 |
| Trogir |
Today we spent the morning checking out the shops in Trogir and taking a last minute walk through Old Town. I actually picked up some beautiful white marble jewelry...Croatian made of course. This is the same kind of marble that was imported to the US and used in the White House when it was first built...and I can see why, as it is simply elegant.
 |
| the clock tower |
 |
| a familiar view |
On our way back to the car we stopped at the local market. The markets here are full of different varieties of honey, fig jam and lavender.
 |
| time to get some honey |
Right on cue the skies darkened, the clouds rolled in and it started to spit rain. Apparently it has been raining here for the past two weeks and just like home, everyone is sick of the bad weather and waiting for the warm, sunny weather to appear...us too!
Our drive to Split was about 25km and pretty non eventful until we entered the city itself. The city has a population of about 178,000 people and of course with people comes traffic and lots of different streets and highways....not to mention lunch hour congestion and detours/construction zones. We don't have a GPS, internet or a proper map and the street signs are difficult to find, so it is no wonder when we missed one street we soon became disorientated...but we weren't going to let a little directionality stop us! The situation was made even worse by the fact that you couldn't just simply turn around and head back to where you made a mistake, you needed to keep moving with the traffic in one direction...did I tell you I hate driving in traffic!? With a bit of luck and Lisa using her instructions and two little maps, we finally found our way to the car rental place....only 30 minutes later than expected...all in one piece. I was glad to drop off our little Corsa...even though I loved having a car the last 4 days.
As soon as we arrived in Split the sun came beaming out and we quickly decided we should snap a couple shots of the promenade in case it rained sometime soon...remember the weather changes here at the blink of an eye.
 |
| a quick picture |
 |
| the promenade |
The tourist area of Split is quite beautiful and impressive. Lots of huge yatchs, the major ferry terminal and of course Diocletian's Palace. Right after arriving in Split we had to hurry off to meet our host Sami/Kate who was going to lead us to our apartment in the center of town. We arrived with a couple minutes to spare, were let up the tiniest alley way and then climbed 4 flights of stairs to the cutest little bachelor apartment you could ever image...we love it!!...especially all the original stone walls and added little touches.
 |
| our tiny little apartment |
After settling in, organizing our food we've been dragging around the past few days and getting ourselves orientated, we headed out to explore the area in full force. The promenade is a major tourist area in Split full of caffe/bars, restaurants, jewellery stores, pastry and ice cream shops...you name it. The view of the area from the water is also pretty spectacular...
 |
| stunning! |
As we strolled along the waterfront we ventured into Diocletian's Palace...another UNESCO World Heritage Site.
 |
| entering the palace |
It is not your typical palace or museum, as it is the living heart of the city. It has a maze of narrow streets that hide passageways and courtyards, full of shops, restaurants, bars and caffes... there are actually 3000 people that live within the walls of the the palace.
 |
| a view inside the gate |
Here is a model of the area with all its pathways and structures...no cars allowed! It can get pretty tricky if you're not paying attention or have a bad sense of direction.
 |
| arial view |
As we entered one of the four gates to the Palace, we were greeted by a large number of stalls selling a variety of tourist items. What is unique about this area is how they use the ancient buildings to house all the shops and hotels. It is not high season yet, but it was quite apparent that the palace is a major route on many people's list of sights to see by the number of people and tours mulling about.
 |
| the cathedral |
We arrived at the Cathedral of St. Domnius built around AD 300....yep it's old and impressive! While there we came across a group of men singing a Capella in the Vestibule...very soothing and harmonious music that we stopped to listen to for a while. From here we walked through various sections of the palace with its impressive archways...
 |
| looking inside |
 |
| Bishop Greg |
He was a 10th century Croatian Bishop who fought for the right to use old Croatian in church services. Those who rub his left big toe are guaranteed to be brought good luck...so of course I had to have my turn.
 |
| good luck |
By mid afternoon we headed out of the walled palace area in search of some kava in a smoke free zone...unfortunately smoke is hard to avoid...took some more photos and eventually found our way to a lovely little restaurant around the corner from our apartment in Narodni Trg called noStress Bistro. Not only does it have a great name, but our waiter was amazing...and put up with our crazy requests. The food was good as well and I had my first taste of octopus...which I really enjoyed!!
 |
| the wall |
 |
| delicious octopus salad |
The evening was getting quite chilly and we were also starting to get a bit tired, so we found ourselves a few pastries at a local shop and headed "home" for some tea, treats and enjoyed some time in our quaint little apartment.
 |
| pastry time |
Tomorrow will be a full day in Split full of new sights and adventures I'm sure...can't wait!
Until then...
L & L
No comments:
Post a Comment