Split, Croatia May 2017

Croatia in May 2017, the Croatian kuna, 1 kuna = .19 Cdn

Split – Accommodations Vila Kameni cvit/Villa Stone Flower, Kruševića gumno 13, 21000 Split, Hrvatska/Croatia,

$175 per night, total $767.48 for four nightsVRBO #1110139

Things to do:

1.       Walk to the mountain lookout at Marjan Park and stop for a fresh-squeezed lemonade at a café on the way down.

2.       Rub the Bishop of Nin’s big toe at the outer walls of Diocletian's Palace

3.       Climb the freaky steps of the bell tower to see the panoramic views of Split, the Dolomites and Adriatic. Admission (45 Kuna) includes the tiny cathedral of St. Dominus and crypt where Diocletian’s body used to be buried but disappeared after lying in repose for about 170 years.

4.       Watch the Picigin players at Bacvice Beach - the locals play a game in the shallow beach water called Picigin, the object of which is to use your hands to keep the small ball from hitting the water. 

5.       Visit the Fortress Klis where "Game of Thrones" scenes were shot

6.       Dine at Villa Speza and watch Chef Davor work his magic, only seats 15 inside and two out in the alley, we had to wait 45 minutes outside to get a seat, well worth it

7.       Krka National Park, take a short ferry from Sibenik to go see waterfalls, 110 kuna per person (about $22 Canadian) included ferry and 2-km walk

8.       Enjoy a cold alcoholic beverage on the roof of Zadar airport, after you clear security

Diocletian’s Palace is walled like Quebec City and lined with narrow marble alleyways chock full of tiny restaurants and shops. The tangle of  lane ways is so mesmerizing that if you see something to buy, you’d best buy it then and there because you might not find your way back. There is a courtyard in the middle of Diocletian’s palace with live music at night and ice cream vendors. If I found my way there, I could find my way out of the maze and back to the villa. 

The Bishop of Nin

We flew in to Split which is just north of Dubrovnik and we flew out of Zadar which is slightly north of Split. We did not go to Dubrovnik because we were told how busy it is with a zillion cruise ships every day. We rented a three-storey stone villa in Split two minutes walk outside Diocletian’s Palace – this is the summer residence of the Roman Emperor. Our villa had a lovely courtyard with a common kitchen, a second-floor balcony and then a big bedroom on each floor with wooden shutters that you threw open like Belle in Beauty and the Beast.

Split is so beautiful fronting onto the Adriatic with its hundreds of islands and backing on to the Dolomite Mountains where scenes from Game of Thrones were filmed.

The waterfront boulevard has posh hotels and a pedestrian walkway along the port with huge wooden deck chairs and solar benches where you can charge your cell phones. The temperature in early May hovered between 15 and 21 degrees Celsius. We rented bikes by the waterfront and rode all around the green space in Marjan Park. We swam in the Adriatic but we had to keep moving as the water was still quite cold.

Nostromo Restaurant next to the fish market - pricey but lovely cold octopus salad with tomatoes and vinegar

We rented a Fiat Panda to drive to Klis Fortress where Game of Thrones scenes were filmed, Krka National Park and UNESCO World Heritage Site with its beautiful waterfalls, Trogir, with a cathedral on a little island and Zadar with its beautiful ocean walkway along the moat and “sea organ.” Waves push in under the steps to make sounds like an organ.

We did not have time to take a sailboat to the islands but many visitors to Split spend up to a week or more sleeping on a sailboat visiting different islands by day.