Brač

"So, starting with Pansion Palute and Bistro Palute, they use the leverage to found Palute Car Rental. From there they build Palute Resort. Next thing you know, Supetar is renamed Palute. A few years later, the island of Brač disappears from Croatian maps to be replaced by the island of Palute."

The niece chuckled. I had just been expounding my humourous fantasy about the future expansion of the Palute empire. This was triggered by the memory earlier in the morning of the booming voice, coming from downstairs, of the landlady giving instructions to the Pansion staff. She certainly was an energetic lady. She had spied us squinting at the morning light on the balcony from the patio and greeted us with a hearty dobro jutro! (good morning!) Besides the friendly landlady, the Pansion also had yummy home made jams. Croatia is one country where they haven't forgotten the old ways and the jams really taste of fruit.

The first order of business was to pick up our rental car at the harbour. We set out clockwise, stopping at villages such as Splitska, which is lodged in a pretty indentation in the coast.

(Note from the future: According to a tourism article, it seems that the stone for the construction of Diocletian's Palace in Split was quarried near here.)

It seems impossible to take a photo anywhere on the Croatian coast without pretty little boats inserting themselves into the picture.

Even large boats insist in getting into pictures, sigh.

But Brač is more than just coast, it also has deep valleys between hills.

By mid-afternoon, we reached our main destination of the day, the seaside resort of Bol and the nearby feature of Zlatni Rat. This has nothing to do with rodents, but means golden cape. Unfortunately I had forgotten to recharge the helicopter attachment for my camera so I can't show you an aerial view, just a side view, but if you browse any collection of Croatian tourist brochures, you will see a picture of it. It's the wedge-shaped promontory that sticks out from the south coast. Sadly, like most Croatian beaches, it is pebbly, not sandy.

We stopped to have a swim. I found that the current was stronger on the west side of the Rat than the east. I also discovered that the beach sloped away sharply into the water so I didn't dare venture too far from shore. The water was not as cold as in Dubrovnik but one round was enough for me.

Sunset found us in Milna, at the western tip of the island. More of those darned cute boats. We decided to dine there. Those winding roads take longer than you think to traverse.

It was dark by the time we took the coastal road back to Supetar, closing our loop of the island.

Trogir, Split and Brač

One of the joys of travel is the prospect of waking up to a prepared breakfast. As this was a classy hotel, breakfast was sumptuous. My insides were feeling much better but I ate warily.

The plan was to sightsee around Trogir until mid-morning, then go to Split to catch the ferry to the island of Brač. Trogir's buildings are well preserved and very attractive in the sunlight.

We bought some cherries and strawberries from the market before taking the bus to Split. It took 45 minutes to get there. As Split is a medium-sized city, we had to transfer to another bus for the harbour. The first thing we did there was to ask the tourist office to find us a room for two nights hence. We wanted to be close to the bus station so that it would be easy for the niece to catch the airport shuttle and and me to catch the bus north on the day. They found us one in a private residence and gave us a voucher in return for payment. Then I found a bakery and we had some pastry with the fruits, sitting on a bench. The strawberries had started to go mouldy in the heat and many had to be thrown out. The cherries were excellent though.

The car and passenger ferry took an hour to cross the channel to the town of Supetar, on Brač, facing Split. (The niece jokingly called it Superstar.) Brač is the largest island in Dalmatia. At the ferry terminal we couldn't raise the Pansion Palute, getting only the whistle of a fax machine. We asked the tourist office for help and they managed to contact the landlady, who drove down to the harbour to pick us up. Her large friendly dog had come along too for the ride.

I had a siesta while the niece did some exploration on her own. She was hungry and so insisted that we dine no later than 7 pm down at the waterfront. While it was great of the landlady to pick us up because of our backpacks, the harbour is actually only a 20 minute stroll from the Pansion; Supetar is that cozy. We ended up at the Bistro Palute which was run by the landlady's brother. We ordered a mixed grill for two. The serving was too large even with both of us, so we surreptitiously gave bits to a friendly but goofy dog who was hanging around the tables.

A few doors away we got a couple of gelati. I was half expecting the gelateria to be Gelati Palute. Then we sat on a bench and chatted, enjoying the mild evening. A late ferry service came in as we watched. Supetar is a tranquil world far from the bustle of Split. Islands are great that way. I wondered if there were people who lived on Brač and commuted to Split for work. Nice home if you can get it.