Port news no.4

SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2012 NO. 4

Painfully Beautiful Bol Little Big Drvenik

Swim, don’t Ski!

REPORT NEWS

The Harbour in Helsinki The picture with the sailing boats has been taken in the Katajanokka harbour in Helsinki, Finland, in the end of Finnish summer. This harbor, which is situated in the east side of the central Helsinki, has had some good and bad times, once been place for an illegal sells of alcohol and prostitute. Nowadays this peaceful harbour is one of the most beautiful one in Helsinki, having old school markets next to it and also frequent cruise to Estonia and Sweden to get our beloved drinks even little bit cheaper than in Finland (eventhough the cruise itself cost already more than the drinks).

The Finns and the Sea

First Nordic Foreign Correspondent for The Port News

Finnish coastline is 46 000 km long and we have more than 73 000 islands next to the coast. Dominant coast types consist only rock-and moraine shore, when sand beaches are rare. For us having a summer house next to lake or sea is essential! Having sauna, boat or a yacht, grill and place to swim is all what we need. That’s were we relax in the summer, and in the winter. Also there we can be more isolated than in the city (like you can be more isolated already when you live in Finland), of course gossiping about neighbors that are on the other islands or next to us on the shore, and then after couple of hours forgetting all these and jumping naked to the serene lake. That’s where all the worries go away and we don’t need to care about anything anymore. Just me and my summerhouse on the shore.

PORT NEWS IN FINLAND

Text & Photo by Oona Lydia Kristiina Polvi

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TRUE ROBINSONS

Staying at sea you can make a choice and take what you like: a Robinson way of vacation in desert cove or a rich holiday in some Dalmatian little town. Even in a single day you can taste a bit of both.

Seka and Ivan Barač already for years go out to sea for a period of one hundred days. They sail with their seven meters long boat, equipped as a summer house and they anchor in some cove. So Seka stays at boat like any good housewife and Ivan called Bare goes fishing on a small boat. For these hundred days they supply the boat with 200-300 liters of water and gasoline, twelve gas bottles for refrigerators and cooking, only basic food because they bake their own brad… The last days of summer they spend in the bay Lučice on the island of Brač.

By Ana Gaspar

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PORT NEWS HIT

Cote d’Azur of M T

his summer top destination for the tourists it is the coast around Makarska.

Top of that candy is small town called Baška Voda where in the season on each resident there are five tourists. Where did they fit?

Mainly, they rent a private accommodations – of course – it’s much cheaper than hotels. But it’s interesting that most of them demanded expensive apartments whit water pools even if there are a little bit distant from the sea. Here are some amazing numbers.

In the middle of the season in Split-Dalmatia county every day there was a hundred thousand guests, half of that, fifty thousand, are just people who visited The Makarska Riviera, and one fifth of that are just people who visited Baška Voda – the town with normal population of 2,000, in the middle

Publisher: Port Authority of Split-Dalmatia County For the publisher: Port Authority director Domagoj Maroević

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of summer hosts 10,000! So, 50,000 tourists, 12,000 of them settled in hotels, 2,400 in camps and 34,000 in the private accommodations. Baška Voda is the champion, and first place next to it is, of course, Makarska whit great monument of Napoleon Bonaparte, who developed way toward culture for ancient Makarska residents. That is something that every tourist should see, especially French. Today even Napoleon would like to take a walk through beautiful narrow streets, picturesque squares and especially famous seafront. Of course, there is a few interesting happenings for all tourists, not just for Mr Bonaparte, like summer carnival, a lot of various concerts, famous festival of traditional Dalmatian music, different Fishermans parties whit all types of funny games…

Editorial staff: Domagoj Maroević, Ante Sanader, Mario Garber, Elizabeta Sonjara Garber, Goran Albini Kamanjo, Ana Gaspar, Leo Kuret, Branko Kirigin, Andrija Križančić, Jakša Fiamengo, Vinko Tranfić, Filip Zlatan Zoričić, Tomislav Akrap, Segor Garber (logo design)

Editor in chief: Domagoj Maroević Editor: Mario Garber

Photos: Garber media d.o.o.

Editorial concept and design: Garber media d.o.o.

Lector: Elizabeta Sonjara Garber

Translation into English: Sandra Vujnović, Segor Garber

Written by Elizabeta Sonjara Garber

Thousands of shells Malacological museum in Makarska is very famous, and not just in Dalmatia.

In the museum, thousands of different sea shells are just waiting for you to see them. And not just them – plants in Biokovo area herbarium are also impatient for your attention.

Prepress: Nenad Nazlić Printed in: Split, Slobodna Dalmacija Print d.o.o.

COVER PHOTOS: Lučki vjesnik:Makarska Port News: Rogač, Šolta ISSN 1848-4689

Makarska Makarska Residents: Branko Roglić

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ow for years Branko Ćićo Roglić has the reputation of being a successful business man but he is also known as a man with strong endeavor of not being only a dull collector of money. He loves life, he is interested in everything and deals with beautiful things like wine, books, perfumes, yachts.

He has a feeling how to recognize the proper man with something artistic in himself. So his sailing crew is headed by Zlatan Filip Zoričić. In his youth he played for the famous Split football team Hajduk. The year 1971 was his turning point, so you can read in newspapers that he renovated the birth house of his idol Miko Tripalo…

launched by Anđelko Erceg and on his mission persisted Anđelko’s wife Maja Erceg. Bravo, Ćićo! And here he is in his native Makarska, deservedly enjoying with his wife Vjeka.

Recently he proved that he is an eternal devotee of good hope: he accepted to support The Makarska Chronicle, cult newspapers of local provenance and global forces,

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Tex and photo by Elizabeta & Mario Garber

SAILING IN AS A MUST

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f you’re not sure how to roam the seas, maybe you should ask the two of us and our Betalina, the slowliest boat in the Adriatic. This way nothing will slip past you. And even though Betalina knows very well what GPS, echo sounder or suchlike gadgets are, she finds out about the world on her own, through experience. Luckily enough, she still hasn’t decided to dive and check out the bottom. But what’s this oldfashioned story really about?

Take a good look at yourselves and you’ll see... you’ve just swished past us on the sea as if we weren’t even there. We finally tried to put some sunscreen on when all of a sudden a powerful wave hit the side of the boat and the thick substance shot out of the container and stayed glued to the side of the cockpit! The best ad for the sunscreen, believe me! We laughed our heads off, it was absolutely hilarious!

You don’t get it, do you? You don’t understand what it’s like to wander around a bit, to sail away and enjoy the sea. You simply come to the coast and then swish over the sea as if you were skiing, so fastly that you hardly even touch the surface.

The sea is for swimming, not for running.

Even at the Olympics swimming compared to running is an enchanting slow motion experience. But you – you just swished by us like a Jadrolinija catamaran and skipped the entire Adriatic sea. And you even paid for it. And paid it well. Without getting anything in return. Be sensible! If you’re not romantic, you can at least be rational. There’s no point in wasting all that time and money without taking a glance at Betalina that got stuck in some past romantic times.

In short, speed down a bit, take your time, because time is all you have in this world! Try and just wonder around for a while, just swim. Don’t hurry skiing and swishing past. Otherwise you might miss about a billion precious drops which you so wildly waste on the imaginary trail of your status symbol. Status being merely a matter of perspective.

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HOW TO SAIL IN AND SAIL AWAY, THEN SAIL IN AN

SWIM, DO

The sea is not for running, it’s for swimming. Even at the slow motion experience. But you – you just swished b Adriatic sea. And you even paid for it. And paid it well. W romantic, you ca

Feast on a sailing ship in the port of Makarska

KABAL The Kabal point. The island of Hvar, the entrance to Stari Grad in an everlasting race with Issa over the award for the oldest town in Croatia. Everything starts with the ancient Greeks, you know, and Odysseus and Penelope. Sometimes it takes our Betalina as long as five hours to get from Split to Paiz. And when you pass the canal and the Ražanj lighthouse and come close to point Kabal nearer to Paiz, you can rest assured you’re getting near. There you can have a rest, catch a spider fish or two and have a light lunch and then proceed down the Stari Grad cove and you’re there.

ND SAIL AWAY AGAIN, HOW TO SAVOUR THE SEA

ŠOLTA

ON’T SKI!

e Olympics swimming compared to running is an enchanting by us like a Jadrolinija catamaran and skipped the entire Without getting anything in return. Be sensible! If you’re not an at least be rational

This summer’s top destination is an island that the inhabitants of Split use when they want to ridicule someone: “May you end up on Šolta!”. But it’s quite the opposite, in fact. The island of Šolta is a choice, not a condemnation. While the open sea waves wash the southern side of the island, as if leafing through the most fascinating picture book you move from cove to cove, each unique in its own way, each deserving your attention and respect, the quiet one, the deep or the scary one, the cruel one and the shallow one, the next is tame, then vast, the following is motherly protective, or the threatening one, and all other sorts, as you like it. There are three safe havens where you can sail in, Nečujam and Rogač on the north side and Maslinica on the west side with islets in front of it and a brand new marina, the latest vogue this summer.

Stomorska

MAKARSKA The Makarska Riviera with its little towns, such as Brela, Baška Voda, Baško Polje, Promajna, Krvavica, Bratuš, Tučepi and Podgora, all the way to Igrane and Drvenik, Zaostrog and Gradac, tightly packed between the sea and the Biokovo mountain chain towering above them, will witness a true tourist heat wave next summer. The project of Port authority for Split-Dalmatia county will provide Makarska with a breakwater which will protect the harbour from almost any wind and make it possible for at least a hundred new boats and yachts to find a secure mooring.

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FUTURE PROJECTS PLANNED BY THE PORT AUT THE TOWN OF BOL IS BUILDING A BREAKWATER WITH 180 NEW BERTHS

Bol

This spectacular pebbled beach, where the only constant thing is its change by the touch of winds and waves, sent Bol into the outer space

PAINFULLY BE I

t’s been long since Bol put his pebbled tongue out to the world, declared a holy war to the world, to global tourism, to wider audiences! And spectators are left speechless, breathless, in awe and amazement, so much so that it hurts because the word Bol actually means pain in Croatian. Bol is the true Croatian Oscar winning tourist destination. The American Los Angeles Times recognized it as one of the 40 most appealing destinations of the world.

This spectacular pebbled beach, where the only constant thing is its change by the touch of winds and waves, sent Bol into the outer space. It is a true challenge to find out its true charms and beauties because it is quite a typical Mediterranean town, a dense cluster of stone houses at the foot of the steep and unapproachable cliffs on the southern side of the island of Brač and where the highest peak with Bolska kruna and Vidova gora at 778 meters above sea level, this metaphorical roof of the Adriatic Sea, plunges fiercefully down at an angle of nearly 90°, meandering like a snake between almost horizontally scattered vineyards. There are 1500 regular inhabitants in Bol which get swamped by the hords of tourists in the summer.

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AN EXCEPTIONAL PRICE The touristically insightful ones who were able to spot a tiny flash of the splendid future of their Bol in the world’s eyes claimed that this beauty wasn’t put there merely to break the record in quantity but to raise the quality of the offer. Today everyone understands perfectly clear what it means when the Bol municipality principal Tihomir Marinković says Bol will soon be the sole privilege of those tourists who are able to pay the high price for the exceptional.

– By the summer of 2014 Bol is going to turn into something quite different. Albeit a small town, with the accomodation, catering and nautical offer it will resemble quite a bigger, better place. The expansion of the harbour and the construction of an additional one which will cater for the needs of nautical tourism are going to launch Bol to the still unconquered ground. At long last, the conditions will be met for the expansion of the

touristic pretensions of Bol in the direction of quality and not quantity.

The Port Authority for the County, the chief port development investor and initiator in Split-Dalmatia County, initiated the Bol port construction project to meet the current touristic market demands. For the whole world would love to come to Bol. But how, if not even a random guest’s boat can’t find a mooring?

It’s exactly the intimacy and warmth of Bol that make it so enchanting, the sea on the one side, on the other Brač as a mountain towering over it, the highest mountain in the whole of the Adriatic. However, the question why this small town still hasn’t got a proper breakwater has been waiting to be asked for decades now.

– We’re finally quite sure that better times are just around the corner. The plan for the construction and expansion of the Bol port

HORITY FOR SPLIT-DALMATIA COUNTY Zlatni rat

View of the port of Bol

EAUTIFUL Written by Mario Garber will develop through three stages – says Mr Tihomir Marinković. The new marina will have to be open for everyone. The new breakwater will protect the Bol port with its 180 berths, and all up until now almost nobody could moor in to stay.

bly find enough place for all those people.

Mini-cruisers carrying 30 to 50 passengers and going on weekly cruises are our thing.

Our clientele will be well off, and at the same time we will unburden the port which is overcrowded.

180 BERTHS

THE EXCLUSIVE STATUS

However, Mr Marinković is objective: – It doesn’t make much sense to be unrealistic. If we manage to finish the paper and project work, by the year 2014 we could be ready for the new 180 moorings. The end of 2012 is coming near and our project will be doomed if we don’t pull up our sleeves next year. What matters is the right timing.

Apart from the main breakwater which will help the existing small port develop into a safe haven, Bol will be given a series of other benefits. At the centre of the port there will be a gas station and the 30 metre long breakwater will protect the harbour from all kinds of winds, especially those dangerous ones like mistral, tramontane and the west winds.

From the centre of the port 25 metres westward Bol will be expanded with a row of new berths for small cruise ships and excursion boats.

– That’s the story of quality, says Mr Marinković. – We don’t need any of those huge cruisers because we couldn’t possi-

This is a new breakthrough for Bol which has been waiting for years to come closer to the guests’ objective needs. Bol will be a place for the rich and for yachts, boats and sailboats that are looking for a place to relax, without asking for the price.

– Of course an investment like this will entail bigger economic results. For the time being our offer comprises caffes, disco clubs that are open late into the night, restaurants for a wider clientele. At the moment we are achieving good results, and its been like that for years, but now we are making a leap forward, in fact we’re at a historical crossroads because Bol will not be available to everyone. Bol is a choice destination. The guests themselves will choose it. Bol has to reach an exclusive status, and in fact it has been that way for decades now.

The project is quite complex and for now we’re talking about an investment worth around 80 million kunas but there is no detailed design for it yet. There will be a competition, and Bol wll surely play the role of a real tourist attraction.

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The construction of the Makarska breakwater the port will be protected from most of the dangerous winds

A BREAKWATER FOR A N For years Makarska has been marked in nautical maps as an extremely dangerous port. The construction of a 217 metre long breakwater will make the yachtsmen rush to Makarska which will soon become a completely different town

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akarska and all of its partners are looking forward for the breakwater to be constructed. And who are these partners? Sumartin, the port of Selca on the southeastern tip of the island of Brač, could grow to be pretty much like Supetar which is almost a part of Split, given its strong “polyphonic” connections to Split.

Not only does Sumartin have the potential of becoming a frequently visited port that connects the island of Brač to the parts of Dalmatia south of Split, but it can also grow into a mega-Sumartin where one sails in order to get faster to Bol not only from the Makarska riviera and the Dalmatian South but also from the Croatian northern parts, in fact from all over Europe.

MARKO OŽIĆ BEBEK’S OPTIMISM When the highway connects Makarska to Split, Šibenik, Zadar and Zagreb, along with Dubrovnik to the south and the Montenegro border, then it will, along with Supetar and Sumartin, become a much wanted port. The chief of Selca Ivica Škrpaca talks about this in our Port News explaining that, it is not the Sumartin port that, opposed to the general erroneous impression, has been closed due to the wind; it is Makarska that has been closed.

Of course one could think differently. However, it is Makarska that is one of the least protected ports. It has been marked that way even in the nautical charts. That’s why the yachtsmen avoid it, especially if they are not experienced professionals. And yet, this summer as well Makarska is filled by excursion boats, speedboats and yachts. However, it is common knowledge it could be even more loaded than it already is.

However, lebićada, or garbinada as it is commonly called, the western summer winds, be it daily or during a storm, can cause

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great problems because the port in Makarska is completely unsheltered for this wind.

The construction of the breakwater will create the safety conditions in this port in all sorts of weather. The Port authority for the County and its director Domagoj Maroević have launched a series of projects, initiatives and investments, including the project of a big breakwater with 110 moorings which is a huge operation. The story of the breakwater in Makarska has been a topic of discussion for at least 30 years. The same is with the hall which has been a topic for centuries, so to speak, and the project was being then relocated back and forth, but the hall seems to be impossible to get – says Marko Ožić Bebek wittily.

The point is, the breakwater for Makarska has always been the most important question and of course that such an important question will raise disagreements, but there’s also an additional problem – how to find the means. The breakwater gives a wholy new status to Makarska in the world of yachtsmen and seamen, including the tourist aspect. These were the arguments of the Port authority of Split-Dalmatia County for an investment into a project which would thoroughly protect the port and upgrade its capacity with 110 new berths.

YACHT AND SAILBOAT ELITE When this new Makarska arises, there will no longer be those inveterate untrusting yachtsmen. A mooring in Makarska is a link to the world in all directions and in every way, for tourism, for the population, existence and economy not only for Makarska but for everyone who will gravitate to it.

– This big turn-around will be enough – says Marko Ožić Bebek. – We will no longer be marked on maps as a dangerously unsafe port. The eastern part of the port is ex-

tremely exposed to the winds and the waves which makes the port unappealing to the yachtsmen. Since we are a tourist-oriented town, this is a big disadvantage. All bigger yachts and excursion boats will be much safer in Makarska. Since Makarska is sustained by the catering business, we have to understand that a whole new era in the history of this town is on the way. Up until now in our catering business we have been oriented towards cafes and disco-clubs, mostly outdoor for larger gatherings because in the summer Makarska becomes a real tourism metropolis.

The breakwater construction is thought to overwhelm Makarska with hords of nautical tourists, and the elite fleet of yachts and sailboats in the Makarska port is a guarantee for a better visit to the restaurants in Makarska.

– Makarska is about to witness a real boom because all the caterers will adapt to the new clientele with exclusive restaurants.

This is going to be a huge step forward for Makarska in economic terms. In the end, it will make living much calmer for the townspeople, with less noise and more profit – says Ožić Bebek.

Makarska as it is today cannot sell more than 100 kilograms of lobster, there are no such tourists, but both quantity and quality of tourism in Makarska will rise with the construction of the breakwater.

– However, we’ll have to wait and see – says Ožić Bebek. – It will take time to finalize everything. The beginning of construction is impossible to expect before the end of the next year, which means that we could see the new Makarska in the summer of 2014 at best. At this moment we still don’t have the design. The Port authority is our big support but the overall procedure will be known only after the end of the try-out.

Breakwater in Makarska, a dead new look of the town, the vision of the designer Neno Mikulandra

NEW MAKARSKA Written by Andrija Križančić

A PROJECT BY THE NEMICO COMPANY The author of the breakwater project in Makarska is Neno Mikulandra, an architect from Split with his company NEMICO and subcontractors.

– Makarska decided to build the breakwater three years ago, and everything started moving forward when the Port authority of the Split-Dalmatia county decided to fully support the project. And this is a good thing because, as you will see, with this new breakwater Makarska will be a completely different town.

According to the design, the breakwater stretches along the eastern side of the Makarska port. Although it seems to be a completely closed bay, it is in fact completely open southward, and the biggest part of it is exposed to big waves and strong winds like tramontane, mistral and bura.

– With this new breakwater the port will be completely protected – says Mikulandra. – It’s important to say that this will be a great piece of news for the yachtsmen, and we have also found the solution for the users of communal moorings not to be at a loss, both in the town port and in the port of the club “Arbun”.

The breakwater will be a real attraction, 217 metres long and turning towards the breakwater at the length of 80 metres. There will be 110 moorings for larger sailboats and yachts, and on the outer side of the breakwater there will be a beach and several spots for sunbathing. Mikulandra highlights the importance of the fact that the new breakwater will cause a boom for Makarska in the sense of the economic justification and a step forward in the offer for tourists.

– We made sure that the project kept a record of every ferry and boat that came to Makarska – says Mikulandra. – This will also be a gain for Makarska in the aesthetic sense. The plan is to tile the promenade with stone tiles 10 cm thick, along with the overall decor of the promenade.

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port news look

The island of Šolta, waterfront in Rogač

ROGAČ AND ITS An important segment of the Rogač port, constantly a possible traffic bottleneck, is about to be expanded with a two-way road with a pedestrian zone to facilitate access to the ferry port. The existing 4 metre wide road will become a 5,5 metre wide two-way road with a 2 metre wide pedestrian sidewalk as a kind of a promenade by the sea, and a row of specially designed stone fence elements will separate and protect the pedestrians from the traffic

Edo Šegvić, architect and author of the preliminary architectural design of the new Obala svete Terezije (St. Theresa Waterfront) in Rogač on the island of Šolta

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ogač is about to be given new looks with a new port. According to the contract between the Šolta municipality and Prostor-Split and in agreement with the Port Authority of the Split-Dalmatia county, the preliminary architectural design of the new look of Obala svete Terezije (St. Theresa Waterfront) in Rogač on the island of Šolta will include the redesign of the total of 1000 square metres of coast in Rogač.

An important segment of the Rogač port, constantly a possible traffic bottleneck, is about to be expanded with a two-way road with a pedestrian zone to facilitate access to the ferry port. The existing 4 metre wide road will become a 5,5 metre wide two-way road with a 2 metre wide pedestrian sidewalk as a kind of a promenade by the sea, and a row of specially designed stone fence elements will separate and protect the pedestrians from the traffic.

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At the point where the expanded waterfront meets the eastern pier a flag pole will be put up, a mast for the flag on a wide stone pedestal and a round stone column.

At the bottom of the bay there is yet another narrow road by the churchyard stone fence, and the sea in this part is so shallow that the grass grows from the shallows. This part is also going to be redesigned. Apart from the expansion of the road and the sidewalk, at the bottom of the bay a sort of a park will find its place, a nice and cozy place with carob trees and benches on one side and a great sea view on the other. There will also be a fresh water fountain made of stone and

resembling one of the traditional containers for drawing water from a well.

The existing part with the boat winch will be improved in order to facilitate the process of taking the boats out of the sea. The southern side of the Rogač bay will also be done up with the waterfront or riva fully equipped

S NEW ATTIRE for the mooring of boats, electricity and water outlets included.

This particular part of the Rogač riva is going to be done up with the stone blocks of suitable thickness and a special surface treatment. The unique atmosphere of the new Rogač riva will be enhanced by a row of modern street lights.

Beach in Rogač

When a ship docks in Rogač

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COAST CHALLENGE A special pier for ferries in Trogir for the islands of Veli Drvenik and Mali Drvenik is going to be built aŌer the project by the company Obala

LITTLE BIG D Mali Drvenik and Veli Drvenik are no longer a Robinson’s paradise, and it’s quite likely that soon enough even cruise ships will head that way. The ferry port and harbour Trogir-Soline are a necessity for both the local people and the tourists

Written by Andrija Križančić

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t’s easy for you to be Robinson Crusoe and cheer with all your might that Veli and Mali Drvenik never taste the blessing of running water, electricity, roads, ferries, mobile phones, internet, a forest of aerials, traffic lights, signals... And all that for you to have a few weeks’ rest in an unkempt or nobly untouched scenery.

For you it’s just a flert. Both with Veli and Mali Drvenik. And what are they supposed to do for the rest of the autumn, winter and spring days, waiting for you to be their short-time witness of the fact that his – “au-

Ivica Galasso

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tochtonous untouched nature” is indeed a real heaven on Earth and better than the internet.

Surely it can’t remain like that tomorrow, and the day after... All such islands will slowly become part of the system. There’s no doubt that very soon Veli and Mali Drvenik might become one of the most popular destinations for sailing in on all kinds of boats.

PORT TROGIR-SOLINE Ferries for Veli and Mali Drvenik still belong to the generation of smaller passenger boats and their appearance and the overall image

reflect the close and romantic relationship with the age of smaller boats and ferryboatoldtimers whose value increases thanks to nostalgia.

At the intersection where the two eras meet it’s easy to predict that one day there’ll even be cruisers sailing towards the two Drveniks.

And because of that the exact place in Trogir where the ferry to Drvenik and back will dock is not insignificant. Due to the construction of the new marina between Trogir and Seget Donji the ferries to Drvenik had to be relocated to the beginning of the riva in Trogir where they of course shouldn’t be: they get in the way of passers-by and are far from traffic.

That’s how the project of the ferry pier at the new location of Soline, west to the city centre and riva in Trogir, and bordering with the municipality of Seget came to life.

“Obala”, a firm from Split that specialized in marine projects under its manager, architect Ivica Galasso, enveloped a thorough and important project that would result in the ferry pier, that is a port open for public transportation Trogir-Soline.

Apart from a ferry pier the project includes the construction of a part of the port for communal berths. In this way the existing improvised berths will be put in order. The project also includes safety on the docks and berths which stretch for 300 metres.

The project also includes a traffic regulation plan in the future Trogir-Soline port, along with the accompanying buildings.

DRVENIK The newly planned pier is designed for ferries such as “Hanibal Lucić” that now meet the need for the traffic for the islands of Drvenik Veli and Drvenik Mali. This part of the coast is exposed to the south wind and mistral so everything necessary for the safe stop for ferries and other boats was planned with great care and consideration.

Scenes from Little and Big Drvenik

FERRIES AND BOATS In the part of the harbour with the communal berths five moles will be changed for smaller boats, along with a promenade and the accompanying facilities which will be adjusted to the needs of the ferry pier and the communal berths. This refers specifically to the parking lot and the access to the ferry, the boarding and so on.

The days when ferry lines with Veli and Mali Drvenik were a rare treasure are long gone now. Galasso’s “Obala” follows life’s footsteps, in the times when Stari Grad on the island of Hvar needs to be prepared to accept the cruise ships, or when the people of the wonderful islands from Trogir to Vinišće have to be enabled to have a safe connection to the coast.

Ferry pier project outside Trogir “Grand Canal”

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When the Saints Go September 9, Our Lady of Prizidnica Slatine on the Island of Čiovo Pučišća

The festivity of Our Lady of Prizidnica it is on Sunday, September 9. It is a traditional celebration which gather all residents of Slatine but not only them. It is always interesting walk to church, only to enjoy or take a bath on the beach below it, imagine now during the celebration!

The church was built by Juraj Stoidražić on 1546, in the desert, on the cliffs above the sea. There was a monastery until 1852.

Kaštel Kambelovac

Marina in Gradac

Čiovo, Our Lady of Prizidnica

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Marching in September 29, Saint Michael (Mihovil) Gradac, Kaštel Kambelovac Saint Michael is the patron of Gradac in Makarska Riviera and of Kaštel Kambelovac nearby Split. Who wouldn’t want such a patron, an archangel with sword in hand!? On the day of celebration it is always crowded in Gradac, in the church of Saint Michael and, of course, around the medieval church on the hillside of Kozjak above Kaštela.

Saint Michael is protector of police and army, paratroopers, fighter pilots and radiologists.

Written by Elizabeta Sonjara Garber

Kaštel Gomilica

September 30, Saint Jeronim Pučišća, Kaštel Gomilica Patron saint of all Dalmatians is Saint Jeronim, Jere. Residents of Split especially like the little church dedicated to Saint Jere on Marjan hill, near the cave where, by legend, the saint lived (in the fourth century). But the special celebrations are in Pučišća on the island of Brač and in Kaštel Gomilica. Saint Jere is their protector.

There is no card of Pučišća without the beautiful bell tower of their cathedral (built on 1576).

St. Jere lived in Bethlehem for 34 his last years and he died on 420. He is best known for the monumental work “Vulgata”, translation of the Bible from Greek into Latin.

October 2, Saint Stephen (Stjepan) Hvar Saint Stephen The First, pope of the third century (he died on 257 in Rome) is the patron of the town Hvar on the island of Hvar.

On their patron day Hvar residents put on festivals and it is officially all around. Hvar cathedral is, of course, dedicated to Saint Stephen and built on thirteenth century in the main town square. In cathedral are kept the bones of the other Hvar protector – Saint Prosper.

Hvar, Križna luka

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DALMATIA ON THE PLATE

Eating is a GORAN ALBINI KAMANJO, CULINARY EXPERT WHO HAS COOKED FOR PRESIDENTS AND PRIME MINISTERS OF CROATIA

Gastro expert travelled through Dalmatia searching for you for the finest restaurants. He is like a dinner or lunch skipper who is guiding you through special flavours

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t’s end of the summer so we decided to leave the islands and take a tour around coast/land parts of Dalmatia. On the coast parts of Dalmatia the season lasts longer than on the islands but we visited a few traditional restaurants that work in the winter also. If tourists could smell and taste both food and ambient that residents enjoy in quite, cold days and nights they will be jealous as hell!

Feet in the sea

Tavern is prepared, Krilo Jesenice, the old village

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First of three places that our gastro guru liked the most on his journey was restaurant „Frenky“ in Seget Donji. That’s beautiful small coast village that you’ll find next to Trogir on the west side of town. More precisely, when you’re going out of town there is no more than few minutes driving until you’re there! Than, all you have to do is park the car and level down on foot for few more minutes to the bottom of the cove and you will find „Frenky“, the restaurant where you can take a seat on the table and check menu while dipping your feet in the sea. If you’re so lucky and you are travelling on the boat, you could tied it for the table from which you’re eating the

dinner… restaurant is really beautiful, there are two pools with sea water for lobsters and shells. Fish that is served there is caught in the sea in front of the restaurant, and behind it there’s big field with vegetables and fruits, that must be one domestic healthy meal!

Above Krilo What an adventure! I was driving by the coast from Split to south. Like always, one village took more of my attention than other.

Krilo Jesenice, nice little village on the coast maybe 25 minutes driving from Split. That is unbelievable how many old sailing ships are there, one sail after another, beautiful!

It’s just strange how, this time, the story was on the other side of the road, little bit uphill, where there’s just few families living in old and amazingly beautiful stone houses. Hidden between many houses is one special. It was a restaurant about 30 years ago, it was great and famous, but now, it’s closed, sorry, it’s not working any more. But! It will be, and it will work in one very special way. Oh, let’s start again. To find that magic place you need to pass Krilo Jesenice, after two minutes you are in Sumpetar, the village where you have

a Must Seget Donji

to turn left and go uphill until you see the church (that will also take just few minutes) you have to go further by the road on the left side of the church and drive another 300 meters where stands a small chapel. That is the place to park your car and go upstairs for about 20 meters and you found the Dalmatian traditional restaurant „Kamanjo“ that will in near future work on some strange ways. The owner who opened the restaurant 30 years ago is Goran Albini, your guide on these pages.

With food in restaurant That restaurant is closed a long time ago, now there lives my son Bartul Albini Kamanjo Junior who, like his father, is a great cook! But, he likes a special type of nutrition full of vegetables and seeds, so, it’s not a normal cuisine for a restaurant. And he got an idea that he could repair the old house a little bit, make it nice, clean and beautiful – same like many years ago – and open it for people, of course. It’s just one thing… people could bring their own food, fish that they caught or vegetables they pick in the backyard of the restaurant in Bartul’s field. So, people will come with food that they want to eat and the cook will cook it for them. Very simple, nicer than dinner at home and cheaper than in normal restaurant. Isn’t it great!

Turn towards Biokovo If you’re travelling far in the south, don’t forget this advice. Believe me, turn left towards Biokovo cause Opačak is waiting for you! “Opačak” is a restaurant in Tučepi Gornji.

From the terrace you have the most beautiful view in the world! You can see Pelješac, Hvar and Brač, islands not very far away…

When we’re talking about food, restaurant “Opačak” offers you all traditional foods. Domestic, home grown and very healthy food.

While eating, you can enjoy in Dalmatian traditional music. Restaurant “Opačak” can be proud for being three years in a row one of 30 best restaurants on the Adriatic coast according to tourist guides.

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ON THE OCCASION OF PUBLISHING A UNIQUE BOOK ON PALAGRUŽA, BY AUTHOR BRANKO KIRIGIN, PhD (2)

“Whatever Palagruža Gave Palagruža is the Island of Diomedes. His journeys are not as known in detail as are Odysseus’ (or Ulysses, as he was known in Roman myths), but what is known is that he, persecuted by Aphrodite’s vengeance, had sailed the Adriatic. The archaeological findings and a careful study of the writings prove that Diomedes died and was buried on Palagruža and not on the Italian Tremiti islands (Isole Tremiti, an archipelago in the Adriatic Sea, north of the Gargano Peninsula).

Branko Kirigin, a noted architect from Split, author of the book Palagruža – the Island of Diomedes, for Port News supplement

Magnificently pebble beach on Palagruža

PORT NEWS SUPPLEMENT

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alagruža had been inhabited long before the famous lighthouse was built.

This has been proven by the archaeological findings from the Greek and Roman period, not to mention the prehistory.

Among other things, a glass has been found that dates back in the year 520 A.D. and has the grafitti inscription of Diomedes’ name and the image of a seated bearded god in the nude. This is the primary material evidence of the god Diomedes’ worship in the Adriatic. Mr Kirigin emphasizes the fact that Palagruža is the island of Diomedes. The journeys of Diomedes, one of the most famous Greek heroes, are not as known in detail after the Trojan war as are Odysseus’ (or Ulysses, as he was known in Roman myths), but what is known is that he, persecuted by Aphrodite’s vengeance, had sailed the Adriatic.

He died when a very old man, according to one of the stories he was killed by our Illyrian ancestors – the natives. The archaeological findings and a careful study of the writings prove that Diomedes died and was buried on Palagruža and not on the Italian Tremiti islands with the island of San Nicola on which Diomedes’ grave has been marked recently.

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THE RACES OF THE FISHING BOAT FALKUŠA Diomedes had been worshipped on Palagruža a whole century before the inhabitants of the Aegean island of Paros founded Faros, today Stari Grad on the island of Hvar, the first urban settlement on the Croatian soil. For purposes of comparison, sailing from Gargano to Palagruža lasted for six hours, and it took six hours to sail from Komiža to Palagruža as well. With no wind for the sails, the people of Komiža used to row for fifteen hours to get to Palagruža.

The fishermen of Komiža would yearly salt between 56 and 112 tons of fish. In order for each fisherman to have equal starting odds, a regatta of a sort would be organized.

The fishermen in their boats, the traditional gajetas, would line up before the Kaštel (citadel) on the Komiža waterfront and start their journey towards Palagruža at the sound of the Kaštel canon at 7 A.M. The fastest boat to sail those 40 miles to Palagruža would get to choose a better fishing spot. Sardines in the summer, lobsters in the winter. This was the practice until 1936.

In order to be able to sail and fish out

on the open sea, the Komiža fishermen took a regular gajeta and readjusted it into a falkuša, a boat perfect for fishing on the high seas. The more fish was caught, the more falkas would be added, a special construction which would be put on the sides of the boat in order to increase the transport capacity. Ther eused to be up to a hundred groups of fishermen around Palagruža but there were never any quarrels, indeed they would help each other out and everyone respected a high moral code. Thats the origin of the saying: “Whatever Palagruža gave, it took back”.

A record catch of a gajeta was one by the owner Jovanino Marinković Dero who caught and salted 40 tons of sardines in 1909.

In the sixteenth century a thousand sardines could be sold for 1 golden ducat or cekin (the Croatian word for zecchino, the golden ducat from the Venetian mint), and had Dero lived back then, he would have earned 800 ducats.

In those times a Venetian aristocratic family’s yearly income was around 60 ducats so it is fairly easy to imagine what a wealthy man Dero could have become. But he did not. The Palagruža fish made only the noblemen and the government rich, never the fishermen.

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It Took Back” WITH HIS PANTS DOWN

What’s interesting is that this is a small island but there are so many toponyms, as much as 80 on Vela (big) Palagruža, 40 on Mala (small) Palagruža, and 10 on Galijula, the southernmost point of the Adriatic. Each place, each spot had to be named because there was no other way to describe or find a particular fishing point in the age before the compass or GPS. The name Palagruža originates in the Greek word pelagos (open sea), the etymology of the name for the shallows Pupak (navel) is obvious, but there are also points like Mondefust, Pulentino, Konfin, Salamandrija...

Pol Forane got its name after an accident in which fishermen from Hvar died when a huge cliff collapsed and fell on them, possibly because of an earthquake, just as they were about to sit down and dine. Only a young boy survived because he had been sent to fetch water from Salamandrija. After that the people of Hvar handed Palagruža to the Komiža inhabitants. At Pol Klobuk (klobuk = hat), not far from Pol Forane, a cliff fell and killed Centoto Mardešić Foka as he was about to “lower his pants” (go to the toilet). Pol kriz (križ = cross) is a stone cross put up in memory of an unfortunate fisherman from Vis who had been thrown into the sea by a powerful gust of jugo (southern wind) and was never found. Indeed, it seems that noone of those who died on Palagruža died of natural causes. And a lot of people died, just as the depths hide many wrecks of ships sunk in the sea around Palagruža.

Pope Alexander III (the one who put down the cornerstone for Notre Dame in Paris) set out on a journey with numerous entourage and a fleet of 13 galleys from Venice to Vieste, a small town on Gargano, and got to Palagruža on March 9, 1177. Due to bad weather some of the ships had to sail back and the remaining ones were stuck on Palagruža. Toponyms like Popina njiva (Pope’s fields), Popin brig (Pope’s hill), and

Pol popino (under the Pope or Pope’s property) on Mala Palagruža serve as a memento of this 12th century event.

A GUIDE MARK, A NATIONAL PARK The life on the Adriatic started, of course, in prehistory, but it was the Greeks who marked the beginning of historical significance of the Adriatic. On the 480 mile long journey from Korfu to Adria Palagruža has always been halfway from both as a firm guide mark for sailors, explorers and pirates. Both Adriatic coasts can be seen from Palagruža; 220 different kinds of plants grow there, and its sea is the home for 321 sorts of algae. It deserves to become a national park and a place where the international scientific and research centre, The Lighthouse of Science about the Mediterranean, will be founded.

We join Mr Branko Kirigin in the wish that Palagruža becomes what it deserves.

THE LONGEST WAR One of the longest lasting confrontations in these parts was the one between the independent fishermen who used the traditional cast nets and those who used bottom trawls, and these were fishing for the noblemen. The bottom trawls were more profitable and thus favoured by the noblemen who banned the use of regular nets by law and even introduced cruel penalties for disobedience of that law. This fishermen’s war lasted for centuries and there were some casualties. The war finally ended in 1808 when the Austrian provediteur general for Dalmatia Vincenzo Dandolo let the fishermen of Komiža freely fish for sardines with their cast nets, but only around the islands of Palagruža and Svetac (where bottom trawls could not be used anyway).

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Kaštel Gomilica

Sen

Stomorska

Maslinica

Komiža

Vis, Kut

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nsations of Central Dalmatia For this We Have no Word

Hvar

Vis, sailing boat to Green cawe

Omiš

Rogač

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