Croatia -Ticking an item off my bucket list

Split from the air

  I write my plans for the coming year in an exercise book. There are various headings such as Property Maintenance, Travel, Maintaining Friendships, Learning New Skills etc which I update as I achieve them. I find it is an excellent way of keeping things on track without letting a year simply slip by. I have to admit things tend to get a bit chaotic and busy towards the end of a year when I realise there is a lot still to be done and some things do tend to be carried forward to the next year, nevertheless it is a great motivator. At the back of the book I have made a list of Bucket List wishes. So far I have managed quite a few, including visiting Cuba, a safari in Africa, snorkeling Great barrier Reef, Australia and, just recently, I ticked off another item, visiting Croatia.
I had heard glowing reports about Croatia from friends who had been there and having grown up with many neighbours and class mates whose families had migrated from Croatia to New Zealand it had always interested me. It was my grandson's idea for us to take a family holiday there while I was visiting them in England.  I am so pleased he suggested it.

Our ferry at the boat harbour, Split

We were not wildly interested in visiting the main tourist hot spots of Croatia which tend to be packed and busy.  We were more interested  in a quieter, more authentic Croatian holiday, living among the locals, eating local food, drinking local wine etc. It turned out perfectly.

Perfect evening for a ferry to Brac

Our holiday started with our arrival at the brand spanking new, and very attractive, Split Airport, opened just a month before we arrived. Then it was a very scenic, 19 kilometre, trip along the mountain backed coastline to the city of Split where we were to catch the ferry to the island of Brac.   An hour long wait for the ferry gave us time to sample the local wine and enjoy the comings and goings on Split harbour.  Then it was onto the ferry for the 50 minute trip to the island. It was a perfect evening and we were all immediately captivated by the scenery, the sunset and lights dotting the hillsides as the day gradually turning to night. Our destination, the village of Supetar, looked magical and enticing in the sparkly evening when we arrived.

Our enticing first view of Supetar...looking forward to our morning exploration

Left: Traditional Croatian pastries 

baked especially for us

 Supetar is a pretty little village curved around a boat harbour lined with cafes and restaurants, an elegant, floodlit, church steeple keeping watch over all.  We  fell for its charms at first sight. Waiting in the village square was our apartment manager who led us up a steep flag stoned street to our accommodation. Harbour View apartment was perfect with its expansive view over the village and harbour and plenty of Croatian charm, including a basket of freshly baked Croatian pastries to greet us. We knew right away that this was going to be a fantastic holiday and fell into bed eager to start exploring the next day.