Day 6 - Hvar Today's destination is Hvar, a popular tourist hub. As with most days we do a swim stop near one of the islands.
As I mentioned earlier, there is virtually no marine life here. The ship does have snorkeling gear, but you're just looking at rocks. The shoreline is jagged rocks and the one type of creature that does live here is sea urchin. Don't want to step or put a hand on one of those. So I swim off the ship's swim deck and attemp paddle boarding. I lack natural balance and so it is rather difficult for me. Wine doesn't help. Nor does it help with descending steep, slippery wet stairs (ladder, in boat terms). I slip while carrying a glass of wine. I manage to save it. The wine is not spilled and the glass is not broken. I land hard on my behind, and knock another person down - he is older and more fragile than me but thankfully appears to be ok. I'm sore but functional. Gotta be more careful. And finish the wine.
After the swim a three-course lunch onboard which is once again excellent.
There are many other vessels of varying sizes going in all directions. It is a busy area.
After we dock, we have a couple hours on our own before a bus will take us to the next winery.
Apparently tourists have misbehaved enough that there is a need for an official sign. There goes my plan A.
The hilltop fortress looks like a good evening walk destination.
We board several taxi vans which take us to the next experience, another relatively small family-owned winery.
The tasting room is in a cellar, offering a welcome relief from the heat. The wines are good.
Back in town as the sun begins to set, it's time to hike up to the fortress.
A quick stop at a small museum/gallery along the way.
A key part of one of the projects I'm involved with is replacing stairs with ramps. I won't go into why and how, but it's actually a valid idea. Some of the path up to the fortress is stairs, some ramps. So I get a way to compare directly, and to evaluate engineering aspects such as ramp angles. I like ramps better.
There is a tiny church next to the fortress. It is closed - bummer, would be cool to see what it's like inside.
The fortress is still open so I pay the eight euros to go in. Well worth it.
The fortress has a prison/dungeon which is also fascinating. Seems fairly low in capacity.
On the walk back down the city looks different. Fewer people but still busy. It is still hot and the walk up made me sweat most of the wine out. A while back I learned about Merino wool clothing and on this trip that's all I brought. It's very effective - wicks away sweat, regulates temperature, and is impressively odor resistant. This is what allows me to travel for 10 days with just a backpack, and enjoy it.
As I board the ship for the night, a look back at the fortress. That was a good walk. My leg is a bit sore from the fall earlier, but I consider myself lucky all told. And there's more wine.
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