 |
| cozy! |
The ferry to Vis was 2 hours and 20 minutes long...it's a fairly large car ferry with five levels.
Vis is the furthest of the main central Dalmatian islands of Croatia and spent most of its recently history as a military base for the Yogoslavia National Army. It was cut off from visitors from the 1950's until 1989. The population of the island is about 3000 people, with the majority of people living in Vis town and approximately 1000 people in Komiza.
 |
| Jadrolinia ferry line |
Once we boarded the ferry, we headed up to the top deck for some last minute photos of Split.
The sky was pretty dark and the wind was picking up...remember the weather changes here at the blink of an eye...so we headed inside for a bit.
 |
| Split from the water |
 |
| ready for our sail |
We arrived in Vis at 1:30pm and immediately boarded the local bus headed for Komiza. There is only one main road to Komiza and it took about 15 minutes along a very twisty and turning route...the views were incredible as we came down the mountain into the village.
 |
| Komiza below |
When we arrived in the village we eventually found our way to our accommodations, Guesthouse Ksenija. Upon arrival however, we couldn't find anyone to check us in and it appeared someone was still in our apartment! In fact the entire village was pretty desolate… nothing appeared to be open and there were very few people around. After asking a few of the locals where the owners might be...not very many people spoke much English...we finally came across our lovely host. She apologized for the mix up and within 30 minutes we were in our loft apartment with the most incredible view...this more than made up for the wait!
 |
| view from our balcony |
After settling in, we decided to enjoy the beautiful weather from our balcony, with a well deserved and delicious local beer. This is the life!
 |
| pure bliss! |
Finally it was time to check out the village...we soon figured out everything was closed because May 1st is a national holiday in Europe...Labour Day. We wandered along the waterfront area, looked in a couple shops that were open and then headed toward Crkva Sv. Nikole...the local church and cemetery. That is, not before finding the local water closet (WC)...we are always on the lookout for a washroom!!
 |
| outdoor seating area |
 |
| Where or where are the toilets?? |
 |
| waterfront in Komiza |
Along the way we met a local man who decided to teach us a little Croatian and Italian...there is a large Italian connection here due to its close proximity to Croatia. We chatted with him and few of his friends for about 20 minutes...they called him the "professor"...and then we continued on our way up the hill; enjoying every bit of the scenery we came across.
 |
| meeting the locals |
 |
| breathtaking views everywhere |
 |
| solitude |
Vis is known for its olives...there are lots of olive groves in the country side...and its vineyards. There are also lots of lemon trees...almost everyone has one or more of them in their yard.
 |
| lemons, lemons, lemons |
 |
| funky olive trees |
We finally reached the church where we were greeted by beautiful ocean views, surrounded by vineyards, olive trees and right in the middle, a finely manicure cemetery.
 |
| cathedral in the distance |
 |
| high up on the kill |
On our way back down from the church we ran into another local man...people are extremely friendly here and very willing to share their stories and answer your questions. This lovely man originally from Komiza, but has been living in Australia for over 50 years stopped to talk to us. He explained to us his heart breaking story about how he and his family tried to escape communist Yugoslavia in 1948. Unfortunately they were not successful, resulting in lives lost, and people exiled or jailed for their heroic attempt. He eventually found his way to Australia after a deal was made by his brother, a wine barrel maker at the time, and I guess you could say the rest is history. It was hard to listen to his story, as he was immediately taken back in time while describing it to us...he even teared up at one point in the process. These stories make me fall in love the Croatian people more each day and make me thankful for the peaceful life I have back home in Canada. Thank you for sharing….
 |
| a beautiful soul |
It was getting late so we decided to find a place to have supper. We came across a unique little spot called Fabrika. It turned out the decore for this place was donated from peoples' homes....very bohemian and eclectic. They even had an afghan like one my grandmother would have made!
 |
| Fabrika from the inside |
Loved it here...even though they didn't serve supper, just drinks at night. So of course we needed to stay to enjoy the sunset on their outdoor seating area.
 |
| views from the outdoor seating area at Fabrika |
 |
| relaxing in the evening sun |
After trying one of the local wines, we decided since Vis is also known for its carob brandy, we should have a taste....and we were not disappointed! You sip it from tall shaped shot glasses and it has a warm sweet taste...I think I could get used to this!
 |
| bottoms up! |
An hour later, after once again chatting with one of the gentleman we met earlier in the day...who knew we could have friends to bump into here after only 5 hours!?!...we wandered off in search of food. With all the Italians that visit here each year it is no surprise they have several Italian restaurants, so we settled for a pizza at Pizzaria Charly's. I love pizza cooked in a stone fired oven! Since beer and wine is cheaper than water, we were once again forced to have a drink...this time a local beer. I love this country!
 |
| always a lovely walk |
By about 9:00pm we were on our way back home, strolling the streets..barely feeling the cold air...and too tired to do my traditional blog post. Sometimes more important things come up and you just need to go with the flow. What a great day overall. I can't wait to see what tomorrow brings.
Until then...
Lisa
No comments:
Post a Comment