Mljet & Korcula, Croatia
Croatia continues to delight and dazzle each of us as we make our way south along the Dalmatian coast. After yesterday’s focus on the Roman ruins in Split, we again succumbed to the inviting natural attractions of the area by venturing into Mljet National Park for some swimming, biking, kayaking, and general reacquainting ourselves with the great outdoors. The park is known for its two secluded saltwater lakes, a lovely island monastery, and the shaded forest of Aleppo pine. We wisely took advantage of all we could in the early morning hours before lunch and prior to the arrival of the local ferries packed with envious day-trippers.
By late afternoon the ship had found its way to a berthing alongside the fortified walls of Korcula. This beautiful town of Venetian heritage lies on an island of the same name and is reputed to have been the birthplace of Marco Polo. We embarked on a leisurely stroll through the narrow, picturesque streets for a bit of interpretive and interactive history of the city and its vibrant past. Opportunities for photos, shopping, and gelato seem to greet us at nearly every turn, and we could have easily contented ourselves spending the remainder of the day wandering through the town’s herring-bone grid. However, there seems to always be yet one more thing to see or do here in the Adriatic, and sure enough, we had yet another surprise in store for the day’s grand finale…a chance to watch a colorful display of Moreska sword dancing.
In a small open-air theater, located just under and to the left of Korcula’s Land Gate seen here, we gathered for the region’s own historic flair. The sword dancing is presented in a somewhat stylized-play format with the story centered on the battle for the recovery of a captured Christian princess. The Ottoman Turks must see more defeats than the Washington Generals these days, for the Christian forces always free their stolen princess in this friendly re-enactment of the past rivalries and struggles that have long haunted this region. The Moreska Festival actually occurs annually on the 27th of July, but luckily the participants were kind enough to share their pageantry with us as a special event.
Now, one would think that we must have surely exhausted this small country’s coastal attractions by this point in our journey; having made a half-dozen forays already. In reality, however, most of us will find these to be only the preliminaries leading up to the main event…Dubrovnik, a city salvaged from the rubble of the recent and vicious civil war, but now restored to its former splendor. When we visit the city tomorrow, we will discover the eastern Adriatic’s answer to Venice to the west; a city to behold and in which to immerse ourselves for the entire day.
Croatia continues to delight and dazzle each of us as we make our way south along the Dalmatian coast. After yesterday’s focus on the Roman ruins in Split, we again succumbed to the inviting natural attractions of the area by venturing into Mljet National Park for some swimming, biking, kayaking, and general reacquainting ourselves with the great outdoors. The park is known for its two secluded saltwater lakes, a lovely island monastery, and the shaded forest of Aleppo pine. We wisely took advantage of all we could in the early morning hours before lunch and prior to the arrival of the local ferries packed with envious day-trippers.
By late afternoon the ship had found its way to a berthing alongside the fortified walls of Korcula. This beautiful town of Venetian heritage lies on an island of the same name and is reputed to have been the birthplace of Marco Polo. We embarked on a leisurely stroll through the narrow, picturesque streets for a bit of interpretive and interactive history of the city and its vibrant past. Opportunities for photos, shopping, and gelato seem to greet us at nearly every turn, and we could have easily contented ourselves spending the remainder of the day wandering through the town’s herring-bone grid. However, there seems to always be yet one more thing to see or do here in the Adriatic, and sure enough, we had yet another surprise in store for the day’s grand finale…a chance to watch a colorful display of Moreska sword dancing.
In a small open-air theater, located just under and to the left of Korcula’s Land Gate seen here, we gathered for the region’s own historic flair. The sword dancing is presented in a somewhat stylized-play format with the story centered on the battle for the recovery of a captured Christian princess. The Ottoman Turks must see more defeats than the Washington Generals these days, for the Christian forces always free their stolen princess in this friendly re-enactment of the past rivalries and struggles that have long haunted this region. The Moreska Festival actually occurs annually on the 27th of July, but luckily the participants were kind enough to share their pageantry with us as a special event.
Now, one would think that we must have surely exhausted this small country’s coastal attractions by this point in our journey; having made a half-dozen forays already. In reality, however, most of us will find these to be only the preliminaries leading up to the main event…Dubrovnik, a city salvaged from the rubble of the recent and vicious civil war, but now restored to its former splendor. When we visit the city tomorrow, we will discover the eastern Adriatic’s answer to Venice to the west; a city to behold and in which to immerse ourselves for the entire day.
