Hvar & Brac

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Another day visiting two islands, Hvar & Brac, with time for an afternoon swim stop in a secluded bay close to Milna.
We departed Korcula at 7am, no need for an alarm clock as the gentle noise of the engine starting up is enough to wake us. Breakfast is always at 8.00 and considering the size of the galley it's a surprise to see such a variety on offer. Juices, cereals, fresh fruits, yoghurt, a selection of hot dishes and plenty of choice of teas & coffee. We arrived at Hvar about 10.45, blue skies and lots of expensive looking yachts.A colourful promenade with restaurants dotted along the waters edge. Ferries take priority over tourist vessels in this region but it wasn't long before we pulled alongside another vessel for the usual staggered mooring. The city fortress dominated the skyline. Building of the fortress started after 1278 when Hvar came under Venetian rule. In 1551 a new fortress with the city walls was built.You could climb the 100 odd steps to the fortress but we chose to wander the old streets and along the pretty promenades. Our local guide gave details of the history of the island and like so many in this area the different occupations that tad ruled over tine. Another Venetian influence was the City Lodge, first mentioned in 1289, it burnt down during the Turkish invasion in 1571 but it was renovated later. St. Stephen's Cathedral 15th century - it's Sunday so we could not enter as there was a service & we could have returned later but after our walk around the rest of Hvar it was soon time to get back on the ship. We enjoyed a coffee in St.Stephen's Piazza with the wonderful aroma of lavender wafting through the air.Lavender which is still harvested by hand using traditional methods is a main income for the island along of course with Tourism. In September the tourist season is starting to decline but there were still plenty of visitors today either arriving by ferry, chartered vessels, private yachts and of course water taxis. We strolled along the watersedge passing colourful cacti and huge agave plants with small rocky enclaves leading down to the sea. I'll let the photographs do the talking! We rejoined our ship at 2pm - lunch was provided on board today, although with a swim stop at 3.30 we would have preferred a lighter lunch. We soon pulled into a secluded bay where we enjoyed a swim from the boat. Thankfully none of us sank! Our stop for this evening is Brac and the very small town of Milna situated at the end of a spacious bay in the western part of the island. Since olden days the island has been a place of fishermen & growers of grapes, almonds & olives. After our rather large lunch this evening we strolled ashore to enjoy a drink & light snack. We found a busy pizzeria - David & Benita shared an haiwain & I chose an appetiser (Croatian smoked ham, cheese platter) Well thank goodness we didn't order a main - the appetiser was huge !! Oh well will just have to do more walking tomorrow in Split.

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