Croatia is a country of exceptional natural beauty and a rich history. Contemporary Croatia is small, just over 56,000 square kilometers. The southern, longer, and more narrow part lies in the richly indented eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. Here a series of about 926 islands provide protection for more safe navigation along an otherwise unprotected coast. These islands make up the southernmost region called Dalmatia. This is the area we sailed during our two weeks.
We began our wonderful journey in Trogir, after the usual long flights from the US. Our Little Ship Club friends were able to mostly hop on a two-hour flight from London. How nice to be able to arrive at such a wonderful place in a mere two hours! At Dalmatia Charters we all gathered and boarded our boats. The charter boats were very nice, clean, and had all we needed. Ours was a 46-foot Bavaria. We were able to provision nearby, and that first evening together we enjoyed dinner at one of the many fine restaurants along the Trogir waterfront.
First impressions of Croatia: fantastic weather, no bugs, palm trees, clean streets, lots of cats wondering around, beautiful historic buildings. The color of the Adriatic is an indescribable blue, and the people we encountered were so friendly. The waterfront was just teaming with activity and boats. Actually not only boats but also huge mega yachts that were rafted sometimes five deep.
Little Ship Club member, Michael Forbes Smith, planned the itinerary for all of us. He did not disappoint. We went to 11 different ports and walked around much of the historic cities in each of these spots. We sailed to Hvar, Korcula, Lastovo, Brac, Vis Kut, Skradin, Milna, Sibernik, Zadar, Rogoznica, and Split. Each port was as stunning as the one before, yet each was unique.
In addition, he organized a number of special events including a very special tasting luncheon in Korcula at the five-star Lesic Dimitri Palace, including all local fare of fresh fish, homemade bread, home produced olives, chocolate and fig cake, and local wines to complement each course. We dined outdoors overlooking the harbor and mountains beyond. Later we made our way to St Mark›s Cathedral to listen to a concert by The Royal Wind Music, an ensemble of 13 musicians from eight different countries, who performed wonderful renaissance-inspired music.
In Lastovo, we moored our boats in front of a small restaurant. We were introduced to a method of cooking called Peka. You must order your meal several hours ahead. We ordered fresh fish. The cooking area is a raised slab upon which coals are arranged and lit. The food container is placed upon the slab, and the coals are arranged around the container and also on top of it. The food inside the container cooks there until ready to be served. This was fantastic. Our whole table enjoyed this one large fish which was just perfectly prepared. We would try this method again while dining in Skradin, but there we had beef and lamb.
At many of these ports we would have ad hoc appetizers and drinks on the dock and share in the friendships that have developed over the years with our two clubs. If you were a by-stander, you would have heard lots of laughter and many a yarn.
One of the many, many highlights was the organ built into the sea wall in Zadar so that as a boat passes by, the wake pushes air into the «pipes» and creates this most interesting «organ» music. Also in Zadar were the remnants of the largest Roman forum on the eastern shore of the Adriatic and the largest Dalmatian Cathedral, an Episcopal complex, from the 12th and 13th century, along with the famous rotunda of St Donatus…
So each sailor has a memory all their own as to what was best about our trip. While there is so much more to see in Croatia, we did take a literal bite out of some of it.
Lastly, I must mention that Michael Forbes Smith is a bag pipe player and he played in a few of the towns after a nice meal and would stand at the bow of his boat piping as his sailboat left the harbor. This always drew onlookers who enjoyed it as much as we did and applauded as he finished. So special. Croatia is worth seeing! thecorinthians.org
by Denise Gill
