I was on the terrace of a fancy Dubrovnik hotel in jeans and a T-shirt. A big shot was at the next table with his hair just right, a coat and tie, and fancy cuff links. I thought, wouldn’t it make more sense if the poor and powerless were the ones who had to dress up like that?
In Dubrovnik, the cruise ship crowds were so intense that we literally could not do our filming in the middle of the day. The city was inundated…a human traffic jam. I got a bit down. Then, as is so often the case, things cleared out and the town regained its charm. Those who stay after the tenders have stopped ferrying people back and forth enjoy a town the thousands who blitzed it from their ship have no appreciation of. It’s sad to think that the vast majority of Dubrovnik’s visitors see a hellishly crowded city and probably leave with the wrong impression. Even if they think they liked Dubrovnik, they didn’t really get to meet it.
There’s a buzz about how humble little Montenegro is emerging as “the new Mediterranean hotspot.” The tourist board there put my film crew in an “emerging hotspot” designer hotel on the Bay of Kotor. It was so elite and reclusive that I expected to see Idi Amin poolside. (Actually, I think he’s dead…but I thought it would be cool if they had a blow-up version of him just parked next to the pool on a lounge chair with a cocktail.)
The hotel, open just a month, was a comedy of horrible design. We felt like we were the first guests. My bathroom was far bigger than many entire hotel rooms — but the toilet was jammed in the corner. I had to tuck up my knees to fit between it and the sink cabinet. The room was dominated by a big Jacuzzi tub for two. I am certain there wasn’t enough hot water available to fill it. I doubt it will ever be used, except for something to look at as you’re crunched up on the toilet. My bed was vast, but without a side table light or even access to a light switch. A huge rain storm hit with fury enough to keep the automatic glass doors opening and closing on their own. Nothing drained — a torrent ran down the stairs outside the front door, and everything was dripping. With the rain, a horrible smell drove us out of our rooms. Just as we sat down to our breakfast, the storm knocked out the electricity. Looking past the candelabra on our table, the overwhelmed receptionist explained with a shrug, “When it rains, there is no electricity.” The man who runs the place just looked at us and said, “Cows.” (I think he meant “chaos.”)
Looking in the mirror the other day, I noticed how white my teeth looked. It reminded me that when I asked my dentist the best way to get my teeth whitened, he said, “Get a tan.” It’s so great to be getting sunshine and exercise on the road.
We drove by a Gypsy camp switchbacking from the Mediterranean coast up into the interior of Montenegro. Our guide explained the local Gypsies don’t want to go to school and don’t want to work. I commented that they don’t want their children to be taught lifestyles that threaten their nomadic ways. The camp was absolutely filthy. Our guide said, “That’s their aesthetic.” I couldn’t really imagine a society with an aesthetic to be sloppy…as if moms bark at her kids, “You can’t go out to play until you mess up your room.”
All over our world, nomadic cultures like the Roma (or Gypsy) culture are struggling — I think because they’re at odds with societies that require fences, conventional ownership, and non-nomadic ways. I wonder how many nomadic cultures (American Indians, Eskimos, Kurds, Gypsies) will be here in the next generation.
Cresting the mountain into the Montenegrin heartland, we came to a village that looked like it had no economy. Then a man took us into a big, blocky, white building that looked like a giant monopoly house. He opened the door and we stepped inside, under tons of golden ham peacefully aging. It was a smokehouse — jammed with five layers of hanging hamhocks. Our Montenegrin friend stoked up his fire, filled the place with smoke, and we filmed. More industry than you realize hides out in sleepy villages.
How messy were the Gypsies? Did it look like the streets of New Orleans after Mardi Gras?
Societies evolve based upon how successful they are. How do these societies rate success? The same as they have from the beginning of time; can they produce enough to feed themselves and sell to others. If the balance leans to them so that they produce far more than they consume and thus make profits that raise their standard of living, you find a prospering society. I think we will always have groups that do not seek to work and do not seek to educate. These groups will always have a different ethic. They will only change when the individual participants choose to do something else…like join another society. I do not begrudge the death of a non-sustainable culture nor do I begrudge the development of new successful societies. I find doing so can only happen when we focus completely on a single segment of their culture without looking at everything else. They fail, they die, because they fundamentally could not care satisfactorily for their own. I have never felt sadness when I see farmland that is worked, forests without litter, and cultures where people work hard, treat their neighbors well, and rejoice together. This post was different for me; it jumped too much to find any type of cohesive thought, and your reasons for the failure of Roma society seems devoid of any consideration of the principle of reaping what you sow. If you don’t work, you are not entitled to eat. That right does not exist for societies, but is reserved for the individual who is incapable of providing for themselves. Something wholly different and where dignity still exists.
Rick, Idi Amin did die–in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia back in 2003…… Can’t wait for the episodes for Montenegro…
Maybe the cows generate the electricity, and they refuse to work on rainy days?
I really enjoyed hearing about Montenegro. Back in the 70’s my sister introduced to Rex Stout and Nero Wolf. One of the more interesting books was The Black Mountain. Nero Wolfe was from Montenegro in this book he goes back to Montenegro in order to solve a crime. I think it’s based in the 50’s. It was a great book! Pam
The next time there are no words I will simply say, “cows.” It’s perfect!
Dubrovnik – “The other Venice”? Rick’s description of Dubrovnik could pass for Venice – “a human traffic jam” and “the thousands who blitzed it from their ship have no appreciation of” and “the vast majority of Dubrovnik’s visitors see a hellishly crowded city and probably leave with the wrong impression”. I felt exactly this way about Venice during our visit in 2004. The best part of our entire experience there was staying in a 5-star hotel on an island in the Venice lagoon that formerly was a women’s asylum. It was a beautiful and peaceful location, and the hotel food was truly outstanding — better than at any restaurant we ate at in Venice.
Nomadic Native American culture IS pretty much gone already–at least in the lower 48. Very, very few Native American peoples still retain much, if any, of their original culture whether nomadic or pastoral. Even the Navajo and Hopi cultures are slowly dying and to my knowledge are among the strongest of the lower 48. I am not as familiar with the Inuit and Eskimo people which is why I am intentionally leaving them out of the equation. Heck, even the most isolated indigenous peoples of Central and South America are slowly becoming westernized and losing their way of life. Slash and burn agriculture is destroying it.
Rick, your description of Dubrovnik: “Those who stay after the tenders have stopped ferrying people back and forth enjoy a town the thousands who blitzed it from their ship have no appreciation of. It’s sad to think that the vast majority of Dubrovnik’s visitors see a hellishly crowded city and probably leave with the wrong impression. Even if they think they liked Dubrovnik, they didn’t really get to meet it.” Replace “tenders” with “busses”, and your description could easily apply to Mont St. Michel… and judging by how much I enjoyed Mont St. Michel after dark, you’ve now convinced me to try Dubrovnik after dark as well.
Tom and others, go after dark! During the daytime in Dubrovnik, my husband and I began to “despise” all these N. American tourists crowding “our” city. Rick’s description is right on! We escaped to the outer reaches of the city and returned to enjoy Dubrovnik after the masses had departed!
Suggest less arrogance of passing mass judgment upon “cruise” travelers. My wife and I blend trips of “back door” travel style and at times take cruises which add another perspective to our experiences. Keep in mind that in order to make a political statement via travel; you first have to travel. So don’t judge the method of travel, seek to influence the mentality/attitude of the travelers!
Rick Steves is at his very best when writing pieces like this. Surprising, funny,informative, brutally honest, irreverant (about crowded cruise ships and cities), philosophical, and insightful. When he expresses himself like this, he becomes a true trip advisor. One of his blogs touches upon the nomadic Roma (gypsies) and their aversion to roots and the way the majority live. I’ve met people like that all over the world including Alaska. In fact, I think RS hires some nomadic types and they are outstanding at their jobs as guides because they are unique and relatively unconventional. It makes them irreplaceable. But the thrust of this note is: Rick should keep writing stories like this one and let the chips fall where they may. Bill Kester, Pendleton, SC
I don’t know if that “fancy hotel” was the historic Dubrovnik Hilton, but it certainly sounds like it. That is one of my all-time favorite properties. After dealing with the excessive crowds during the day, it was refreshing to sit on the executive club terrace sipping cool Croatian white wine (PoÅ¡ip) and perusing Rick’s book to figure out a good local choice for dinner/entertainment after the cruise crowds had left. The view from the Hilton’s terrace is absolutely stunning. The rooms are a little pricey if you pay with real money, but definitely an excellent use of Hilton HHonors points. Their restaurant was also very good.
Dear Rick, You Must have been Exhausteddddd when You wrote this LOL based on the” Stench” You described that Knocked You “All” out of Your Rooms on your way to Breakfast,I’d Venture to Guess that manager DID mean “Cows”Not Chaos..sorry still Laughing..Tara Addesa PS:BTW,Feel Free to blow off your encounter with Rachel Ray,god knows the rest of the world has LOL Martha Stewart she’ll NEVER be..she doesn’t know the diff between a Measuring Cup and a Measuring Spoon!R.Ray bar None Ranks as 1of thee Top 3 Worst things that Ever happened to Oprah! Wow did I need these Laughs today!Thanks Rick and Happy Humorous Travels