Day 26 – Hvar Island (Wednesday 8th May 2024)

At 5:00am the alarm sounded signalling the start of the next day’s adventures. We were packed and ready to go the night before as all good travellers should be. Can’t be running late and miss the bus, or in this case the boat. Bashkim had booked us on the 6:00am ferry to Hvar Island – about 90 minutes north of Korcula. Kerry and I arrived at the appointed meeting place down by the northern dock to be greeted by all of our travelling companions, ready to roll. All that was missing was any sign of other life and a ferry. A concerned local arrived who insisted that the ferry to Hvar was going to leave from the southern dock on the other side of the old town. Bashkim arrived and insisted with equal earnestness that the boat was to depart from where we stood. He had inquired multiple times the day before and was told on each occasion that it was leaving from the Korcula dock. But another insistent local came along and convinced Bashkim to move us to the other side. Sure enough there we found a great big ferry and a crew looking for some lost passengers!

 

Our journey from Korcula to Hvar was infinitely smoother than our journey from Korcula to Mljet yesterday morning. Smooth as. On time we entered the marina of Hvar Town and docked. Our bags deposited in a dockside travel agency we headed off for an introductory walk around the marina, led by Bashkim. The morning was warm and the sun was shining. At the top of the marina and to the east is a very large paved square which leads to the Cathedral of St. Stephen. The square is flanked by elegant buildings that provide a home to bars, restaurants, cafe’s, supermarkets and an old restored theatre. From the cafe-lined eastern side dock where the ferry landed the streets rise quite steeply, given over mostly to the residences of Hvar Town’s citizens. The white-walled, red-roofed houses and apartment buildings make quite a sight in the evening as the setting sun bathes them in its light. To the north of the marina is a small green park in front of more elegant buildings including the tourist bureau and a flash hotel. Along the western side some more restaurants, more hotels and large park on the hill.

The path that follows around the headland finds its way to a little pebble beach where the water is clear and still. Towering high above all this is the Hvar Fortress, a huge stone edifice with walls that extend almost to the marina below.

With all the important landmarks locked away in our collective memory through a maze of lanes we walked until we reached a cafe where breakfast had been prepared for us. Our tables awaited in a walled courtyard towered over by the adjoining ancient residences. After a leisurely breakfast of fruit, yoghurt, cereal, bread, eggs, ham, cheese and coffee we walked back to the tourist bureau by the marina to rummage through our bags and cases to prepare for the next part of the day.

At 11:00am we boarded a lovely large wooden, double-decked boat named “Joan” and steamed out of the marina bound for the group of islands that lie just of Hvar Island to the south. The sun was trying to warm the day and the seas were calm so the sailing was good with most of us taking a seat in the roof-top deck chairs. Only about 30 minutes into the voyage our captain entered a little bay of the nearest island and then skirted around shoreline to the rear of the island. In a sheltered cove he dropped anchor 100 meters from the shore. There was no breeze to speak of and the sun was winning the battle with the clouds. The turquoise and deep blue waters were just too inviting so almost as one we stripped off and jumped into the sea. Yesterday we had made a pact that everyone would swim today so we were well prepared for our rapid entry into the water. Ahmed and I chose a more dramatic method of entry, jumping in from the roof. Guido, to his credit, performed an elegant dive into the water from the same place. Everyone else slipped into the water from the bottom deck.

 

 

For thirty minutes we enjoyed the refreshing waters of the Adriatic, floating effortlessly in the calm waters. After we’d all towelled off and redressed the captain sailed for another island. Everywhere one gazed across the blue seas the waters were littered with vessels of all shapes and sizes making their way towards their next destination. Some were large boats like ours, some were speed boats, many were sailing boats and a few fishing boats. By the time we reached our destination the wind had done its job and we were mostly dry. The captain pulled up alongside a floating pier and his first mate tied us up. This little marina was already the home to a fleet of half a dozen catamaran sailing boats. Unlike the previous island this one was populated and well setup for visitors like us. A few shops were trading around the marina area to support those who had docked there for a visit longer than ours. A short walk across the island revealed a little beach with a couple of adjoining bars. Lots of people here with very few swimming, most were just lying in the warm sun. Rather than join the swimmers and sun bathers our group retired to a bar set in a leafy green garden above the beach where we had a drink before returning to our boat.

Back at the boat the chef had been toiling away preparing lunch for us. On the bottom deck we enjoyed a meal of chicken or mackerel with a simple salad and plenty of white wine and soft drink. After lunch we cast off and sailed to another quiet cove where we dropped anchor again. Swimming was on offer again but with full bellies and a little wine and beer under our belts there were no takers. Most people took the opportunity to snooze in the deckchairs in the warm sun while some others gathered around the bow to chat and laugh and sip a drink or two. I must have nodded off at some stage because the next thing I knew we were halfway back to Hvar.

Once we’d docked we collected our bags from the tourist bureau where we met a lady who had allocated out rooms for the next two nights. Once again our group was not all in one hotel but scattered in apartments across the town. Vicky, Guido, Kerry and I were billeted in a white house up on a hill overlooking the town. The recently built or refurbished apartment is large and bright. We’ll be comfortable here for the next couple of nights. We all got ourselves organised, patted the resident dogs, and then took the 10 minute walk down to town where we found a bar with a view of the marina. By now the marina was full of boats. Tiny fishing boats competed for a mooring with huge small “ships”, a plethora of sailing catamarans and many three-level house boats docked “cheek by jowl” along the floating piers. It’s actually quite a sight to see such a mass of bows, sterns, masts, decks and cabins all jumbled together in one’s vision when walking the dock. As night fell we found an ice-cream vendor and walked back along the promenade and through the square back home after a long and fun-filled day.