Split - An Unexpected Hit

We arrived in Split early.  At 7am.  Our boat to Brac Island where our hotel was located did not leave until 4pm so we headed to the local gym for a workout and, perhaps more importantly, a shower!

Exercised and clean, we stopped for a quick smoothie and the most divine tempeh sandwich before heading to meet our walking tour.  We were not expecting much from the city having made our way through some less attractive parts of it earlier that morning.

But as the we found the meeting spot, the Golden Gate,  we were dumbfounded to see a gorgeous gate opening up to Diocletian's palace, with people in period costume wandering the streets.

The walled palace, now a UNESCO heritage site, was first built as a palace for Diocletian in "305 AD Roman", as our fantastic guide would frequently refer.    Diocletian was the only Emperor of Rome who actually abdicated (retired from?) the position and died a natural death.  Although he was vicious to members of the Christian faith, he was an unusual and progressive emperor in that he worked to split the rule of Rome into two, believing it was too large for just one ruler.   

After his death, the palace went through numerous updates over the years, especially after the Renaissance.  The main square shows architecture that spans every century from the 15th onwards as well as Roman architecture.  Incredibly, it is the Roman architecture (from 305 AD Roman!) that has best stood the test of time, as they are the only buildings that have not needed substantial repair.  Everywhere we travel, it is hard not to feel that the early Romans were truly enlightened. 

The old palace used to be the home to approximately 9,000 residents but the UNESCO certification has increased the rents so substantially and made the process of repairs so costly that most have now sold their properties to commercial businesses.

In addition to the gorgeous limestone palace area, the city has built out a boardwalk area in front of the palace to give visitors a place to wander, have lunch, soak in rays of and watch the boats come and go in Croatia's largest port.

Although we were eager to eacape the bustle of split and head to Brac Island, we were very happy that our scheduled had encouraged us to stop here for the day.