Žigljen cheese, produced on Pag Island  has  received an important international award – it is selected among the best cheese in the world, winning the ‘super gold medal’ at the World Cheese Awards 2011 (www.finefoodworld.co.uk/wca)

The winning hard cheese, produces in Gligor’s dairy on Pag, is made entirely from locally sourced sheep and cow milk.

It takes three to six months for Žigljen to fully mature and finally achieve its spicey, characteristic aroma.

This year`s  World Cheese Award gathered over 2500 cheese producers from 30 countries, judged by jury of 200.

Gligora dairy (Sirana Gligora)  homepage:  www.sirena.hr

The Italian company Marazzi group, which has recently reconstructed the Hotel Lafodia, on Lopud Island is now considering to  invest in the reconstruction of another Lopud hotel - Grand Hotel Lopud, owned by Atlantska Plovidba from Dubrovnik.

Grand Hotel Lopud is right now not in use, bought by Atlantska Plovidba few years ago.

The plan is to reconstruct this old building it into a boutique hotel with up to 70 rooms.

Altlantska Plovidba is the majority owner of other two hotels in Dubrovnik, the Hilton Imperial Dubrovnik and Hotel Lapad, while the Marazzi group owns Lafodija.

An article about holidaying on Hvar Island is winner of this year’s The Guardian’s Readers’ writing competition: summer holidays.

Subtitled as “Dana Smith thought she had a cove on the island of Hvar, Croatia, to herself – until a naked woman emerged from a cave“, the article was published in travel supplement of last week’s Guardian.

Read the whole article here + click to see large photo of the article

The Dalmatian island of Vis is less visited and almost escapes the crowds of the tourist season, leaving guests of this beautiful place to enjoy its natural beauty. Even though Vis has more than enough to offer and abounds in numerous wonders, it does not have luxury hotels, marinas and restaurants, although it is very popular among sailing enthusiasts and yachtmen.

Although it does not include many contents of a social character, Vis offers restaurants ith exclusive resh fish and local specialities, some of the bst Croatian wines and the beauty of the Mediterranean hat has almost disappeared in other places.

Instead of grand buildings and tourist crowds, says the author Tom Robins, you can find landscapes that are aboundant with aromas of rosemary, lavender, figs, olives and grapevine onthe island. The island has many abandoned beaches and bays which can be easily reached by a rented scooter.

Vis probably does not have so many tourists primarily because of how far it is – a two hour ferry ride from Split. Also, there is the fact that Vis was once a marine base with traces of that time stil visible, especially in the harbour and the fort on top of the hill.

From Vis, one can also go on a trip and visit Modra špilja (the blue cave) on the island of Biševo. There, around noon, during calm seas, the sun rays break through the underwater opening of the cave, reflecting from the white bottom and light up the cave with a blue light, giving the objects in the water a silvery look and leaving visitors breathless.

The island of Vis has many culturaly-historical monuments and buildings. The largest are the remains of ancient Issa and on the Pirovo peninsula there are remains of an ancient theatre and public bathing grounds.

Around the island there are many sunken battle and merchant ships, making a visit to Vis quite adventurous.

‘The legacy is a very real sense of tranquillity – what Croats call ‘fjaka’, which translates approximately as ‘lazy mood’ – and a pace of life that cannot fail to slow you down’’says the article in the Financial Times…  Read the whole  article in FT + check  the Vis tourist board site www.tz-vis.hr for more info about Vis.

Read more about Mljet and other Croatian Islands

As I said in my previous post, the reason for this is high cost of running this ferry, as  it needs 62 crew members to sail while in winter month, there are only  in average 7 passengers that are using this ferry.

The author of the article emphasises this information is still unofficial, as official decision about future of this ferry line will be made at the end of February, when authorities will hold meeting with all interested parties.

So, for time beeing, if you intend to travel around Croatia out of June to October period, try not to base your travel plans around  Rijeka-Split-Hvar-Korcula-Dubrovnik-Bari ferry.

Join the conversation here : http://www.find-croatia.com/forum/index.php/topic,2186.0.html

Beside Dubrovnik , the video shows short clips from variety of places in Dubrovnik County, including Peljesac, Mljet, Korcula, Lastovo, Elafiti.. Soothing instrumental music in the background brings alive the ambience

Have a look & enjoy:

Find out more about Dubrovnik, Dalmatia and Croatian Islands

View Larger Map
Last year the remains of a sarcophagus were found in Pocukmarak bay on Silba Island, as well as the remains of another one. Recently, a second phase of underwater research started where archaeologists will explore the wider area and carry out the preparations for opening an underwater museum.

The stone coffer, which is over two metres long, is located at a depth between two and a half and three metres. It has algae growing on it and it is covered by roughly cut stone. On the basis of the lid decor, it is thought to come from the late antique period – from either the 4th or 5th century.

The sarcophagus and other remains were not carved in Silba and it is believed that they were delivered from one of the sculpture workshops on the Adriatic. Sarcophagi are rarely found under the sea so this discovery in Pocukmarak bay surprised experts who are only just beginning to discover Silba’s past, especially that of the antique period.

Archaeologists will clean the silt from the sarcophagus and the other remains, document their current state and record their location on the land and in the sea in the bay in Silba.

The opening of the underwater museum on the site where the sarcophagus was found, which lies in crystal clear sea in a wonderful bay, should prove to be a very interesting destination for inquisitive visitors. Since it is located at a depth of two metres, it is accessible for almost anyone who knows how to swim, and not just professional divers, which is most often the case in terms of underwater archaeological sites that are often found at much greater depths.

More good photos of Marko Polo ferry at Jutanji.hr page

Ferry ‘Marko Polo’, which over the weekend, crashes into Croatian island of Sit  is still stranded, despite the efforts of rescue team.

The Jadrolinija‘s ferry Marco Polo was on its regular route Rijeka – Split – Dubrovnik – Bari (Italy) when it ran aground on the island Sit (small island located between Island Žut and Island Pašman) in vicinity of Sibenik and Zadar. The incident happened last Saturday at 2.50 am.

View Sit Island, Croatia in a larger map

None of the 41 passengers and 64 crew members were hurt in the incident, the ship was in good technical condition and there has been speculation the accident was down to human error.

The above photo shows ferry Marko Polo stranded on the island, as appeared on the page of yesterday’s eddition of Vecernji List (vecernji.hr).

Photos of stranded ferry at vecernji page

According to World Architecture News, Šolta Island in near vicinity of Split will be home to Europe’s first rotating hotel (WOW !)

This is an excerpt from the article : 

A rotating hotel is to form the centrepiece of a new resort near Split in Croatia. Designed by Richard Hywel Evans of Studio RHE, specialists in holiday resort design, the concept was proposed from a desire to provide sea views from each room.

While most of the fine details of the hotel remain under wraps WAN can reveal “the 3 storey building is a 61 metre diameter very slow moving continuous turntable rotating 1.3 times per day, and will be built of steel in sections at the huge Split shipyards which are directly opposite the Island,” says Evans. “The building is entered from below at Lower Ground Level which does not rotate with the 22 metre diameter centre hub of the building which is also static containing the Reception, circulation stairs and lifts,” he adds…

See all photos of this rotating hotel proposal and read the whole article here

In yesterday’s eddition of Guardian.co.uk, the article about food and drink of Vis Island has been published. There is also a 9 minute video accompanying the article that features some local klapa music and comments of local people about Vis, its history farming, fishing, making wine and singing. The title of the video is “Life in the slow lane on the Croatian island of Vis”.

Here is an excerpt from the article:

Vis cuisine: as authentic as the island itself -  The Croatian island of Vis has carved out a modest niche with its traditional cuisine, with tiny ‘restaurants’ – little more than a few tables in somebody’s house – offering simple but delicious fare…Never exactly a bustling tourist spot, Vis has carved out for itself a modest niche with this traditional cooking, with tiny “restaurants” – little more than a few tables set up in somebody’s house – starting to pop up. And it is precisely the island’s laid-back feel, combined with an understanding and appreciation of fresh produce and fish, that make Vis cuisine so delightful. The people of this Adriatic island are far from lazy, but they do follow their own rhythm – a lifestyle dictated by the seasons, weather, and the simple fact of being surrounded by a vast blue sea – and the food is equally straightforward and authentic…

Read the whole article and watch the video here

At the beginning of October, in Supetar on the Island of Brac, the traditional autumn event, “Grape and Wine Festival”, is hold. The festival is a week of local cuisine devoted to the “varenik”, a traditional  preparation made from young wine, which makes traditional  Dalmatian meals even better and tastier.
Varenik is used as a condiment and is made by the long cooking and reducing of stum. The ancient Greeks and Romans used it. It is believed varenik is an aphrodisiac, and Roman soldiers used it as an energy drink to regain strength. Because of its high content in natural sugar, it was also used as a sweetener.

Few towns in Croatia have preserved the tradition of  making varenik, but the inhabitants of Brac have worked systematically at reviving it. With the festival, they want to bring back varenik as a condiment, used for centuries as a  crucial part of Mediterranean recipes.
On Brac, varenik is made from red grapes, while on Korcula it is made from  local white grapes. It is used as a condiment for various sauces, stews and wild game dishes. Varenik is also the basis for the production of aceto balsamico. Apart from its great culinary value, it is also excellent for digestion.

Duing the festival, Suptar restaurants will offer a variety of  dishes with varenik at promotional prices. The organizers  are also preparing a presentation and tasting of original Brac cakes and sage juice, prominent wine producers will present their wines, and visitors prone to an active vacation will be able to participate in the vintage, after which varenik will be prepared on the ranch “Palute”.

Read more about Brac island and check Supetar Hotels on Island of Brac 

Supetar Tourist Board www.supetar.hr

The Island of Hvar was once again this year one of the most popular tourist destinations on the Adriatic, attracting many visitors. Hvar enjoys its tremendous popularity on account of its nature, rich and top quality tourist offering as well as numerous entertainment, hospitality and other facilities and activities.

However, the Island of Hvar is also known for its rich history, the remnants of which attract the attention of
visitors and are still researched by historians. The most recent archeological research conducted in the Starigrad plain on the island of Hvar could reveal that the history of Stari Grad is far older than is believed.

Excavations at Remete on the edge of the Starigrad plain on the east entrance to the Stari Grad have revealed a settlement three centuries older than Faros. Until now, it was believed that the first urban settlement on the area of today’s Stari Grad was established 385 B.C. by setters from the Greek island of Paros, who named it Faros.

On account of the great importance of the Starigrad plain, called hore in Greek and agera in Latin, where throughout
history the original Greek foundations from the end of the 4th century B.C. remained excellently preserved, UNESCO
put the arable plain on the World Heritage List last year as a cultural monument. The plain stretches from Stari grad
to Jelsa and Vrboska. The same agricultural products have been grown in the plain for over 24 centuries.

It comprisesaround 120 archaeological localities, from prehistory to the Middle Ages. The most recent archaeological research is being conducted in the courtyard of a stone house from the 18th century, which is being renovated and will be turned into the headquarters of the public institution Ager, tasked with managing and promoting the protected area.

The Stari Grad Museum will exhibit newly discovered objects: Ilirian-Liburnian bronze needles and hooks, rough black
ceramics and Greek colored ceramics. In the near future, numerous other items from yet to be researched localities will surely find their place in the museum as well. The most recent excavations have once again confirmed that the area of today’s Stari Grad, which has been competing for the title of the oldest city on the east Adriatic with Island of Vis, is rich in cultural treasures, attracting to the Island of Hvar numerous cultural heritage enthusiasts from the entire world.

Stari Grad Tourist Board www.stari-grad-faros.hr

This lovely 29 minutes film documentary, made by German broadcaster ARD.de (read here about ARD) is filmed around Adriatic islands of Dalmatia:  Lastovo, Korcula, Vrnik and Palagruza.
It is in German language and includes a lot of nice shots of local people and natural beauty of the area.
To watch the video, click on above picture or at this link..and enjoy!

In the travel section of recent eddition of Daily Telegraph, four of the best of Croatian island hotels were reviewed: 

• Hotel Apoksiomen in Losinj: … The walls of its 24 contemporary rooms and one apartment, many of which have harbour views, are decorated with paintings by distinguished Croatian artists, and the overall effect is stylish and comfortable…
• Lesic Dimitri Palace in Korcula: … housed in what was an 18th-century bishop’s palace and five cottages, the hotel has six ‘residences’, each sleeping up to four people..
• Palmizana – Sveti Klement: …a collection of villas and an arboretum built on a 300-acre plot in 1906 by the botanist Eugenio Meneghello..in vicinity of Hvar island
• Hotel Palaca Deskovic on Brac: … late-Renaissance palace in the picturesque harbour town of Pucisca on the north coast of Brac..

Read the complete article here  + check more info about Croatian Hotels

In todays Independent, another article about travel to islands of Croatia has been published. The article is titled ’Isles of light: Croatia’s Dalmatian coast’ and subtitled ‘Setting a course around Croatia’s lesser-known islands, John Walsh makes a voyage of discovery – encountering beautiful surroundings, sheer luxury and overassertive locals’

The article continues with following paragraph :  I am swimming in the eastern Adriatic, and heading straight for a sheer rock. The sun is scorchingly hot on my back but the waters around are choppy and argumentative, as if warning me against what I’m about to do. I wouldn’t be doing it at all if I hadn’t been talked into it by Matthew, the Croatian teenager with the Boris Becker eyelashes, whose boat has taken us around the perimeter of the island and whose passengers are now splashing in the sea. …

Read the whole article here

On the occasion of celebrating the anniversary, a book about the school was published. Though the school itself was founded in 1909, the education of stonemasons on Brac began in 1906 because of the great need for the development of stonemasonry.

In Pucišca and Selci, courses were organized in collaboration with a trade school in Split. After the course, students would pass their exams in stonemasonry.

Preserving the tradition of the  trade, many generations of superior craftsmen were educated at this school. In their work, one could always recognize the signature style of the school. The history of the Pucišca stonemasonry school is intertwined with the history and tradition of the Brac stone, embedded in many great buildings.

Learning how to cut the Brac stone, the students even use toothed tools that were used by the Romans. Each year, the school enrols one hundred students from all parts of the country. Around 10 thousand tourists visit it every year.

 The students of the Pucišca stonemasonry school have taken part in some of the world’s biggest tourism fairs, demonstrating the skills of their craft before numerous audiences.

Pucišca Stonemasonry School: http://www.klesarskaskola.hr/

The Supetar Super is a documentry film festival which is currenltly held in Supetar on Brac Island.

The documentary-film lovers, who are currently visiting Brac will have an opportunity to enjoy four days of film screenings, concerts, exhibitions and special events.

The films are screened in the centre of town in an open area in front of the local church.

Camping is arranged for festival visitors who do not want to pay for more-expensive accommodations. The price for four days in campsite is 10 Euros per person.

More info on Supetar Super homepage : www.supetarsuper.com

In today’s Observer in article titled ’20 undiscovered island gems’ , Sarah Turner ‘reveals a clutch of true hideaways’. Two among ‘undiscovered islands’ are Croatian Islands – here are the excerpts:

Lopud, Croatia:  Croatia has islands to suit every mood but Lopud is one for purists. Only two miles wide, with no cars, the Dubrovnik elite have used it as a hideaway for decades. For somewhere so idyllic, it is rather easy to get to – there are regular ferries, as well as speedboats from Dubrovnik. No roads – and unusually for Croatia, there are sandy beaches here, especially Sunj with its gently shelving white sand.

Sveti Klement, Croatia: The largest of the Pakleni Islands, which lie a short boat-taxi ride from the island of Hvar, Sveti Klement boasts sandy coves and pine-backed beaches and the picturesque hamlet of Palmizana where a clutch of elegant villas lie surrounded by pine forest. The Meneghello family have lived on Sveti Klement since the 19th century, creating a lushly beautiful botanic garden along with villas, bungalows and a renowned restaurant.

Read the whole article here

Tom Marchant, the founder of award-winning travel company Black Tomato, wrote an article about his top three spots in  Croatia  – this is an excerpt:

.. Whilst many people know about the charms of Dubrovnik (and rightly so) Croatia still contains many hidden gems that the travelling world is only just waking up to. I could write an essay on the wonders of the place here, but space doesn’t allow it, so I have had to filter through my long list of highlights and share with you my top three spots. How to learn about the rest? Simple. Just go…

Read the article at this link

THE LOPUD COLLECTION Hotels and Villas offers a rich art program this June in Villa Vilina and its ART Restaurant and Gallery on the island of Lopud. All exhibition openings are accompanied by a guitar performance of Jazz and other types of music by Vedran Mezej of Dubrovnik. Hidden Croatia Marine offers organized trips with their speed boats from Dubrovnik to Lopud and back and include a gourmet dinner in the package.

The art season starts on June 5th with the opening of PARCO, an exhibition of paintings by Petra Ševeljević, a young Zagreb born Croatian painter celebrated in the contemporary art circles. This cycle of paintings is thematically connected with parks and specifically emphasized black pine trees. Petra playfully incorporates other elements not connected with the Mediterranean parks themselves.

On June 19th there is the opening VENUS, an exhibition of stone sculptures of different female forms, popularly called Venus’s, by Petar Hranuelli. Petar is an acclaimed Croatian sculptor and painter, born on the island of Brač where stone is “in the blood” of the people.

One June 26th Villa Vilina hosts the opening of a photography exhibition by Srđan Babić, a native of Makarska. We have rarely seen such an eye for details and photography as Srđan has it. You will be inspired to take the camera yourself and try to achieve something similar. Srđan’s photos are a true work of art.

Aside from the art, every Thursday Villa Vilina organizes Wine Tasting followed by a 3-course lunch, while on Sundays you can enjoy in the Sunday Brunch from 11am till 3pm and indulge in excellent buffet food, Mimosas (Champaign cocktails) and other drinks.

Lopud island and THE LOPUD COLLECTION, the most amazing island escape, awaits you!

website: www.villa-vilina.hr

The Embassy of the Republic of Croatia and The British-Croatian Society request the pleasure of your company on Thursday 30 April, 18:00 for 18:30 at  Embassy of the Republic of Croatia, 21 Conway Street, London W1T 6BN

Malcolm Hardy

will introduce the new English edition of his book

The British and Vis
War in the Adriatic 1805-15
This publication forms part of a larger project concerning the activity of the British in the Adriatic in the latter period of the wars against Napoleon 1804-15. It attempts an integrated approach covering military and naval as well as political and diplomatic aspects, and uses hitherto unpublished material. A detailed study, it presents the context in which it became increasingly important for the British to occupy and fortify the strategically-important island of Vis, and the slow development of British intentions and their realisation.

Copies of the publication will be available at a special introductory price RSVP: Flora Turner tel/fax 0207 387 3276 - Nearest underground stations Warren Street and Great Portland Street.

The town of Hvar, is featured in today’s Telegraph. This is an excerpt from the article:

Hvar (pronounced ‘phwoar’, much to my children’s amusement) is the capital of Hvar Island in Croatia. It offers a perfect balance: sunbathing quietly during the day before getting dressed up to compete with the types whose yachts adorn the Venetian harbour.  - read the rest of the article here