Split (Croatia) - Island Hopping in the Adriatic - Brac and Hvar
Being able to experience the beautiful coast and waters of the Adriatic Sea alone has been a once in a lifetime journey. The weather, the vibe, the food, the beaches. This experience is what we were after, and had a tough time explaining it to people back home. It was a strangely polarized response when we'd say where we were heading first. It was either (and more commonly) "Croatia?? Why??" or "Ohhhhhhhh I'd love to go there!!!". Now I'll give people in the US a bit of a break here, as there is some recent history that might make this location seem a bit dicey, namely the break-up of Yugoslavia in the 90s and early 2000s. Croatia was indeed involved in numerous pieces of this conflict, and there are areas that got messed up pretty badly. So I can understand the questioning glances we'd get. However, given the number of flights and locations available from the tiny airport there in Split, Europeans seem much more aware of what a very beautiful, intriguing, and downright amazing place Croatia is. And I'd say Split is a big part of that considering the numbers of people we experienced speaking German, French, accented English, Italian, and so many others.
One very cool aspect of where we were in Croatia was the ability to easily hop around to the many islands along the coastline. Depending on the definition used, there are over 1000 individual islands dotted throughout the Adriatic sea along Croatia's coast. Many of them are fairly small, and don't really lend themselves to tourism per say, however there are numerous larger islands with their own claims to fame, and they're very easy to get to by ferries that leave the harbor at Split constantly. Much like Split itself, many of the small ports, harbors, and towns on these islands were established a very long time ago. Meaning the historical significance of the buildings and other various structures in the small towns themselves is impressive! If you make the effort to do so, trying to imagine yourself pulling into one of these towns as a merchant or traveler (maybe a pirate?) many many hundreds of years ago makes it a very fun experience.
During our relatively short/long time there we were able to hop over to towns on two islands specifically, Brac and Hvar. On Hvar Island we visited the town of Hvar itself. It's definitely not a big town when coming from Split (4500 people vs. around 500k) but it's definitely got a lot of character packed into it. Like the old parts of Split, Hvar is very very old, and the structural, architectural, and cultural details still existing definitely make you feel it. From the always present, and gorgeous, marble streets and walks, to the old stone buildings with columns and decorative work from different dynasties, to the cathedral on the town square. But easily the most stark example of the age and importance of this small village is the Ancient Fortress that keeps watch over it atop a nearby hill. It's been built and rebuilt a couple times, most recently by the Spanish. And luckily for us it's not a terribly far hike, and is even open for the public to look around. Very cool to again try to imagine yourself looking down on the harbor from a canon position.
Hvar has a lot of the usual things that make Mediterranean coastal towns so great to look around. You can find anything from the most cheesy souvenirs to some high fashion pieces to wear while gazing on the crystal clear waters from the highest deck of your yacht (you do have a yacht correct?). And even as small as this town is, there were more than a couple Yachts moored around the harbor to complete the scene. There are various options for different types of cuisine, again from cheap street food to upscale dining. And luckily for us too, as the boys were still very much in a chicken nuggets and cheese pizza phase. And aside from all the things there are to Do in such a small place, some of the most rewarding can just be finding a nice quiet place to sit down and just take in the scene. Watch the ferries load and unload their cargo of tourists. See fishermen and diving tours slalom through the larger vessels to get in and out of the harbor as they need to. See if you can pick apart which buildings originate from which ruling power's influence. Or just simply look out on the clear turquoise and deep blues of the Adriatic. It's an amazing place to just simply be. Whether you actually do anything or not. We highly recommend it!
Our other sea faring excursion was to a small town called Bol, on the island of Brac. The area around the harbor in Bol looks pretty similar to other small towns like Hvar, but they all have their fun little differences. We even found a winery right along the harbor area so Christina could taste some authentic Croatian wine! We didn't explore much around downtown Bol, as we had a reservation at an all inclusive resort a short jaunt away. The resort itself was very cool, and we just may go back someday. In fact, it introduced us to a new game (actually a very old game) that we were somehow able to find later on. It's called Prstomet, and comes from Slovenia originally, but I'll get to that another time. The coolest part about the resort is that it's a short walk away from one of the coolest things about Bol itself; the Zlatni Rat beach. This beach is also called "The Golden Horn", and it's easy to see how it got its name. I have no idea how the sea currents must flow to do this, but the way they interact here in Bol ends up forming a small peninsula of pebbles that function just perfectly as the most interesting beach you've ever seen. It really is like a little horn out into the Adriatic. Nearby in the forested park next to the island, a varied lot of vendors set up shop. There are upscale sit-down diners, lounges, and bars, right next to carts selling street pizza, gelato, and of course the ever present souvenirs. Just like Hvar, we definitely recommend stopping by Bol if you get the chance. There's so much going on in this little place it's tough to cover all of it.
These are just two of the very unique places you can travel to on the islands of Croatia. Given some more time we'd love to have visited more. But perhaps later on down the road we'll make it back!!
