Cruising Croatia

Still on the island of Hvar but on the northern side, Jelsa is a small town worth a visit for its two old churches, the beautiful main square, Renaissance and some Baroque buildings. It will feel quiet after the town of Hvar but can offer a refreshing stay.

 

Many sailors will opt to continue further into the bay towards Vrboska, another small town (500 inhabitants) with a marina, a big church/fortress with excellent paintings by Italian masters, and a rare fishing museum.

 

On the way to Milna more ambitious sailors may stop in Popova bay on the south side of the Island of Brač from where an hour walk will take them to a very interesting Blaca monastery. Founded by the clergy who were running away from the Ottoman advances in the 15th century, the Monastery is a beautiful and its still very well preserved buildings are accessible only on foot. It is open to visitors who will be surprised by the sophistication of the place that the locals call The Desert. A working telescope, a very good astronomic library and international correspondence with observatories around the world witness a great hobby of the last inhabitant who died in 1963. Even a piano was brought on foot from the harbour.