The third trail in the category of walking trails is a macadam road that starts near St. Mary’s Church in Sali, passes through local fields and along the local pond, to which many mythological creatures are associated. The Villa Rustica trail will take you to the southern end of the island, known as the Safari amongst the locals. The Safari offers beautiful views of the landscape at any time of the year, and there are many historical structures that you can learn more about from the information board along the way. The trail ends with the Roman remains of Villa Rustica, a 90m long building complex from the 1st century BC.

The legend of Orko and Maljik

Maljik and Orko are strange creatures that live by the pond in Saljsko polje. The seers of Maljik most often describe it as a creature resembling Gollum – greenish-gray in color and slimy skin, with a multitude of moss and water grasses all over it. Maljik is not as dangerous for adults as for children, so mothers always warned their children not to go near the pond because Maljik would catch them and drown them. If you see something moving below the surface of the pond, know that it is Maljik.

Encountering the Orko for humans is a great fear that they try to forget as soon as possible, so often their descriptions are completely vague; some describe it as a large bird, some as a mixture of a man and a goat, and some as a giant. Either way, it is a big monster. As much as people are afraid of him, so much he is afraid of them, and in the event of an encounter, he defends himself by pouring his feces all over them. Therefore, take a biiiig tissue on the trip along this trail;)