The Orthodox Church is a relatively new addition to the town, in terms of the local churches. It was constructed in 1865. The reason for this is that the local Serbians were not allowed to build a formal house of worship within the city limits until just a few years before the construction of the building. After that point, it has remained a house of prayer since. There are not as many members around anymore, as many of the Serbians left the area during the war of 1991.

Anyone of any denomination is allowed to purchase and light votive candles here. The local congregation is happy to share that honor.

Upon entrance, one will be able to see the many icons of Cretan and Byzantine origin here. Just next door, there is also a museum that displays even more of the old icons from the church. Go up to the second floor to see them.

The church is free to visit for anyone who wishes to come. The museum has a nominal entrance fee. The building is open seven days a week.

Stradun or Placa is the limestone-paved pedestrianized Main Street of Dubrovnik. It extends to around 1,000 feet through the walled Old Town. In the 13th century, a swampy channel ran where Stradun Street is today. The street reaches neatly in an east-west direction between the western Pile Gate to Ploce Gate in the east.

The Large Onofrio's Fountain and the Franciscan Monastery are found by Pile Gate. The Small Onofrio's Fountain and the Dubrovnik Bell Tower are at the other end of the street by Ploce Gate. Stradun's current appearance is the result of rebuilding after the devastating earthquake of 1667.

The buildings lining the street today are all "of a size" rather uniform in design. Before the quake, houses on the street had arcades and were elaborately decorated. Most were destroyed by the fire that followed the earthquake. After all the quaking and burning, the Republic generated laws regulating housing construction in the city.

So, the 13th-century street has 17th-century housing. Ground levels were designed with shop fronts under a semicircular arch. The first floor (2nd floor USA) was meant as a living space. The floors above held extra rooms and a kitchen loft.

Stradun has become a favorite esplanade for tourists. Processions and events are held in the street. The Feast of Saint Blaise, the patron saint of the city, passes through on the 3rd of February. There are concerts at other times and of course, New Year's Eve.

The best way to see Stradun is to walk the street. Take a seat at one of the many cafes. Have a drink and watch the passing throng. The steps of Saint Blaise Church offer a good vantage point. Then there's always Orlando's Column in Luza Square.

Erected in 1418, the knight Orlando stands with a sword and shield in a niche. Some say Orlando defeated Saracen pirates in the eighth century. It's only a legend, but Orlando is a monument to the freedom of Dubrovnik.

The document dating from 1235 mentions the Franciscan Monastery of Saint Thomas in the Pile suburb of Dubrovnik. The monastery was demolished and re-established within the city walls in 1317 under threats of war with King Uros II of Serbia. After the quake of 1667, the church was renovated in the Baroque style.

The monastery complex is grandiose. There are two cloisters. The upper one is Renaissance, with arches and semicircular vaults. The lower cloister is a combination of Romanesque and Gothic elements. A courtyard is surrounded by galleries of arches with double columns, having capitals with flora, fauna, and geometric embellishments.

The cloister was built by architect Mihoje Brajkov of Bar in the early 13th century. It has 120 columns and 12 enormous pilasters. A fountain and statue of Saint Francis is in the center of the cloister. The well-preserved Minor Friars Pharmacy has inventory from 1317. It has furnishings from Siena and Florence from the 15th and 16th centuries.

Other exhibits in the museum include presses, mortars, scales, a 14th-century still, and rare manuscripts. The Museum Library holds copies of medieval manuscripts, chorales, and highly valued paintings by forgotten masters. There is a 14th-century head relic of St. Ursula and an assortment of ex-voto jewelry (a collection of one-of-a-kind and limited edition pieces designed by Elizabeth from antique elements).

A devastating earthquake shook Dubrovnik on May 17, 1520. About twenty people were killed, and several buildings suffered heavy damage. The local senate of the Republic of Ragusa in Dubrovnik decided that while it was bad, it could have been worse. Out of gratitude for divine forbearance, they called for a small votive church to be built.

Architect Petar Andrijić, from the island of Korcula, received the commission in 1520. The church of Saint Saviour, dedicated to Jesus Christ, is located near Pile Gate. It has one nave and a Gothic ribbed vault ceiling. The slender side windows have Gothic pointed arches. Still, the front facade shows Renaissance motifs.

The three-leaf curved top of the upper level and the semicircular apse are certainly Renaissance elements. The main portal archway is flanked by slender columns supporting a triangular pediment. The entablature above bears an inscription in Latin expressing gratitude to God that the town had been spared even worse destruction.

In 1667 Dubrovnik was hit harder than ever by another quake. Around 5,000 people were killed, and much of the city was flattened. But Saint Saviour's Church was miraculously spared. Even its elegant rose window survived intact. The church remains today as it was in 1667, emerging unmarred amid disaster.

Enter the Old Town through the Pile Gate to Stradun Street. On the right-hand side is a sixteen-sided cylindrical-like stone structure with sixteen water taps. The polygonal stone tank is capped with a reddish brick cupola. This is the terminus of the town aqueduct system known as the Large Onofrio's Fountain.

The fountain was designed in 1438 by the Neapolitan architect Onofrio di Giordano della Cava. He planned the town's waterworks and fountains. He built the Large Fountain by Pile Gate and the smaller one in Luza Square. He also constructed a 7.5-mile-long supply system from Knezica Spring directly to the Old Town.

The Large Onofrio's Fountain has one stone-carved mask ("maskeron") in each of the 16 large panels. A statue of a dog named "Kuchak," meaning "fountain dog," adorns the top of the fountain walls. Kuchak is a replica of the original, badly damaged in the earthquake of 1667. The fountain was another location used in TV's Game of Thrones.

The town fountains were the main source of potable water until the end of the 19th century. They still provide clean, drinkable water today. The Large Onofrio's Fountain location by the Church of Saint Saviour is also a popular meeting place for visitors and locals.

"Kill them, kill them all!" King Joffrey is under attack by an angry mob when he returns to Red Keep. But wait. There is no King Joffrey and there is no Red Keep. This is actually season two, episode 6 of the TV series, "Game of Thrones." The "Red Keep" is Pile Gate, the main entrance to the old walled city of Dubrovnik, Croatia.

The name Pile is derived from the Greek word "pylaj", meaning "gate." Most walking tours of the Old City start at the 15th-century Pile Gate. It is a good starting point for a walk on the city walls as well. The gate is located on the western side of the walls. It leads directly to Stradun Street, the main promenade of Dubrovnik.

Pile Gate is actually made up of two gates. The inner gate was built in 1460. The outer gate dates from 1537. The Pile Gate complex is defended by the Cylindrical Fort Bokar and the formidable moat that ran around the outside of the inner wall. The moat today is dry. It is a ribbon of landscaped parkland between the two walls.

A stone bridge with Gothic arches at each end, designed by architect Paskoje Milicevic in 1471, connects to a wooden drawbridge inserted over the moat. At night, the drawbridge would be raised to block the gateway. A Romanesque statue of the patron Saint Blaise is above the gateway arch. He holds a model of the city in one hand.

The entire Old City is enclosed in a veritable curtain of stone. The walls are 6,373 feet long and as much as 82 feet high in some places. The landside wall is supported by 10 circular bastions and a casemate fortress. The two main entrances to the city are The Pile Gate in the west and the Polce Gate in the east.

*** Game of Thrones Tour ***
The Pile Gate has been featured in a number of episodes of Game of Thrones Seasons 2 and 3, most notably in Season 2, Episode 6 ‘The Old Gods and the New’. In a scene where King Joffrey returns to Red Keep after Marcella is sent away to Dorne, he gets attacked by the angry mob gathered at the entrance and screams ‘Kill them, kill them all’. The Gate also shows in Season 3, Episode 10 ‘Mhysa’ when Jamie Lannister returns to King’s Landing.