A Game of Thrones
by George RR Martin
The Name of the Wind
by Patrick Rothfuss
The Way of Kings
by Brandon Sanderson
An Ember in the Ashes
by Sabaa Tahir
Game of Owns
From About: "Podcasting through George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire and HBO's Game Of Thrones. Join the podcast chapter by chapter, season by season, with visits from artists, actors, and producers of the series."
Radio Westeros
From Home: "We feature literary analysis of the entire series, following character arcs or themes, and include theories alongside readings, pseudo adverts from Westeros, and guests from the fandom."
PodCastle
From About Us: "PodCastle is a weekly fantasy podcast producing audio performances of fantasy short fiction, including all the sub genres of fantasy, including magical realism, urban fantasy, slipstream, high fantasy, and dark fantasy."
Welcome to Westeros, and may the Seven bless you! Such blessings you will need...be careful who you visit and who you confide in. Watch every word, guard every secret, and always have at least two different escape plans. Even the most common folk may get swept away in the game of thrones. Especially here, in King's Landing - the former seat of Houses Baratheon, Lannister, and Targaryen - now the current seat of House Snow. If you'd believe it, that only covers the previous decade! Talk about a high turnover rate.
Seaside view of Dubrovnik, Croatia. Image provided by Pixabay via Wikimedia Commons
The real-life city we are visiting is actually Dubrovnik, Croatia. Croatia is a coastal country East of Italy that shares its long Western border with the Adriatic sea. Dubrovnik is a UNESCO World Heritage site, notable for its Old Town which features medieval architecture and fortifications.
In film, Dubrovnik was the setting for King's Landing in Game of Thrones (GoT), but also for Qarth and Meereen! Furthermore, Star Wars fans will be delighted to learn that it is also the setting for the casino city Canto Bight in the new trilogy.
Featured below is a Game of Thrones inspired walking tour of Dubrovnik. Key features of the tour include the locations for Old Town, the Red Keep, Blackwater Bay, the Tyrell Gardens (from the fictional city Meereen), the Rector's Palace, and other great locations where memorable scenes took place.
Are you feeling inspired yet? Should you want your own walking tour, check out the company King's Landing Dubrovnik and pick from a handful of options, including the walking tour and Karaka cruise combo or the Dubrovnik and Split tour which allows you to see more of the fictional city of Meereen, the Diocletian fortress, the mountainside fortress of Klis, sit on the Iron Throne, and more!
If you're bargain hunting for GoT tours, there are other companies and vendors that offer a variety of tours. Peruse the web and find out what works best for you and your crew!
Split, Croatia - which served as the fictional city Meereen. Image provided by LenDog64 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/lendog64/5847486405)
Save King's Landing Escape Room
Also offered in the city is the Save King's Landing escape room.
Becky and company find the wildfire and save King's Landing. Image from BeckyBeckyBlogs, credit to PuzzlePunks
This escape room takes place at a peak moment in Season 2: The Battle of Blackwater Bay. King's landing is under siege. Unfortunately, a maester has a secret store of wildfire that must be saved in a certain amount of time. If the wildfire is destroyed by the invading forces, it will cause the complete destruction of King's Landing and all its inhabitants. Do you have the wits to save the city?
Dubrovnik WITHOUT Game of Thrones
Do you feel betrayed by Season 8? Are you over the GoT hype? Dubrovnik still has lots to explore without involving any more dragons, wildfire, sorcery, or scheming. The video below offers a glimpse of this paradise city without the rose-tinted glasses of movie magic blurring our senses. In it, you'll be treated to the finest gourmet foods (there are plenty of seafood options in this coastal city), take a cable car up to Dubrovnik's summit to the Imperial Fortress (built by Napoleon when he controlled the area), go swimming, and even island hopping. There are plenty of recreational activities to participate in, and if you need to cool down, get some gelato, which rivals that of Croatia's Italian neighbors across the sea.
An early and memorable feast early in Game of Thrones is the funeral feast for the Westerosi king, Robert Baratheon. He was slain by the boar he hunted while hosting the Stark family...specifically Ned, whom he made "Hand of the King." As we later learn, there were other, more devious circumstances at play in the king's demise, but one thing is for certain - on his death bed, King Baratheon ordered Stark to cook and eat the boar as a final act of vengeance.
With no further ado, let's get cooking with the help of Felicia and her blog, The Starving Chef.
Pork ribs on a wooden dish. Image provided by https://thestarvingchefblog.com/2016/04/baratheon-boar-ribs-game-of-thrones.html
Description - These pork ribs are a savory entrée with a crispy outer layer from pan searing, but tender and juicy on the inside. If you prefer your meals eaten by fork and knife, this may not be for you. If you don't mind breaking out the wet naps after releasing your inner savage, then you have a meal fit for a king...at least one for his funeral.
Do you prefer your apples without the boar? Try this Cersei Lannister inspired salad instead. Or, pair it with the pork ribs to feel less guilty about the carnivorous indulgence above.
Cersei's Bitter Greens and Sour Apple Salad
Apple salad on a clear glass plate. Image provided by https://thestarvingchefblog.com/2017/07/cerseis-bitter-greens-sour-apple-salad-game-of-thrones-recipes.html
Description - Bitter greens and pine nuts, topped with sour apple, then drizzled with a sweet and sour dressing composed of honey and vinegar tantalize the entire palate. The addition of the dragon fruit is a spiteful move and ironic move, considering Cersei was eventually "hoisted by her own petard" as Shakespeare wrote so long ago.
