29 December 2021 | At the moment, I am in the midst of a 10-hour overnight FLiX bus, bound to Zagreb. Writing using phone which is a bit challenging. I still feel ecstatic over the Dubrovnik hangover and the underlying after-effects of my farewell Dubrovnik beer. I could not catch some sleep probably because of that cheap coffee I had in the bus station prior to departure or possibly due to the fact that I am not exactly sober after drinking more alcohol than water in the last 7 days.
Undoubtedly, Dubrovnik stands out as the most remarkable destination I have visited during my recent five-month exploration of various cities beyond Tartu. In addition to the famed Game of Thrones badge forever etched into this village being a key filming location i.e., King's Landing, the city was effortlessly stunning. Enduring extra-long hours of bus ride is definitely worth it, to which our Dubrovnik cab driver couldn't agree more – Dubrovnik is beautiful just the way it is, with GOT or GOT without.
OK, short story time: Small talk necessities, the man behind the wheel learned that I was from the Philippines. Unsolicitedly, he delved into a heated Philippine politics discussion right away. The conversation was so deep but doomed, he somewhat played the seniority/territorial card, bombarding and lecturing me about things like fairness and the justice system, concluding horribly how good it is to have a Du30 kind of president, in an expectedly themed, familiarly patterned, patented broken DDS record of the same old narratives. I never anticipated such an uncomfortable exchange on such a topic and setting, completely unwarranted and utterly unnecessary. Moreover, there was no valid reason to make a fuss over it for several reasons. Firstly, he doesn't even have the power to vote in the upcoming elections. Secondly, he had the audacity to talk shit about Game of Thrones, a television series he never bothered to watch. That speak volumes about the twisted workings of his mind, then having the nerve to voice out strong opinions about such things he didn't know anything about. The moment felt dreadful the same way the Starks feared the coming winter, but I figured the most sensible course of action was to remain silent, let it pass, and simply move on.
Too bad of a Croatia travel experience it was, but that disappointing local encounter was erased, fast-forward to this very moment. Right on this very bus back to Zagreb, a Croatian seatmate keeps on insisting to share his food, even filled me up with a cup of drink, despite my declining the generous offer at least more than twice. I was not thirsty nor hungry, but here I am sharing a snack with a total Croatian stranger. The gesture surely calmed my bothered soul and dreary heart.
