I forgot to mention a few things about Montenego. Since 1918 it was part of Yugoslavia and during the breakup of Yugolsavia, it was part of Serbia. However, in 2006 it declared its independence. Although it is not yet a part of the European Union, its currency is the Euro. It is currently an official candidate for membership in the European Union and an official candidate for membership in NATO.
I also haven't really mentioned the weather. We have been tremendously lucky because rain and thunderstorms were frequently predicted. The only time we had a thunderstorm was Sunday night in Venice. Fortunately that was the night we had our welcome cocktails and dinner in our hotel so none of us were out in the rain. Every day has been beautiful and sunny. In practically every city we have visited thus far the local guides told us we were so lucky because the day before it was pouring rain!
Today we are in Hvar, Croatia, a beautiful island known for its lace, lavender, and olive oil. We tendered into Hvar City at 8:30 this morning, where Harry, a local guide, was waiting or us. We walked to a Benedictine convent where we viewed the beautiful agave lace made by the nuns. They used the thread from the agave century plant as thread. The lace was truly exquisite and much too expensive for us to buy. We then were transported to the old fort above town where we had spectacular views of the town and the Adriatic Sea below.
We then rode to Stari Grad, the oldest town on the island and one of the oldest towns in Europe, dating back to 384 BC when it was founded by ancient Greeks. As with so much of Croatia it was also conquered by the Romans, the Venetians, the Turks, and in 1797 when Napoleon overthrew the Venetian Republic, Hvar briefly became part of the Austrian Empire. We explored the town and toured the museum of the Dominican Monastery.
Our last stop was in Vrisnik at a lovely winery where we relaxed in the countryside with wine, fruit and cheese and also had some delicious bread with the local olive oil. We then returned to the ship from lunch and who did we see kayaking near the ship? None other than our captain!
Because we were late to lunch, they kept one restaurant open but it was very crowded so we shared a table with a charming French couple who didn't speak English. I was delighted to be able to speak French with them. We had a lovely conversation and the husband wanted to know about Donald Trump and our opinion! Gave him an earful.
After lunch we went back to town and did a little shopping and took some pictures. We dined that evening with some friends from our tour group.
Approaching Hvar
Hvar
Agave Lace
Hvar town
Hvar
The fortress above town
Hvar
View from the fortress
View from the fortress
View from fortress
Our ship
Fortress view
Dominican Monastery
Dominican Monastery
Stari Grad
Stari Grad
Stari Grad
Stari Grad
Stari Grad
On the way o Vrisnik
Vrisnik Winery
Winery
Winery
Relaxing at the winery
At the winery
Vrisnik scene
Our captain kayaking
Hvar town
Lavender for sale
Hvar
Hvar
Hvar restaurant
Hvar
Hvar is very popular with the Croatians for boating, swimming, and sunny. Several ferries run between Hvar and Split as well as other towns. It truly is a lovely place to vacation.
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