Sight & Sounds
The Adriatic Sea - an ode of nature to life in
which everything is permeated with wind and waves, with a song and
a smile, with hard work and its fruits and from which eminates
peace and quiet, even when the wind blows strongly. Its wealth is
located in its colours and aromas, its shapes and sounds, its
living and still-life world which, between high and low tides,
awaits and looks forward to the coming day...
Colours are the first elements to be noticed.
After the abundance and explosion of colours that emerges in
spring, in summer four colours prevail - blue, yellow green and
white.
Blue is the symbol of peace and harmony that
provides tranquility, but it is also a call out into the eternity
of ages. This colour is the sea and the sky.
Yellow is the colour of the sun. It heats, gives
strength and incites unburdened happiness.
Green is the colour of nature. Green is life,
abundance and wealth. These are also the characteristics of the
evergreen forests on the coasts and the islands.
White has the effect of enhancing all the other
colours. It is pure and easily allows the tones of its surroundings
to be reflected on it. White is the stone and rock on the coastline
and islands. White is also the colour of the coastal cities and
fishermen's villages, of the seagulls and the foam of the
waves.
Everything we see is complemented by the dominating
scents of sea and salt.
The air is also given a distinctive freshness thanks to
pine forests and resin, bushes of rosemary and the spring
flowers of lemons, oranges and myrtle.
Rosemary embellishes the expanses of the Adriatic
Sea and the islands. It is the symbol of love and also a famous
essential ingredient of Mediterranean cuisine. Another seasonal
plant with a pleasant and strong aroma is, of course,
basil, another inhabitant of the Adriatic
lands.
The sweet scent of locust-trees and cyclamen in
spring is accompanied by the songs of a bird on the hillocks in a
pine forest and a concert of summer crickets is attended by every
tree and shrub.
Made from laurel, with a refined and discreet scent, are the small
gardens which surround Istria and Dalmatia in which grapes
and figs flourish and whose over-ripe fruit of sweet
aromas attract bees and other insects.
Especially pleasant is the scent of lavender from
the island of Hvar, the sunniest Croatian island. The splendid
fields and plants are not spread out as they are by accident.
Lavender loves sun and warmth and the winds circulate the
enchanting scent.
Such aromatic winds emanating from the island circulate around the
narrow streets of coastal towns and villages and certain older
locals can recognise by the scent from which island the fresh wind
is blowing. Lunch-time will spread the smell of grilled fish, olive
oil, smoked ham and goats' cheese and all these smells will be
enveloped the aroma of wine.
Navigating through the seas, the colours and scents of the
Adriatic will become engraved in your memory and the sounds of the
sea and the slapping of the waves on the side of the boat will
soothe every tension and bring to you a state of deep
relaxation.
The ports of the cities will offer you a welcoming
smile and the colour and hubbub of the town markets will
offer you a wealth of different objects and souvenirs.
The tourist heaven of the Croatian coast and
islands must be experienced with all senses, since every sense
discovers a new aspect of this exotic world...