Our time in Dubrovnik was great, but it was time to move to our next hotel in Zadar. This meant that Day 5 of our trip was mostly a travel day, but we did do a stop in Split to tour the city with a local guide. Split is best known for the retirement palace of Roman emperor Diocletian, and is also a very popular stop for cruise ships.
First Stop: Pelješac Bridge
Our first stop along our drive was the Pelješac Bridge. This bridge is just a few years old, but is considered very important in Croatia. Before this bridge, part of the country was separated from the rest of Croatia and you could only get between the two by going through Bosnia Herzegovina. The idea of the bridge had been around for quite a while, but the big push that made it finally happen was when Croatia joined the EU, since the EU wanted the country to be connected and helped provide funds.
History in the Making
As we were partway through our 3 hour bus ride from Dubrovnik to Split, our guide Nino came on the speaker to let us know that something unusual had happened. Because of the heat wave, the power system that runs throughout the Balkans had failed. The power outage lasted a few hours and affected Croatia, Montenegro, Bosnia Herzegovina, and Albania. Apparently this was a history-making outage, and definitely something we’ll all remember from the trip.
Some traffic lights were out and the mountain tunnels that we passed through were on emergency lights only. To be on the safe side, we stopped for a rest area just outside Split in case we ended up stuck on the bus in traffic once we hit the city. Luckily, Croatia regained power before we got off the bus, so it ended up not affecting us.
Visiting the Town of Split
We made it to Split and met up with our local guide for a (very hot and sweaty) walking tour. The main attraction in Split is Diocletian’s Palace. Diocletian was a Roman emperor who retired in 305 AD. He is said to be the first and only Roman emperor to retire. The palace is a large complex and many of the Old Town businesses are built within its walls. The old part of Split, including the Palace, is now a UNESCO protected world heritage site.
First, though, we drove through the modern part of Split to get to Old Town. Our guide Nino told us about how a lot of the large apartment buildings were built during the time of communist Yugoslavia. Part of the idea of these buildings is that each one would be a self-contained neighborhood, with shops and schools and everything you need in the lower level, with apartments on top.
We love visiting historical sites, but it is a whole other level in Croatia. Earlier this year we visited Wickliffe Mounds in Kentucky, which was a village in the 1100s that’s now treated like in archeology. But here in Split, the roads and buildings are from the 300s and it’s still a lived-in city.
We paused inside the vestibule of the palace to check out the acoustics and Jason, the other Jen, and Julie sang a quick song for everyone.
The photos below show the Peristyle, one of the main rooms of the palace.
We also walked past Saint Domnius Cathedral and it’s iconic bell tower.
We, of course, had to walk by the statue of Gregory of Nin. Gregory was a medieval Bishop who introduced the Croatian language into church services. It’s said to be good luck to rub his big toe when you visit.
After the group tour, we had a little bit of free time to explore on our own. We grabbed a slice of pizza, a souvenir, and of course a gelato. These pictures also include two of our fascinations- Josh was so amazed by the cars driving the narrow streets in the old cities and anyone who knows me well knows I love flags, but I especially love finding municipal flags.
On to Zadar
After Split we had about another 2 hours on the bus to reach our hotel in Zadar. Our home for the next few nights was the Hotel Diadora, part of the Falkensteiner family resort.
Croatia Trip Overview
- Croatia Trip Days 1 & 2: Planes, Busses, and Sleep Deprivation
- Croatia Trip Day 3: Old Town Dubrovnik, Cavtat, Wine Tasting, Mills, and More!
- Croatia Trip Day 4: Lokrum Island
- Croatia Trip Day 5: A Long Bus Ride, a Visit to Split, and History was Made
- Croatia Trip Day 6: Krka Falls, Zadar, and our First Concert
- Croatia Trip Days 7 & 8: Pools, Wine, Salt, and Football
- Croatia Trip Days 9 & 10: Pula, Rovinj, and Zagreb
- Croatia Trip Day 11: Zagreb Botanical Garden
- Croatia Trip Days 12 & 13: Tamburica Festival & Nikola Tesla Technical Museum
- Croatia Trip Days 13 cont., 14, & 15- The Finale
3 Comments on “Croatia Trip Day 5: A Long Bus Ride, a Visit to Split, and History was Made”
Comments are closed.