After a car ride to Smokvica, a bus to Vela Luka, a ferry to Split, and a 30 minute walk through town we made it to our apartment in Split. We only went there because I had assumed (incorrectly) that we needed to return to Split from Korcula Island to get another Ferry to our next island of Hvar. Turns out that we could have taken a ferry directly. Not a bad mistake to make – we loved Split, much more than Dubrovnik. The town was really interesting with a lot of unique architecture and it felt much more like a living city (than Dubrovnik) with ruins and palaces in the midst of the modern day town.
Split has a long and complicated history – of which we learned just a little in our short stay. The city was founded by the Greeks in the 3rd century BC. It later became the capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia, it was invaded by the Avars and the Slavs, it became a Byzantine city, then Venetian and then part of the Kingdom of Croatia. The historic center of Split is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The ancient Diocletian’s Palace has become the center of the old town. It was definitely interesting to see how the Palace was essentially incorporated into the old town – there are apartments, stores, etc. all within the original Palace. About 3000 people now live within the Palace.
We climbed the bell tower in the center of the town to enjoy the view – something I would not have done had I realized that most of the climb up was on scaffolding. I can get really anxious at heights, especially with the kids, and as it turns out especially when climbing on rickety scaffolding.
We would not have been sad to spend a couple of extra days in Split but we already had our next place booked in Stari Grad so we had to leave. At least we left some things to explore on our next visit.
Onward to Stari Grad!