Coast Sailing

Croatia

Click the flag for German or Italian

Coast sailing - Segeln entlang der Küste - Navigando lungo la costa

Croatia is a Central European and Mediterranean country (not in the EU yet), bordering Slovenia in the west, Hungary in the north, Serbia (Yugoslavia) in the east, Bosnia and Herzegovina in the south, and has a long maritime border with Italy in the Adriatic Sea. These borders are 2.028 km long altogether. Croatia has a strange shape (similar to a croissant), like no other country in the world, which comes as a result of five centuries of expansion by the Ottoman (Turkish) empire towards Central Europe (although Croatia was never conquered by the Turks). Croatia covers a land area of 56,691 square km with a population of about 4.8 million people. Over 90% are Croatian (the majority of whom are Roman Catholics), but there are also Serbian, Bosnian, Hungarian and Italian minorities. The main population centres are Zagreb, the capital (with a population of just over one million), Osijek in the northwest, and the ports of Rijeka, and Split in the south. The official language is Croatian, written in the Latin script. Croatia has an amazing 5,835 km of coastline, 4,057 km of which belongs to islands, cliffs and reefs. These are 1,185 islands in the Adriatic, but only about 70 are populated. The largest island is Krk (near Rijeka) at 462 sq km.

Skipper BORIS, a lawyer from Split and a ladykiller

Bavaria 42

Crew - crystal-clear water and a water-rat

HVAR Island

The island of Hvar is the queen of the Croatian Dalmatian islands and it has been famous since the antique because of its important strategic and nautical position, the rich of the various historical periods, the culture and natural monuments and the literature.

Thanks to the mild climate, the warm winters and pleasant summers Hvar receives many guests, scientists and travellers, who are attracted by the dense mediterranean nature, rich tradition and arhitecture, and nightlife.

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KORCULA Island

Because of numerous legends told over generations, Korcula, with its town Korcula, is one of the most interesting islands in the Croatian Adriatic. The legend says that Korcula was founded in the 12th c. BC by the Trojan hero Antenor. Marco Polo, "The first tourist", was born here in 1254 - also a legend?

Korcula is famous for performing the Moreska Dance. Records exist it being danced in Lerida/Spainin 1156 in a form portraying a Christian and National victory over the Moors and their expulsion from Aragon. From Spain it spread to many Mediterranean countries, even to Great Britain.

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MLJET Island - Island on an island

Malo Jezero (Small Lake) is about 1/4 of square kilometers. The salinity of the water in the lakes is bit lower than in the sea, due to intake of fresh waters. The National Park Mljet was established in early sixties of last century. It covers about 30 square kilometers of area on the western bit of Island Mljet, which is about 1/3 of the Island. It consist of two natural salt lakes (Veliko and Malo jezero) that are interconnected by a narrow channel. Veliko jezero ( Large Lake) covers the area of 1,5 square kilometers.

The temperature of the Lakes is usually higher then open sea temperatures for about 4 degrees centigrade. Due to these details, Veliko and Malo Jezero are popular places for visitors to swim in. Both lakes are surrounded with dense old pine forest. In the middle of Veliko Jezero there is a little island called Melita where Benedictine monastery is located.

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DUBROVNIK

It had city sanitation facilities ahead of Paris and London ... and Richard The Lionhearted gave the money for the construction of the towns cathedral. Its thick stone walls have protected the city for seven centuries against assault and proclaim invincibility in the face of aggression. The wide marble street, Placa (Stradun), lined with offices, shops, cafes, churches and palaces, encourage the fusion of commerce, pleasure and faith into a vibrant community life.

The profusion of fame sculpture and architectural detail on public buildings and monuments underscores a common artistic heritage available to anyone who cares to look. For those who watched the shelling of Dubrovnik on TV in late 1991, here is good news: the city is still there, as beautiful as ever, with few visible reminders of recent trauma. 68 % of the Old Town's 824 buildings were hit ! The eight-month siege by the Serbian army from October 1991 to May 1992 tore through the town's distinctive honey-coloured clay roofs. Replacing them with matching tiles was extremely problematic and you'll notice a patchwork of colours as you walk around the city walls. Today city where Prince of Wales spent his vacation and visited the National Park Mlet on Mlet Island. The Republik of Dubrovnik was the first to establish diplomatic relations with USA.

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