The inclusion of the donkey race at the Jelsa Wine Festival represents a long tourism tradition with the island’s four-legged friends.
Some things have changed in Hvar tourism over the last fifty years, and some have remained the same. Back in 1959, having one’s photo taken against a scenic Hvar backdrop was fashionable on a donkey, but today one is more likely to be snapped next to the private yacht of the Bernie Ecclestones and Roman Abramoviches. Thanks for the picture from the excellent Old Postcards and Pictures of the Town of Hvar Facebook page – well worth checking out.
The donkey is still an essential ingredient of modern Hvar tourism, however, and eight donkeys of all ages and sizes played an important part in last night’s Jelsa Wine Festival. That is one thing I love about Hvar – the ability to go from donkey to mega-yacht in a second.
