Unusual Dalmatian Sports: Glavomet... or Headball

Dalmatia is well-known for having a range of unique games, and the summer months offer a good chance to watch and even take part.

Probably the most famous game is called picigin, which is played in shallow water, most famously at Bacivce beach in Split, where the objective of the game is to keep a small ball in the air for as long as possible. Frantic efforts to keep the ball airborne lead to some spectacular diving, and picigin is well established as part of the Split scene.

Not far away, on Firule beach, there is another unusual and unique sport called glavomet - or headball. As the name suggests, the only part of the body to make contact with the ball is the head. There are two teams of two in shallow water, with two goals, and the aim is to score as many goals as possible in the opposing goal.

Check out the video below for more of a visual explanation, or head to Firule beach on Sunday August 25 from 10:00 to watch the glavomet championship taking place - it is very competitive!

One of the Events of the Summer: The Pirate Battle of Omis!

Want to see some real life pirates in action? Then head to Omis this Sunday evening for the seventh annual reenactment of a 13th century battle in the city harbour.

Omis has a rich and proud pirate tradition. Located on the mouth of the might Cetina, with its numerous fortresses, it was the perfect location for pirates in times gone by, as the Cetina provided them with escape routes where they could use their local knowledge. 

The reenactment is very spectacular and will take place at 20:30 on Sunday August 18, with all the participants parading before that. This year's festivities will also include guest historical societies from Dubrovnik, Klis and Korcula. It is not clear if the most famous pirate of them all, Johnny Depp, will be attending, as he was invited to last year's event.

A Return to Roman Times: Days of Diocletian in Split

While you may have thought that all you need for a holiday in Split is a couple of bikinis and party dresses for evening fun, if you really want to blend in as a local in the next few days, you need to get your hands on a Roman toga.

Days of Diocletian is upon us, an annual event where the rich Roman cultural heritage of the city is celebrated in some theatrical style. From the Split Tourist Board:

Days of Diocletian

This fun musical costumed event (from 16.8. to 19.8) is the historical event that will show a credible way the rule of Emperor Diocletian in Split with all the essential features of this period. The streets and squares will line up of the Roman legions, the Emperor Diocletian, together with the parade of carriages lead the Roman legions from the waterfront to greet the Peristyle where the crowd, will present a co-ruler Diocletian and family and the city will be able to hear the sounds of trumpets, drummers, Roman music ...

The Wall Street Journal Sails Down the Dalmatian Coast

 

With its pristine water, plethora of islands, fantastic gastronomy and rich heritage, it is little wonder that sailing holidays in Dalmatia are proving ever more popular. Word about the joys of sailing along the Adriatic coast is slowly getting out, with the influential Wall Street Journal the latest international publication to report bacl on the magic of a holiday on the seas of Dalmatia:

HEADING INTO A BIG sea on a small sailboat unleashes the nautical poet in a man. That, anyway, is my justification for leaping to the foredeck and bracing myself against the rigging, "Master and Commander"-style, to bellow lines from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner."

"Water, water, every where/Nor any drop to drink," I manage, before memory fails me. I crawl back along the bouncing deck to the cockpit, where my wife has the helm.

"Too early for a beer, then?" she says.

We have chartered a 33-foot yacht out of Kremik Marina on Croatia's Dalmatian Coast and, within minutes of casting off, the nerves associated with commandeering somebody else's $100,000 vessel have been swept overboard by a wave of euphoria. Read more... 

The Famous Sinj Alka: The Children's Version

One of the most important cultural events in the Dalmatian summer calendar is the Sinj Alka, an annual knights' tournament which in 2015 will be celebrating 300 years of the defeat of the Ottomans after the Siege of Sinj in 1715. This year's event once more welcomed the Croatian President Ivo Josipović and General Ante Gotovina, and was son for the third time by Ante Zorica. You can read more about the day here.

And from August 16-18, there will be the children's version - take a look at the pictures above to give you an idea. It promises to be a special few days. It is just half an hour by car from Split, or just under an hour on the regular bus. By way of explanation, we turn to the Sinj Tourist Board once more...

Children's Alka Tournament of Vučkovići

In memory of their ancestors Father Pavao, Bože, Tadija and Zec, whose heroism and bravery made them become prominent in the decisive battle against the Ottomans in 1715, the people in the hamlet of Vučkovići (Brnaze near Sinj) instituted in 1955 their Alka Tournament in which only children can participate. The Children’s Alka was naturally instituted following the example of the famous Alka of Sinj.

In the Children’s Alka of Vučkovići, boys up to 10 years of age run on their feet. Their Alka squires are elderly local people, whereas those oldest from the hamlet play the roles of the Alka Court of Honour and the Alka Tournament Master (alkarski vojvoda). In the Children’s Alka procession the standard-bearer rides a horse, a donkey is a symbol of edek (the Pasha’s horse) and the Tournament Master’s adjutant carries the sabre of the hero Bože Vučković.

As the right to participate in the Tournament only belongs to children from the hamlet of Vučkovići, the little Alkari have interesting nicknames: Wolf, Horned Viper, Biter, Hairbreadth, Additional Number, Live Wire, Scatterbrain, Bumblebee, Beetling Brows, Friar, The Apple of Gramps’s Eye...

Unique and an attraction in itself, the Children’s Alka Tournament of Vučkovići has been outside the scope of ordinary local festivities and nowadays it makes a precious and unique experience to all visitors, just like the true Alka of Sinj.

The ceremony of the Children's Alka Tournament of Vučkovići lasts for three days.

Bara – Friday 16 August at 6 p.m.
Čoja – Saturday 17 August at 6 p.m.
Alka – Sunday 18 August at 5.30 p.m.

FREE ENTRANCE

For more information visit the Sinj Tourist Board website, www.visitsinj.com 

Half of Top Beaches in Croatia in Central Dalmatia, Says Rough Guides

More good news and international acclaim for the beaches of Central Dalmatia, as leading travel guide gurus Rough Guides recently came up with their top ten list for Croatia.

And for lovers of the beaches of Central Dalmatia, it will come as little surprise that no less than five of the ten are in Central Dalmatia. Which ones, and what did Rough Guides have to say about our beaches? Read on....

BAČVICE, SPLIT

For many of its inhabitants Split is not so much a city as a religion, centred around a collection of semi-mystic locations. Among the holiest of holies is undoubtedly Bačvice beach, a shallow bay of sand and shingle that has played an important role in the early childhood and teenage years of virtually anyone who has ever called the city home. Immensely popular as a family beach, it’s also a buzzing social hub, with a café-packed pleasure pavilion rising immediately to the east. Bačvice is also famous for being the spiritual home of picigin, a uniquely Dalmatian sport that involves a lot of acrobatic leaping around as players try to prevent a small ball from hitting the water.

LOVREČINA BAY, BRAČ ISLAND

Four kilometres east of Postira on Brač, Lovrečina Bay is one of several beaches on the island that genuinely deliver what you read about in the brochures, with a sandy shore bordering translucent waters, and a ruined medieval church among olive groves just behind the strand. The fact that there is limited parking and no clear bus stop nearby helps to the beach from becoming overrun. Apropos rent out apartments in Postira, while Villa Adriatica up the coast in Supetar is one of the island’s cosier hotels.

UVALA DUBOVICA, HVAR ISLAND

The Renaissance port of Hvar enjoys a worldwide reputation when it comes to chic bars and racy nightlife. If a good beach is what you’re after, however, it’s best to get out of town. There are several good choices in the coves and bays to the east, of which the most attractive is Uvala Dubovica, a broad pebbly affair beside a historic manor house. The bay’s shallow nature makes it good family paddling territory, although it gets popular with yachts and motorboats in season. Otherwise, difficulty of access tends to filter out the guests – the parking strip on the main road above the bay is only big enough to accommodate about fifty vehicles. Rent a bike or scooter from Luka Rent in Hvar and beach-hop your way along the coast.

GREBIŠĆE, HVAR ISLAND

While many of Hvar’s beaches involve perching on a rock before stepping gingerly out onto a stony seabed, the silkily sandy Grebišće is absolutely perfect for smooth paddling around. Located 4km east of Jelsa just off the Sućuraj road, the beach is reached by walking through the Grebišće campsite. The beach itself is very narrow and contains very little shade, but the bay is both very shallow and sandy underfoot – which is why it’s such a popular venue for splashing around. Drinks and basic snacks are available at the campsite café or the Čorni Petar beach bar, nestling beneath trees on the headland to the east.

ZLATNI RAT, BRAČ ISLAND

A silvery tongue of shingle extending into a turquoise sea, Zlatni Rat (“Golden Cape”) is very much the poster boy of Dalmatian beaches, pictured in countless brochures and guidebooks. The pebbly peninsula remains a compelling destination despite the crowds; indeed its clear shallow seas and gripping maritime views make it a difficult place to leave. It’s within walking distance of Bol, where More Travel or Adria will sort you out with accommodation.

To see the full list, click here.

Dalmatian Beaches on Huffington Post Dream Travel List

If you had travelled the world and seen the most amazing places, and then were offered the chance to experience the very best, where would you choose? Such was the dilemma facing the influential Huffington Post newspaper in America, whose travel sections is celebrating its third birthday.

Lovers of the Dalmatian coast will not be surprised that one of the 17 places was of course Dalmatian beaches... Here is what the HuffPost had to say:

"Today HuffPost Travel is three whole years old! It’s been three lovely years of breathtaking photographs, stress-relieving vacation advice, the ups and downs of airlines and, of course, nude beaches.

So to celebrate this special day, we're going on a virtual journey to some of our favorite places. Is one of them a nude beach? You’ll have to read to find out..." Read more...