Tuši's blog: 12769

Friday, May 02, 2014

12769

Croatia: Around Šibenik with Bicycles and Falcon centre Dubrava

After the breakfast with Kralj family Nada and me went on a sightseeing tour with bicycles. We rode through Zablaće, a settlement that dates back to 1432, to the beginning of the newly built walkway in the St Anthony Channel. Our first attraction was St. Nicholas Fortress.

Lake near Zablaće, that were mentioned as a place where Šibenik inhabitants used salt water plants. The Ottomans burned the settlement twice, in 1510 and in 1537. As a result, in 1646 the salt water plants stopped working. Read more: http://www.sibenik-tourism.hr/en/zablace

Riding towards St. Nicholas Fortress (Tvrđava Sv. Nikole)

Different photos from the fortress that was built between 1540-1547 by the Venetians at the request of domestic Croat population of Šibenik on an island called Ljuljevac.

We continued on the walkway in the St. Anthony Channel

Remains of the ex Yugoslav Army settlement

View from the lower lookout to the open sea (Adriatic Sea)

View from the lower lookout to the city of Šibenik

More points from the walkway, where you have an amazing view to St. Anthony Channel

Short break for a beer in the Šibenik (also called "Krešimirov grad" (Krešimir's city)), mentioned for the first time under its present name in 1066.

We continued riding towards the Falcon centre in Dubrava, where we were just on time for a short and educational exhibition.

One of the funny facts about an owl. Owl stomach juices can't dissolve bones, fur, feathers, or teeth. If these parts got into the intestines and splintered, the owl could die. So all these parts get stuck in a chamber of the owl's stomach called the gizzard. About once a day the owl's stomach contracts, squeezing all the liquid, soupy food into the intestines, and then the owl spits up the left over fur, bones, feathers, and teeth in a clean rounded chunk called a pellet. Read more: http://www.learner.org/jnorth/tm/spring/OwlFacts.html and on Wikipedia

Nada was the first one to feed the Falcon. One species, The Peregrine Falcon is renowned for its speed, reaching over 322 km/h during its characteristic hunting stoop (high speed dive), making it the fastest member of the animal kingdom.

Tuši and the Falcon

They had more birds in the centre.

Entrance ticket, 45 kuna (cca 6€) each

Since we missed a couple of attractions we decided to return to St Anthony Channel.

Descent to the pier in the vicinity of the undersea tunnel and cave

Undersea tunnel called "Hitler's eyes", which served as a shelter for warships.

Chapel of St. Anthony (Most of the people do not know that St. Anthony, who is often mentioned while talking about the channel in front of Šibenik, is not St. Anthony of Padua but St. Anthony of Egypt.)

With bicycles around Šibenik

After that we returned to our base, where we had a picnic with the rest of the friends and after we were full, we took a quick look at the Dalmatian Ethno village.