Island hopping. Korcula

Korcula is one of the larger islands in the Croatian archipelago, about 4 km off the coast of Oberic. Pronounced Obereach, rhymes with beach. We caught the bus from Ston and wound our way through villages, past a lot of grapevines and wineries perched precariously on the hillsides and ensconced in very small stoned walled areas. Finally a huge winding downhill decline into the seaside port of Oberic. The huge coastal range is all rock and you can see how the soil  has been washed off the tops, slowly over time, exposing the bare craggy rock.

Finally our bus boarded one of those roll on roll off car ferries, with entry exit ramps at each end and you drive off the opposite end you entered from. Korcula is a lovely island with  about 6 very small townships and numerous villages. Olives, grapes, mandarins and associated tourism activities seem to provide a life style for the residents  about 8 months of the year. Korcula township has an old town surrounded by a wall, with their cathedral enclosed. The streets as with the many other old towns we have visited on this trip, are narrow and cobbled with the residents going about their every day life, and carving out an income from the passing tourist trade. 

It's quite a busy wee port with numerous ferries servicing the islands in the area, and the mainland as faraway as Split and Dubrovnik. Of course the rich have super yachts and the not so rich have a nice array of power boats and yachts here too. In the quiet bays around the island are another selection of boats. The water busy during the day and the bays busy during the evenings. A boating paradise and for a man with boats in his blood, the perfect place for a few days.

Yesterday we caught the local bus to the other side of the island to Lombarda for a day of boats, water and sunshine. After a walk down some narrow country lanes we camped by the waterside leaning against yet another stone wall housing a small vine yard and a few olive trees.  A glorious day was spent in and out of the crystal clear water, and admiring the various qualities of the boats that passed by. A number of Adriatic cruises moored in the bay for the duration with their guests jumping from the varying deck heights and swimming around. 

Now it's about this point I should talk about the food. Rest assured I am not fading away! Mussels, oysters, scampi  and fish platters are always on the menu and I can attest to the quality and taste of each and every one. Delectable.