Taking a closer look at other places on Korčula, we start at the one closest to the town of Korčula itself: the magical Lumbarda.
1) The first thing that usually comes to mind when Lumbarda is mentioned are the two amazing sandy beaches near the centre of Lumbarda – Vela Pržina and Bilin žal. Facing different sides, Vela Pržina is south-oriented while Bilin Žal faces north, towards Pelješac. Both beaches are very easily accessible, both are sandy, sea-water is quite shallow on both and you need to walk quite a long way to be able to swim freely on both of them, but that also means that the sea temperature is higher there as well. That means that they’re usually quite full of people, including many families with small children, who find those two beaches to be perfect for their non-swimmers or kids just learning to swim. There are bars on both beaches, and while there isn’t much natural shade on either, it’s possible to rent parasols for the day. Bilin žal is smaller than Pržina and it’s facing north so it’s open to the maestral wind in the afternoon.
2) When you go to Vela Pržina or Bilin Žal, the thing you shouldn’t miss doing is taking a walk from one beach to the other. It’s a short walk, 500 meters tops, and it takes you through the vineyards. Most of the vines in those vineyards are Grk vines, and Grk is a white wine indigenous to this specific area on Korčula, where it grows best, with the help of the sandy soil of the Lumbarda fields (so, not only are the beaches sandy, so is the soil between them!). When you come to Lumbarda, make sure you taste Grk in one of several wineries located there.
3) Lumbarda is a place where numerous succesfull sculptors were born, raised and thaught. The tradition is long, of course linked to the exquisite stone from the island of Vrnik (although there is a quarry between Lumbarda and Korčula as well). If you walk around Lumbarda you will be able to see several amazing sculptures by some of their most famous sculptors, such as Ivo and Lujo Lozica, Stipe Nobilo and most notably Frano Kršinić. Also, pay attention to the amazing old houses in Lumbarda and their architecture.
4) Cape Ražnjić, located at the Easternmost tip of the Korčula Island, past the Vela Pržina and Bilin Žal beaches is quite a rarely visited place, with a back-to-the-nature feel. There are amazing rock slabs near the sea where you’ll be able to relax and take a swim (even if you’re a nudist, as there are often nude swimmers and sunbathers there), there’s quite dense forest. In the past there was quite a lot of army infrastructure located at the cape, and if you decide to walk around there paying attention, you will certainly be able to see some of it.
5) Fisherman’s night in Lumbarda is held every Friday night during the peak tourist season, and it’s an event where local restaurants, fishermen, family farms and other producers of food and drinks (mostly wine, let’s be honest) offer their products to the tourists in the town centre, for affordable prices. This will give you the opportunity to taste various wines (have some Pošip and some Grk while you’re at it!), have freshly caught and prepared fish, especially pilchard which won’t be easy to find in restaurants. After that, those with a sweet tooth will be able to buy various local sweets and dessert made using the usual dalmatian ingredients.
(Photo by Blaženka Šumić, Facebook)
