these awe-inspiring buildings, this is by far the most pristine environment I’ve ever seen.

There were lovely outdoor restaurants everywhere, shops (designer and otherwise) and beautiful sights wherever you looked, enticing you around the next corner.

The first thing I spotted was a “Jazz Cafe” with a piano out in front.  I introduced myself to the owner who was standing outside and he immediately asked me to play a tune.  I played a chorus as a friendly gesture to him and to be able to say I’ve “played Dubrovnik”!

I explored the streets for about an hour and on my way back to the ship passed a restaurant with another outdoor piano, played by a very good pianist (wearing a NYC baseball cap!) accompanied by an excellent saxophonist.  I went up to compliment them and tell them I’m also a jazz musician.  The pianist immediately got up and asked me to play.  I asked the saxophonist if he knew “You’re Driving Me Crazy”, he said:  ”It does not matter” and it didn’t.  He listened for 8 bars, had it, and played beautifully behind me while I sang and played, and he took a swinging chorus on it and on the tune that followed, before I had to run back to the ship for rehearsal.  It was a lovely surprise to meet two great musicians in this faraway place and get a taste of real, swinging jazz.

Before I left the saxophonist whispered in my ear in his wonderfully accented English:  ”You have great time and you swing”.  It was a cool moment.