The problems continue in neighboring Bosnia, see this Associated Press/Yahoo News article. Can you say "genocide?" What an interesting place the Balkan Peninsula is.
In quick summary, the Balkans "enjoy" three religions, two alphabets, and a long, bloody history of bushwhacking each other. One other thing to know about the region, nobody ever forgets a wrong done to them or their ancestors. People still cite, as reasons for violence, things done in the 1500s. It is worth mentioning that Slovenia and Croatia are partial to the Germans and Austrians while the Serbs and Macedonians favor the Russians.
Talk about a tourist magnet, Dubrovnik often attracts five cruise ships at a time, today it only has four. Each brings in 2-3000 passengers, all of whom get bussed to the Pane gate to old town and are thereafter on foot. Talk about a crowd, Dubrovnik has it. In May it was almost as bad as the Louvre or Versailles in July. Our guides knew a trick and we saw the town at night when most cruise passengers are back aboard their floating hotels - much better.
We are here in late May and it is sweaty hot, I cannot imagine what it will be like in July or August. Most of the tourists are speaking other-than-English, a sound which grates on the English speaking ear. Many may be relatively local, from Slovenia or Montenegro, or even Serbia. Italy is close too, across the relatively narrow Adriatic Sea. We thought we would beat the heat and crowds by getting here in May, we were wrong.
