I Love Split

I Love Split

We spent 3 nights in Split at the end of our sailing – the first on the boat and then 2 in a hotel.

Split is the town where lots of people leave for sailing adventures and that is how I’d come to think of it – not as a worthwhile destination in itself. I was wrong. It is a living breathing museum with some very proud residents.

It was originally built in 293 as an imperial Roman palace for Diocletian the Roman Emperor when he retired. (I’m sure you all remember him!) It was built of white sandstone and marble and sphinxes were brought from Egypt. After the Romans left it was abandoned for a few centuries and then inhabited by nearby residents in the 7^th century fleeing from the Barbarians. It’s been inhabited ever since and each culture and wave of inhabitants have left their mark. It’s now protected by UNESCO.

The old palace is now the centre of town. It’s a labyrinth of small alleyways and courtyards with many shops and restaurants and a very lively cultural scene. I found the architecture interesting but mostly the unexpected sights at almost every turn.

An interesting health feature. During the plague when many people in Split died authorities blocked off corners like this so that men wouldn't urinate in them. 

An example of how the city has been added on to over the years these windows are all from different eras - medieval, renaissance and Venetian.

Peter, Ann, Bob and I had our farewell dinner in an outdoor restaurant near the main square under the ruins of old Roman columns with the most amazing concert of Croatian choirs harmonizing in the square behind. The acoustics were amazing – as were the voices – just entrancing.

The next morning we said farewell to Peter as he left for Italy for his annual week or two of writing. Bob and I did a city walking tour taken by Nikola – a very patriotic Croatian with a passion for history and Split. We learnt a lot.

After that we stumbled on a free concert of ethnic dancing in the basement of the old palace. Not well publicized or attended but of a high quality. All the participants seemed so happy just to be there. Love the way the men stamp their feet and slap their heels.

In the evening we had a farewell dinner with Ann in a neighbourhood just out of the centre. Bob made friends with a charming man who looked like the dishwasher having a break but who later informed us he owned the thriving restaurant as well as the one across the road.

The next morning - Sunday we visited the fish market near the town centre and  as we walked back to our hotel heard the most amazing sound of male voices singing. A group of 6 were sitting in a café singing with locals drinking coffee and singing along. We joined them although the sing along wasn’t possible. We did buy their CD which they had available.

Even a bride and groom

On our last night we had a lovely seafood dinner and were serenaded by this lovely man singing at the restaurant.

We stayed in the Kastel B and B which is 3 stars – nothing flash but very clean and adequate. It is in the old castle and we loved just being able to walk out the door into all the activity.

So all in all I think Split was my favorite town in Croatia – mainly because it is so alive as well as historical.

So that’s it for Croatia. I would highly recommend traveling there for anyone interested - thinking of you Felicity. It is very different to other European countries that we have been to and the majority of tourists are from eastern Europe which makes it quite exotic. It joins the EU at the beginning of next month. Most people are optimistic that that will be good for the country but it’s not a given. Croatia does not have any natural resources and relies on tourism a lot for its economy. We’re told there is very high unemployment. There seems to be a very large cash economy with many restaurants not taking credit cards.
One thing I found disappointing was the number of young people smoking. Noticeably more than in Australia.

We found the people to be universally welcoming and gracious. I was particularly struck by the number of women who we met in shops and restaurants who were cultured, friendly, charming and willing to go out of their way to help us. We had no troublemaking ourselves understood and most spoke English quite well. We felt totally safe. The crime rate is very low. We’re told the standard of education there is amongst the highest in the world.

Almost everyone we met has a cousin or equivalent in Australia and many have an ambition to visit Australia or NZ. There has of course been a huge migration from Croatia in recent years and this has effected their economy a lot. Apparently many of the abandoned houses we saw – some in beautiful places – are owned by families who now live overseas. They cannot be touched by law.

Now on to Italy and wider for us.