Day 1 - Overnight flight to Europe and on to Split, Croatia

On Thursday, May 11th, 2023, I set out from Charleston in the morning, via JFK airport and boarded an overnight flight to Rome. I flew standby on a Delta "pass" from my sister, so I wasn't certain I'd make it across the pond, but I did. Whew! I landed at 7AM on Friday. The Rome airport is big, modern and fabulous...every high end store you can imagine!

From Rome, I had booked a 75 minute flight on a rather obscure regional airline, Vueling, to Split, Croatia. I arrived at 11:15AM local time, 5:15AM back in the US. Yep, I was exhausted! 

I caught a local bus into town (30 minutes) and disembarked in the center of Split, about a mile from the Harbor where I spent the night before leaving on my 7 day cycling cruise tomorrow. I exchanged $ for Euros, grabbed a pastry at one of the many bakeries, checked in and took a quick cat nap before venturing out to explore the beautiful seaside town of Split. The bakeries and gelato here were amazing!

Locally made Dalmatian chocolates!

"Fluffy" gelato..made onsite!

Split was founded as a Greek colony, and at the time it was called Aspalathos. Later on, it received Roman refugees that started moving into the walls of the Diocletian’s palace (home to the Roman emperor Diocletian) after the nearby Salona was completely burned and destroyed, due to many wars. In the years to come, Split was under the rule of different foreign rulers, up to 1944 when it was liberated and included in post-war Yugoslavia, as a part of Croatia. In 1991, Croatia withdrew from Yugoslavia and Split became one of its main cities. Split has a population of around 210,000, making it the second-largest city in the country after the capital, Zagreb

According to a legend, the city of Split got its name from beautiful yellow flowers that you can see all over the hills in spring. It is believed that those flowers were either Spiny broom or Spanish broom, that Greeks used to call Aspalathos, which later changed to Spalato, and eventually it became Split. Another theory says the name came from the Diocletian's Palace or ‘palatium’. I took these photos around the castle and in the winding labyrinth of quiet pedestrian lanes.

View from my room..another cafe!

Crumbling palace walls with apartments on top!

 

Le chat

Gorgeous limestone pedestrian streets, polished smooth from centuries of wear!

Ancient stone houses and flowers everywhere

A wide, tree lined street not far from the palace

A shop that sells local honey, olive oil, lavender, wine and truffle products.

Around every twist and turn there is a quaint sidewalk eatery.

 One of the main plazas

12 Egyptian sphinxes have been found so far in Split, brought there by the emperor Diocletian, a great admirer of art and Egyptian culture in general. One of them, standing at the main square of the Diocletian’s Palace, was made approximately 3500 years ago and is the best-preserved sphinx in Split.

 

One of the most famous sculptures of Split is the giant statue of Grgur Ninski (Gregory of Nin), located in front of the Golden Gate. Grgur was the bishop of the Croatian town of Nin from 900-929. He was the head of Nin Church which at that time meant being the head of the whole Croatian Church and he was under the strong protection at the time of King Tomislav of Croatia. He introduced the Croatian language and national glagolitic script in the religious services after the Great Assembly in 926. Not only was this important for Croatian language and culture, but it also made Christianity stronger within the Croatian kingdom. Grgur Ninski became a symbol of pride.

 

It is said that rubbing his toe will bring you 10 years of good luck. I took a chance but used hand sanitizer afterwards. I recalled getting quite sick after kissing the Blarney stone in Ireland, 2019!

 

Diocletian – the first Roman emperor to abdicate voluntarily, commissioned a magnificent palace to be completed in time for his retirement in AD 305. Diocletian’s Palace is one of the most significant ancient buildings in Croatia and one of the best-preserved monuments of Roman architecture in the world! It was built from lustrous white stone transported from the island of Brač, and construction took 10 years. He spared no expense, importing marble from Italy and Greece, and columns and 12 sphinxes from Egypt.The ruins date back to the late 3rd to early 4th century A.D. The basement is known for its markets and filming locations for Game of Thrones: Daenerys's throne room and the chamber where she kept her dragons! 

Between the eastern and western gates there’s a straight road (Krešimirova, also known as Decumanus), which separated the imperial residence on the southern side, with its state rooms and temples, from the northern side, once used by soldiers and servants. Over 3000 residents now live within the old palace walls, and there are shops, bars, restaurants and hotels. I'm actually staying within the palace walls!

The Riva (above) is Split's waterfront promenade.  It was modernized a few centuries ago when the French, in Napoleon's times, ruled these parts through Marshal Marmont. It is Split's "living room", the most popular and important public place in the city. It has been widened and reconstructed several times, and was formerly the south facade of the Diocletian Palace, the entrance into the Substructures, the Franciscan monastery with the church of St. Francis, and the Bajamonti Dešković Palace. Today, Riva is a pedestrian heaven with cafés and restaurants. It is also a venue for numerous cultural and entertainment events, the boisterous Split Carnival, and Sudamja, a celebration dedicated to St. Domnius, the patron saint of Split.

Sadly, I only have one night here and have to board my ship tomorrow between 11am and 1pm. I need a good night's sleep after my 24 hour travel odyssey and 6 hour time difference. Good night... until tomorrow! ;)