Charming Stone Architecture
by mircaskirca
Charming stone architecture of Dalmatian houses makes Hvar a place from the past which enchants every visitor. You find many stone villages (mostly nestled on the hills) which managed to preserve their centuries old rural type of architecture: small village squares, narrow streets and households that consisted of a house with a courtyard, a well and a small shed for cattle. It is well worth taking the extra trip to these villages. They offer an original and unforgettable experience. I fell in love with Pitve with its well preserved traditional stone houses and truly stunning views. Zaraće, Dubovica, Vrisnik and the abundant village of Malo Grablje were all very interesting as well. Loved the little details on the façades, stone stairs and balconies, wooden doors and shutters.
Also a stroll through the picturesque streets of Stari Grad and the old part of Hvar town reveals centuries old architecture. They are adorned with white stone houses and have an atmosphere so special that throughout the years many of visitors have become their permanent residents. I wouldn't mind that either. Well, perhaps some day :)
Wine Production
by mircaskirca
The island of Hvar is one of the ancient homelands of viniculture. In the 4th century B.C. the Greeks brought the grape vine to this sunny island and planted it in the fertile plain of the ancient town Pharos. Through the centuries of rich and turbulent history, people of Hvar cultivated their vineyards with great skill and care, blessed with the Mediterranean climate (mild winters and plenty of sunshine in summer) and rocky soils (limestone and terra rosa - red earth). Grapes and wine gave them safety, food and medicine.
Today, half the region's farmers still cultivate grape out of which high quality wines are being produced in a traditional way. Manual work and no pesticides used turn a grape into a drop of gold. The wines from Hvar become very competitive at wine fairs, winning prizes and are among the best wines in Croatia.
The wine of Hvar is something worth talking about. One of the most famous wines is Bogdanuša, a delicious white wine that compliments all seafood dishes and can not be found anywhere else. The southern side of the island is ideal for the cultivation of Plavac Mali due to its sunny hillsides which give the wine its high quality. The wine has a characteristic dark ruby red colour, rich essence, relatively high percentage of alcohol, fullness and harmony of taste. Along white and red wines, dessert wine Prošek (prosecco) is also being produced.
For those who want to know more about Hvar wine, wine tasting tours can be organized. I visited Lupi wine cellar owned by the family where I was staying and Darinka explained about the wine production. They organize wine tasting tours for tourists though ours was more formal. In the mid September there is Hvar Wine Festival where you can experience festive mood of a traditional Hvar wine grape harvest.
No mod cons
by TheWanderingCamel
The Illyrians and their bunjas are a visible but mysterious presence on Hvar. For a structure that may be some 2000 years old, this bunja is in amazingly good condition though I don't think you'll find it listed on a local realtors lists as a potential holiday home "ripe for renovation".
We saw our first bunja on Brac and became intrigued with the lost Illyrians who built them. The name rang bells - echoes of Shakespeare studied at school - wasn't Orsino the Duke of Ilyria? The bunjas we saw didn't look like ducal palaces. Wikipaedia to the rescue - the Illyrians were the ancient tribes who inhabited the Western Balkans in Classical times.
What is a bunja? A dry-stone walled house, typically round with a stepped stone roof, quite large inside. It seems on Hvar they're known as "trim". You'll see stone buildings like this in other places - JLBG tells me in the Luberon in southern France they're known as bories.
Here in Croatia their use, and the building of them . continued well into the 19th century, though by then they were used as animal shelters rather than as houses and consequently are both smaller and somewhat simpler in their construction. The one in the photo here is in a field right at the turnoff for Vrboska and is surprisingly spacious inside.
Pitve
by mircaskirca
Pitve is the village that we passed by many times and thought of yet another lovely stone village. From the car it did not look a lot different from other stone villages. But then one day we finally decided to make a stop and take a walk through the village. We were very pleased we did it as we found the village a real gem where behind every corner there was a little surprise.
Considered one of the oldest settlements of the island, this typical village consists of two parts: Gornje (Upper) or Old Pitve and Donje (Lower) Pitve which is the newer part. Between them is the church of Sv. Jakov (St. James) from the 19th century. The settlement probably originates from Illyrian times which supposes that its name originates from Pityeia, a former name for the island. Gornje Pitve provides the most magnificent view of the large valley, Jelsa and the surrounding area of Vrboska, over the Hvar channel and the island of Brač.
The village has narrow cobblestone streets and there are no cars. Stone houses have simple lines and lovely architectural details. They have typical closed pens where there are hidden gardens and often the devices used for compressing the olive oil and wine presses. Some houses have nice gardens with orange and lemon trees. Under the village is a cemetery and fields, olive groves and fields of lavender. And if you want to eat a good dalmatian peka or try other specialities of the region, Konoba Duboković (named after well-known family) is a place to go.
more pics in the travelogue
Undewater Wine Cellar
by KristaB about Vinarija Plenkovic
Famous wine producer Zlatan Plenkovic built this unusual structure. It serves both as marina for small boats and as restaurant with special emphasis on wine tasting.
They were brave to build special underwater cellar, but due to technical problems, it is still not serving it's purpose. You can go down and have a look, but the glass window into the sea got greenish from algae.
Excellent wines, worth spending a lazy afternoon there, just make sure the driver is a strong character - new law in Croatia allows No Alcohol at all to be found in driver's blood. So don't eat too much ripe fruit either.
Sign in with Facebook
Pitve
vino = wine in Croatian
Dubovica bay
restaurant/gallery
