Moving with the winds.

In my time here, I've attempted Mount Hum, the highest peak on the island at 587m, exactly three times.

The first day we attempted a path pretty much straight up from the Benedictine monastery which overlooks our town. It was in the guidebook. We stopped about a third of the way up after losing the path, pushing through trees and over loose rock to come to a dead stop at thick um, foilage.

My second attempt, solo, followed a marked path (by the red and white targets and stripes, which are apparently universal in Europe), but as I ascended, I realized the path strayed further and further from the peak of Mount Hum. After pushing through overgrown trees and brush, I found myself on the other side of the island and near a little town called Podhumlje, but I was disappointed to find the road had simply crossed one end of the island instead of ascending to the peak.

My third attempt took me back to Podhumlje, this time by the paved road, and then to Podšpilje ("špilje" means "cave" in Croatian). This road took me around the southwest corner of the island. From there I cut north toward Žena Glava and then started the upward climb first to Titova Špilja (Tito's Cave), and then up to the peak of Mount Hum.

Tito's Cave was pretty cool. I admit there wasn't that much to see, but I liked the idea that Josip Broz Tito had brought his goonies up here to make plans during World War II. Tito was the Communist Party leader of Yugoslavia back in the day. Yes, he was a Communist, but he did a damn fine job of holding this place together for as long as he did. I of course took a auto-timed picture of myself in the cave, arms in the air, looking very excited.

The peak of Mount Hum was not that far off, and I made it there in good time. From here, you can see the whole rest of the island, including my little town of Komiža, all the way to the other end at Vis town, where the ferry comes in. There was a chapel at the top and a few humming TV/radio towers, as well as a military thing and a guard tower, which I avoided, although I didn't see anyone manning it at the time.

I made it there and back in about 7 hours' time and subsequently got quite sunburnt. It was a good feeling though, to know that I had walked the entire height of my new little island home.

That very same night, our hosts invited us to a homemade dinner of grilled fish and komiška pogača (anchovy pasty, by the guidebook's explanation). We started off with a toast of what I assume was sljivovica (plum brandy), and then started in on dinner. Oh, bliss. Of course there are pictures coming. There are tons and tons of stories about our hosts, but I need to stop at some point.

What a wonderful time I've had here. New friends, new food, new language, new experiences. It's been a little bit of a rollercoaster facing both the mountain and the ocean, inner and outer fears, but I've come out the other side in one piece, and now I'm ready to go.

It's funny: the night we came in to Komiža, we were told that the winds had been blowing for five days. It rained a bit that night, but the following week was beautiful. And as of last night, the winds began blowing again. It's time to leave.

See you at the next place.