Island of Brac, Dalmatia, Croatia by Mark Heard

Imagine lush green forests contrasted by the white sand of the Golden Horn of Croatia which changes shape depending on the wind and sea currents.

If you are a person who gets bored of going to the same beach every day then Zlatni Rat will make you feel as if you are visiting a different beach every time you go. The 580 meter long pebble beach can barely accommodate the influx of thousands tourists that arrive all summer long. Most of them are surfers searching for the Maestral, a summer wind that makes this beach the finest windsurfing destination of the whole sea. The Golden Horn is a great vacation destination for the whole family. They offer a wide array of water sports: scuba diving, parachute rides, beach volleyball, jet-skiing and many more fun activities. But if sitting and relaxing the day away is your thing, then the pine forests offers a cool retreat from the sun’s warm rays too.

It is an island with a fascinating history under ever changing political rule. In the 4th century, the Greeks colonized many of the Adriatic islands and along the shore but none of them on Island Brac. They visited the island and traded with the tribes that were there. Brac lay on the crossroads of many trade routes between Salona (today Solin) to Issa (today Vis) and the Po River. The Romans conquered Dalmatia in 9 AD. Salona was made the capital but was overrun by Avar and Slavic tribes.

After this, Brac became a refuge for many citizens of the shore. From AD 1268 to AD 1357, the island was under the supreme rule of the Republic of Venice and after that, under the Kingdom of Hungary, and then in the summer of 1390 they were under the rule of the Bosnian Kin Tvrtko Kotromanic who died soon thereafter. Throughout this whole period, the island was able to keep their basic autonomy and old structures. The island was never considered rich or interesting enough to justify any deliberate intervention so they basically remained untouched. The population of the island decreased in the 20th century due largely in part to heavy emigration, mostly to Latin America, Chile, and Argentina but people also left to go to New Zealand and Australia.

So as you can see, the Island Brac has a rich history coupled with an absolutely breathtaking landscape. It’s not hard to imagine yourself scaling Mount St. Vid to photograph The Golden Horn or relaxing on the white sands and in the crystal blue water.

So what are you waiting for? This is a guest post from – www.travel-croatia.de/en/holiday-apartments

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