Saturday, 24 September 2011

Villages On The Island Of Hvar

By Valerie Smith


People from the island of Hvar want to revitalize the old and nearly abandoned villages like Velo Grablje village, Zarace village and Malo Grablje village. They want to promote the rural tourism on the island and protect valuable traditional architecture.

One of those islands is Malo Grablje. It is a beautiful hidden and abandoned village on the west side of the island, around 1.5 km away from Milna. The village is situated among the high cliffs and by the road that has always represented the natural access to the sea for villages in the inner part of the island.

The villagers moved to Milna during the second half of the 20th century because they were attracted by the beauty of the bay. The village impresses at the first sight with its stone houses, peaceful streets and unspoiled nature.

Malo Grablje and Velo Grablje are connected with the road of dried up stream. Also, there is a new road from Hvar to Stari Grad that passes through the Malo Grablje.

Village Velo Grablje is situated 11 km east of Hvar, 5 km away from Brusje. The village was founded in the 14 century. There, you can find preserved archaeological, historical and cultural monuments from prehistoric to modern times.

There is a small church of Saint Vid that is a good and preserved example of Croatian architecture from the period between 9th and 12th century. On the island of Hvar, one of the most beautiful churches is the Saints Cosmas and Damian church. It is famous for its beautiful wall paintings. Although the present church is built in the 19th century, the foundations are from an older church that was built in 16th century.

Village impresses with its architecture of stone houses and picturesque yards. The touch of past can be felt in the charming narrow streets. Today, the village is almost deserted with barely 10 permanent residents. Most of the villagers had moved to Hvar town. The village was a rich place in the past. It was known for the production of wine, olive oil, honey and lavender oil. It is interesting that the first bush of lavender was planted in Velo Grablje. Today, most of Hvar's fields are covered with lavender.

Zarace is a small picturesque village located 6 km from the Hvar town. There are 2 deep bays with pebbly shores called Velo Zarace and Malo Zarace. Velo Zarace is located on the east and Malo Zarace is located on the west. The bays are 300 meters away from each other. Zarace is a very interesting place for divers because of its spectacular underwater scenery.




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