OYSTERS AND SALT

MALI STON AND STON   

Our first full day on our cruise through the Dalmatian Islands started with a final swing past Dubrovnik to admire this beautiful city from the sea before sailing through the Elaphiti Island archipelago. Dubrovnik looked strong in the brilliant morning light. The white umbrellas of the Buza Bar were the only bit of whimsey that stood apart from this vast wall. We lingered briefly in the waters between the main port of Dubrovnik and Lokrum Island before turning for a swim somewhere in the Elaphiti Islands.

BUZA BAR DUBROVNIK

SWIMMING

Each day we are to stop somewhere to swim in the warm blue waters of the Adriatic. When the captain reaches his desired area, which is shared by all the other small ships, he does a 180-degree turn to have the stern and diving platform face the shore some 50 feet away. Then a launch pulls a rope to shore to keep the Infinity from drifting and the anchor is dropped. The visibility of the water is incredibly clear and I feel especially buoyant in the water salty water. The first couple of days we have been blessed with an azure sky and the colors of the water are a myriad of blues and turquoise. They have floats and masks and a kayak. The water is calm and warm and one day I swam about the Infinity leisurely admiring her lines. The blue blue blue water will be tough to leave once we’re home. There’s nothing like this at home.

JANET DREAMING OF BUZA BAR

The first day of swimming we moored near a terraced cliff in the Elaphiti Islands where olive trees caught the salt air and sun. Tranquil, lovely, it was everything one could dream for on a trip. The tumult of the Dubrovnik hordes was so very far away.

OYSTERS

We had lunch on board while the Infinity made its way to Slano, a small fishing village. Unforgettable Croatia arranged a bus for us to Mali Ston. There we boarded a launch to a small island to sample the local oyster. Mali Ston is at the very base of the Plejesac Peninsula and the salty sea water mixes with the mineral heavy water from the Neretva River to bring in a unique blend of nutrients. All of which makes the Mali Ston oyster, a European flat oyster, award winning.

There were several roughly hewn picnic tables with a couple bottles of Grappa and a carafe of white wine. The pleasant and thankful hosts served us oysters, three each, and then a massive cauldron of mussels and loaves of bread to sop up the garlicy sauce. Our group was chatty with the Grappa but grew silent as we dug into all the food.

OYSTER BOY

As we waited for the launch, we were given a short lecture about how the Mali Ston oysters are farmed. They catch the oyster seeds in nets and the seedlings attached themselves to this new home. The oysters are allowed to grow a bit more before they are glued together two by two on another net where they age to maturity. This takes 3 years. All along the bay the placement of these nets, where oysters grow, are marked by barrels floating on the surface.

It was an interesting and informative speech. To demonstrate the timeline of the aging, the young man pulled up a seedling net and then one nearing maturity. We all applauded him afterwards and he smiled widely, a genuinely warm smile. There was no jaded approach to tourism that other places that cater to visitors have reached. He was proud of his job and happy we were here. This has been the greatest joy on this trip so far, to see this true sort of happiness. Oh well, the Grappa was pretty good too!

STON SALT FARM

STON

Salt is harvested from the sea in Ston to this day. It was once so lucrative it was called “white gold”. It made Dubrovnik rich and to protect their investments in the evaporating salt ponds in Ston a great long wall was constructed above the town. The wall stretches from Mali Ston to Ston, a few kilometers down the road. It stretches across this entire section of the hilly Peljesac Peninsula and some guidebooks say it’s the second longest wall ever built by man; the first being the great wall of China. With our technology now there are more efficient ways to harvest salt, but the salt farm of Ston still works its magic every summer. We bought a bag of salt as a souvenir for 10 Kuna.

WALL OF STONG

It is still possible to climb much of the very steep wall, so after a quick lecture about the way salt is still harvested from sea water those hardy enough to tackle the stairs, followed the guide up the narrow stretch to a guard tower. Below us the salt ponds stretched out towards the sea and above us the menacing wall stretched over the crest of the hill. Spectacular views in either direction.

Thanks to Unforgettable Croatia in making such day trips possible.

Thanks to you for reading.

Love conquers all, conquering a wall though requires strong lungs.

Janet and greg