“Mrtvi dan, skale van!” (All Saints Day, bring out the ladders!) This old proverb is rarely used these days when fashionable “Extra Virgin Olive Oil” is taking roots even here, on the shores of Dalmatia. Traditional olive picking would start somewhere around November 1st and lasts through the winter, sometimes even till mid January or,…
Category: Zadar
Bijela River – Secret Gem of North Dalmatia
Bijela rijeka is a small river flowing in the rain season (mostly Fall and Spring) from the 300 meters high hill down to the Karin Sea near Zadar. Hard to spot from the street, it requires some easy hiking along a very dramatic canyon. It has been a while since I wanted to go there…
Fall in Dalmatia – Kumenat
It gives me a special pleasure to enjoy the afternoons walking with my family. Here is just a small gallery from our yesterday’s walk in Kumenat area. This part of coast – between Biograd and Pakoštane, got it’s name from the work “convent” since the remains of a large convent have been found here. It…
Sv. Simeon of Zadar – Sv. Šime: patron of Zadar
Now this is a special place! The church of St Simeon is located in historic quarters of Zadar: near the Roman entrance to ancient Jadera. The tiny square is one of my most favorite places in the World! Small, quiet, historic… just radiates with harmony! I cannot explain it, but it simply shines with tranquility….
Zeleni Hrast in Islam Latinski – The mysterious Green Oak of Ravni Kotari
Dalmatia still hides numerous secrets and fascinating places and monuments. One of the often overlooked, standing by the main road from Zagreb to Zadar, is the green oak in Islam Latinski some 20 Km north of Zadar. Not exactly a mystery since the botanists studied (and continue to) this magnificent tree for decades. It is…
Organic food in Croatia – Turkeys on pastures of Ravni Kotari
Traditional food is becoming scarce in Croatia as majority of people live in cities now. The war in the 90’s had a devastating influence on the villages and especially those in Slavonia and Dalmatia. But, even now, there are people still living on their small farms in the hinterland of big cities and still produce…
Sand beaches in Croatia – Kraljičina (Queen’s) Beach in Nin
Sandy beaches in Croatia are not as rare as many travelers think! Those that stretch for miles are rare, though. Patches of sand and small sandy beaches are found almost down the entire coast but most of the coastline is rugged and rocky with rocky and pebbly beaches. One of the areas that has only…
The Medieval Fair in Vrana – The return of the Templars!
This past weekend, a local tourist board of Pakoštane organized a 3 day show focusing on the medieval tradition of Vrana village. This tiny place was one of the most important towns in the medieval Croatia and even the royal crown was kept in the now ruined castle. Among many very unique features, the best…
Heart Shaped Island picnic – Galesnjak
Recently I got an email from a Taiwanese couple requesting a visit to Galesnjak – the Herat Shaped Island. They were coming to Croatia and this was one of the key places to visit on their list. I have organized a pickup at the bus station in Zadar and transfer to Turanj where they boarded…
Knights Templars in Dalmatia and Croatia – The Ruins of Ljuba
Recently, following the huge success of the “Da Vinci Code” (I never read it since the story is a pure rip off of “The Holy Blood, Holly Grail” controversial book – which I adore!), Knights of the Temple became popular again. Mysterious aura that surrounds them is only enhanced by the numerous stories, wonderful ruins…
Traditional architecture in Dalmatia – Bunja
Travelers in Dalmatia can often see small stone houses appearing as pile of rocks in the fields and wonder what that is. It is bunja – traditional stone built shelter found in all of Dalmatia. Similar stone structures can be seen in the entire Mediterranean and some similar objects have been found as far as…
Food tours in Croatia – Peka cooking lesson
I have been receiving a lot of requests for peka lids and questions on how to cook peka. Recently I have posted a video on this site but that was not enough so I created my own video. I got a bit rusty with editing but you will get a picture… We cooked a chicken…
Lost Roman Cities of Dalmatia – Asseria
My long lasting love for history and archaeology resulted with several tours and original programs. One of those is Lost Roman Cities – tour dedicated to one of the most deserted areas of Croatia and to one of the most beautiful parts of Dalmatia. Once inhabited by thousands of Illyrians and later Romans, the area…
The animals of Benkovacki sajam
Just some video clips to give a better sense of sights and sounds of the great Benkovac fair!
Benkovac Sajam – The Fair of Benkovac
The hinterland of Dalmatia is still resisting highly polished and commercialized events that overtook the coast. Here, you will not see the Helly Hansen “skippers” with two weeks experience, “hotel owners” of an apartment building… Local fiestas are still very traditional: loud, rude, religious, crowded with people in traditional outfits with not a great sense…