The Croatian city of Dubrovnik is astonishingly beautiful. An ancient wall surrounds the oldest part of the city with a section that fronts the Adriatic Sea. As you wander about the city’s ancient streets it feels as though you’re in a living, breathing museum.

Dubrovnik was originally built to service the maritime trade, around the 7th century, but its prosperity now comes from tourism. The city has a resident population of approximately 60,000 but attracted a staggering 1.2 million visitors in 2017.

In 1991 Dubrovnik was attacked by the Yugoslav People’s Army with a siege that lasted for seven months. There were 114 civilians killed and the walled city took 650 artillery hits. Following the end of the war, between 1995 and 1999, the damage was repaired in the original style, evidenced by the brightly coloured roof tiles you can see when looking down from the city walls.

We are staying in Dubrovnik for two nights before heading across to visit a few Dalmatian Islands. This morning we walked the entire city wall taking in some staggering views across the city and the Adriatic. The walk took two hours up and down many stairs. At the end we found a bar on the outside of the city wall with an amazing view of the Adriatic, and relaxed with a cold beer.