Aug 9 - I searched for public transport from Trebinje to Dubrovnik several times in the last week, and came up with nothing. It is only 30 km between the two cities on a surfaced highway, which seems easily manageable. It does involve a border crossing, though there is no political reason why cross-border traffic should be restricted in this particular case.
The owner of the apartment we are staying confirmed that there were no buses when I asked about it, and suggested his friend could take us for a fee. At 35 Euros for the three of us, I didn’t see much cost downside to doing this, plus the deal was ‘door-to-door’, meaning we didn’t have to get to the bus station in Trebinje, or sort out additional transport to get into the Lapad district from the bus station in Dubrovnik.
He did mention, however, that taxis were not supposed to operate across the border. That seemed really strange to me, given the dearth of buses. The suggestion was that I say nothing about paying for the ride if asked by immigration authorities.
We leave Trebinje at 9:00 in the friend’s car, and wind through rocky scrublands, until a view of the coast opens up far below. Tucked into the mountainside are the two immigration posts, which we blow through quickly and with no questions. Things get slower once we get into Dubrovnik, as the tourist crush is exactly as we’ve come to expect on the Croatian coast. Takes forever to wind up the hill in the Lapad district and find the apartment.
