Because I had the chance to visit Dubrovnik, Croatia, a few years ago, on this visit I decided to forgo visiting the Old City, climbing its enormous encircling walls and strolling its charming, medieval streets. Instead, I embarked on one of Holland America‘s “Cruise with Purpose” shore excursions entitled “A Silk Tale.” Our visit would help support a small organization which keeps the ancient and traditional craft of silk production alive in Croatia.

Experiencing the heat and humidity already present on this early morning as we stepped aboard our minibus (only 15 passengers took part on this excursion), and learning that the Old City would be crowded with visitors from 10 cruise ships in port that day, I decided I’d definitely made the right choice.

We traveled south along a winding coastal roadway for about half an hour, the lovely sea views rendered hazy by smoke from wildfires burning in the mountains just to the east across Croatia’s border with Bosnia. As we drove, our guide, Anna, gave us a brief history of the region and its prominence on the trade route between Asia and Venice and the rest of Europe from the Middle Ages on. She also gave us a picture of modern life here and also commented frankly on the Bosnian War.

Although that conflict began some 20 years ago with the break up of the former Yugoslav republic, it remains at the forefront of the people’s lives here. The ethnic strife between the Bosnians, Serbs and Croats was formally ended with NATO intervention and peace accords struck in 1995; but evidence of the fighting can still be seen in war-damaged homes in the region. (HIstoric Dubrovnik was restored by UNESCO funds, so most casual visitors there don’t see evidence of the war.) Anna spoke solemnly of her serious concerns about the deep divisions and mistrust that continue to exist between the three and what they bode for the future of her land.

Later, as we visited with the two ladies, each in her 70s, who run the silk-making operation we toured, the subject of the recent war came up again. They spoke of memories from their childhood of the German occupation of their homeland during World War II. Although there was partisan resistance against the Axis occupation locally, the ladies noted that the German and Italian forces did not retaliate against the citizens and maintained fairly good relations with them. Far more damage and death came about during the Bosnian War than they experienced in World War II.

While I enjoyed learning about traditional silk production on this visit (more on that, tomorrow), I valued even more this opportunity to hear the perspectives of those whose lives have been impacted by an event with which they continue to struggle daily yet which seems distant to most of the rest of the world.

— Patty Vanikiotis, associate editor/copy editor