Korcula, Croatia
The island of Korcula lies just over mile off the Croatian mainland, some 50 miles north of Dubrovnik. Its mild climate and fertile soil have attracted settlers from the earliest times: Greeks, Romans, Ilyrians, Croatians, Venetians, not to mention the occupying Italians and Germans of the Second World War. Dense growths of native holm-oak and aromatic plants gave the island a reputation in classical times as a sort of Garden of Eden, the forest receding as the ship-building industry expanded. Together with tourism and olive oil production, shipbuilding is a continuing source of employment on the island.
The town from which the island derives its name is one of the best-preserved mediaeval towns of the Adriatic. We had an early morning tour inside the walled town, followed by a coach tour of the island. Maro Polo was born here in 1254, famously journeying to the court of the Kublai Khan in 1275. In 1298 he commanded a galley at the Battle of Korcula (known to the Venetians as Corcula); the Venetians were defeated and he was taken as a prisoner to Genoa where he wrote the famous account of his travels. His birthplace is next to the basilica Cathedral church of St Mark which has a pair of Venetian lions guarding the portal, a reminder of the island’s involvement with the Venetian sea-borne empire. The cathedral houses fine works by Tintoretto, even as the adjacent Bishop’s House surprises with sketches penned by Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael. All this proved a perfect appetizer for La Serenissima, for which heavenly destination we set sail over lunch.
The island of Korcula lies just over mile off the Croatian mainland, some 50 miles north of Dubrovnik. Its mild climate and fertile soil have attracted settlers from the earliest times: Greeks, Romans, Ilyrians, Croatians, Venetians, not to mention the occupying Italians and Germans of the Second World War. Dense growths of native holm-oak and aromatic plants gave the island a reputation in classical times as a sort of Garden of Eden, the forest receding as the ship-building industry expanded. Together with tourism and olive oil production, shipbuilding is a continuing source of employment on the island.
The town from which the island derives its name is one of the best-preserved mediaeval towns of the Adriatic. We had an early morning tour inside the walled town, followed by a coach tour of the island. Maro Polo was born here in 1254, famously journeying to the court of the Kublai Khan in 1275. In 1298 he commanded a galley at the Battle of Korcula (known to the Venetians as Corcula); the Venetians were defeated and he was taken as a prisoner to Genoa where he wrote the famous account of his travels. His birthplace is next to the basilica Cathedral church of St Mark which has a pair of Venetian lions guarding the portal, a reminder of the island’s involvement with the Venetian sea-borne empire. The cathedral houses fine works by Tintoretto, even as the adjacent Bishop’s House surprises with sketches penned by Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael. All this proved a perfect appetizer for La Serenissima, for which heavenly destination we set sail over lunch.
