Hvar
All night long we were intrigued with the dramatic lighting of the citadel of Hvar, almost floating above the harbor lights below from our vantage point anchored in the bay. A beautiful sunrise shed light on this enchanting medieval town backed by an island of limestone and lavender. Though it was Sunday morning, the harbor seemed busy with small boats and ferries, all racing about from one side of the harbor to the other.
We took Zodiacs ashore at the singular Franciscan monastery at the outskirts of the Old Town, which is marked by a beautiful old cypress tree on the garden terrace. The monastery is a treasure of art, including a huge painting of The Last Supper on three canvases, and a number of other paintings and archaeological treasures accumulated during the Venetian years.
From the monastery we walked the waterfront along the palm-lined Riva to the old Arsenal, whose entrance used to empty into the harbor and was used for ship-building and repairs. The upper story of the arsenal is one of Europe’s oldest continuously operating theaters, and is also a treasure of Venetian architecture. But the jewel of the town of Hvar is its open placja, lined with spectacularly carved facades and ending with the Cathedral of Sveti Stefan. And of course, towering above the town is the citadel of Spanjola, with its formidable fortifications protecting the town below.
As this was our final day, we rambled off in all directions, many of us hiking up to the citadel, others exploring Hvar’s excellent shops, and many of us staying in town to enjoy lunch in the restaurants along the placja or tucked away in the back streets. The wind was picking up in the harbor, so Captain Britzolakis moved the ship in behind a small island so we could all take a refreshing swim before or after lunch.
The wind was picking up from the south, so we got under way and hurried toward Dubrovnik. Late afternoon light was beautiful on the Peljesac Peninsula and the island of Korcula as we cruised by. Sharon Grainger gave a talk on olive oils of the Balkan Peninsula, and we then sampled olive oils, bread, and wines of the region before our farewell cocktail party and Captain’s Farewell Dinner. By the time the winds picked up for the night we were tucked in and docked in Dubrovnik’s new port with a wonderful closing day behind us.
