Islands of Croatia

Croatia has roughly 1000 islands off its coast. We chose to explore three of these islands. The first was Brać, a ferry ride from both Split and Markaska. We thought it smart to drive to Markaska and try and catch the ferry from there with the car. We quickly found out this wasn’t the best idea because the ferry only accommodated about 25 cars and we did not arrive early enough. Instead we found parking for the day and were walk on passengers. The ferry configuration was such that the cars were loaded by driving on forwards, but when they unloaded at Brać the had to disembark driving backwards. A pleasant 30 minute ferry ride and were docked at Brać. It was once again a very hot day and we had a 15 minute walk to the beach we planned to hang out at. Walking through town was pleasant with very nice buildings to look at and an abundance of olive trees to see.

The beach again was a rocky beach and was quite packed, but we found a great spot on a large flat rock. We quickly jumped into the water to cool off and enjoy the day sunbathing and swimming. We had a quick bit to eat on our way back to the ferry and the entire time I was pacnicked that we could miss the ferry because well food service isn’t the quickest here. In the end it all worked out and my panicking was pointless. Returning back to the mainland, we walked around Markaska for a bit and checked out its market and beach. At one of the shops, one of th locals working said to us, “why would you come to Markaska? There’s nothing to do here.” We thought that pretty funny. Just as we finished our shopping and we’re heading back to our cars, a rainstorm started and the skies opened up with a deluge of rain. We were going to wait it out under a small awning outside the grocery store but decided it better to make a run for it and got rather soaked instead. To cap off the day trip, we bought some of the best tasting gelato so far on the trip.

Our second island adventure was to the island of Solata, also off the coast by Split. Learning from our last ferry experience we decided that we’d walk on as passengers this time. Funny thing is the ferry was much larger this time and we could probably have driven on. It didn’t really matter because greeting us on our arrival to Solata were our Croatian neighbours who happen to also be in Croatia. They invited us over to their place and we ended up visiting with them and their youngest daughter and her family for the day. We were greeted by Joseph at the ferry and driven to the family home which has been in his family for some 500 years. Here we picked up Lily and they took us swimming at a locals hangout. We would never have known of its existence had we travelled to this island on our own. The water was once again so crystal clear and so refreshing. We spent some time snorkelling and swam a distance in search for some narrow shells that grow vertically out of the ocean floor. We had never seen anything like that before. For some strange reason, the water here seemed a little different in that Z was actually able to float on his back. Usually his feet start to sink and he can’t stay afloat properly, but only here that didn’t happen. After swimming for about an hour we drove Lily back to the house and she started on lunch while Joseph took us on a driving tour of his home island. There is a homely feeling on this island; everyone seems to know everyone. There are so many beautiful coves and outcropping where you can take a refreshing dip in the ocean. The road are some of the most narrow I’ve seen and Joseph navigated them like an expert. After our island tour, we enjoyed a very tasty home cooked meal with the family and enjoyed great conversation. We felt very welcome and appreciated the invitation. After a lengthy lunch and some down time we went back to the swimming place for an after dinner cool off dip. This capped off a most enjoyable day and before we knew it, it was time to hear back on the last ferry for the night. We enjoyed sitting outside on the upper deck and took in the brilliant sunset. 

Our last island adventure took us to Lokrum, an island off Dubrovnik. This island is famous for not only being a Nature Reserve, but also as a filming location for the series Game of

Thrones. We took a boat from the town of Mlini, a short 15 minute walk from our hotel in Dubrovnik. The boat ride took about an hour with its stops along the way. There is an entry fee to access the island, which is likely meant to help preserve the island. The sites to see on the island are the monestary (filiming location for Game of Thrones), the botantical gardens, the fort, a lake called the Dead Sea and off course the cliffs and various rock formations. We found our way to a popular swimming area where access to the water was either climbing down a ladder, or cliff jumping. Most choose the cliff jumping route. There were several different heights where people were jumping and the higher up, the more time it took some to muster the courage to jump. I had no courage and chose the ladder route. Z on the other hand went the jumping route and enjoyed the thrill. After drying off, we enjoyed a fabulous lunch at Lacroma where we were entertained by some live music. The island is k on for its wild peacocks and wild rabbits. As we were finishing off our meal, a bunny hopped around the restaurant in search of food. Several of the patrons gave it some bread and for a wild rabbit, it was very comfortable engaging with people.