The Grand Walking Tour of Dubrovnik, Part 2

October 19, 2023 · by Dano · in Dubrovnik

Carrying on our journey through the Old City, yep, more churches. For some reason, Europe is, or was, fascinated with religion. Hence, tons of churches in almost every town we visit, and since we like architecture, churches are the perfect place to see how amazing the builders were in ancient times. I know you may get tired of reading about Gothic vaults, or Romanesque facades, but honestly, they are amazing buildings that have stood for centuries. Think your home will be here in 200 years?

OK, back to the tour. The next site we visited was Saint Blaise church. Saint Blaise is the Patron Saint of Dubrovnik. The church was constructed to honor the saint for saving the city from total devastation from the 1667 earthquake. The church was built between 1706-1714 in Baroque style on the site of a 14^th century church that was damaged in the quake. The façade is divided by four Corinthian columns with a statue of Saint Blaise in the center opening, and the personification of Faith and Hope in the side openings.

St. Blaise church. The steps are a popular place for people-watching

One more church to go, Saint Ignatius. This one is located at the top of the stairway used in the Game of thrones series where Cersie made her “walk of shame”. We’ll get to those after this church. Saint Ignatius church was built between 1699-1725 with a single nave and side chapels. It was built in Baroque style and has frescoes of the Saint’s life throughout the interior. The bell tower has bells from 1355 which are the oldest bells in Dubrovnik. The facade is missing two statues the were lost at sea while being transported to Dubrovnik.

Saint Ingatius church with missing statues on each side.

Beautiful Baroque altar in St. Ignatius church

Now the stairway. We haven’t talked much about Dubrovnik and the Game of Thrones series. Dubrovnik was the main location for filming scenes involving “Kings Landing”. The fortifications at the harbor, the Stradum, and these stairs are all recognizable sites from the series. Because the series was so popular, hordes of groupies (are film fanatics called groupies?) want to tour this city. That adds a bit of extra foot traffic to the 2-3 cruise ship, and 5-6 bus tours that arrive here daily. But, we’re here so we’re going to see these sites! Have to say, the fortifications of this city are perfect for such a series.