Sun, Sea and Sight-Seeing in Split

In the same way that many Brits go off to spend their twilight years in Spain, so the Roman Emperor Diocletian decided to retire in the sun. He chose Croatia’s Adriatic coast, Split to be precise, and he had built for him a magnificent palace. In spite of its grandeur it was largely neglected for several hundred years after the Romans quit Dalmatia and this led to its partial decline; however in the seventh century, many living near to the palace sought sanctuary within its walls from invaders, and it is because of this that so much of the palace is still not only standing, but in use for homes and businesses today. When you see how much still remains it is incredible to think that it dates from the fourth century (with some later additions and tweaking).

Although the Old Town of Split is crammed with interesting and important buildings, the palace is really the jewel in the crown. It is notable for the degree of preservation, in fact, it is the best preserved Roman palace in the world and undeniably worthy of its status as a UNESCO World Heritage Monument. But the thing I like best about Diocletian’s Palace is that it is the true heart of Split; like a north African medina, life is lived within the walls of the palace. There are a couple of parts of the complex that require an admission fee and are certainly worth paying to see but you can stroll the little lanes and enjoy the squares free of charge and still take in this marvellous sight. One minute you can be among hordes of chattering tourists, the next you’re in a silent little alley way at the end of which someone’s washing is hanging out to dry.

The palace is situated next to the port and is really unmissable. There are various entrances through the old gates in the walls and you’ll probably find yourself weaving in and out of the palace many times during an extended trip to Split. The tower of the cathedral of St. Dominus can be seen from some distance away and is a useful point of orientation. Most guidebooks include at least a small map of the palace but you should really accept that you’ll end up "lost" in the maze of lanes. Occasionally you’ll be surprised and perplexed to discover you’ve come round full circle but in such wonderful surroundings you need hardly be vexed about that. There are several companies offering guided tours which are no doubt useful for getting the most out of your visit, but, if you can, I’d recommend spending some time just wandering too as the tour will only take you to the main points of interest and there is much to enjoy off the main squares.

Each of the palace walls has a gate; they are named after metals – gold, bronze, silver and iron. Just outside the Golden Gate is an impressive statue of Gregorius of Nin; he was a tenth century Croatian bishop who campaigned for the right to conduct religious services in Croatian. One of the toes of the statue is polished to a golden sheen because legend says that if you rub Gregor’s toe you’ll return to Split. In September 2003 I rubbed the bishop’s toe and I was back in Split in 2009 to do it again so obviously it is true!

Inside the fifteenth century Papalic Palace is the Town Museum; while it’s quite interesting, it does contain exhibits from right across the centuries so if it’s specifically the palace and the Roman period you are interested in you’ll find that section quite limited. Like so many history museums there are collections of arms and armour, ancient coins and furniture. I’d only recommend the museum if you are staying a few days in Split; if you are on a day trip there are better ways to spend your time.

On the other hand I would certainly recommend spending the 10 Kuna to visit the cathedral . It’s amazing to see how well preserved this part of the palace is. It was originally built to be Diocletian’s mausoleum. It’s built in the shape of an octagon with 24 columns arranged around it. The highlights are a brilliant frieze in just below the dome which depicts Diocletian and his wife, and the carved main doors of the cathedral which date from the thirteenth century.

Although it is part of the same building, there is another charge for admission to the Romanesque belfry though you enter from a different place and don’t have to pay admission first to the cathedral in order to get into the belfry. There are a few interesting exhibits in here and if you have time it’s worth the small charge.
Under the palace and accessed from near the cathedral is the vestibule in which you can find lots of souvenir stalls. In among the more tacky stuff are a small number of stalls selling lovely handmade items including some lovely jewellery. Even if you don’t want to stop it’s certainly worth a look in here because there are some well preserved mosaics to see. Next to the vestibule is my favourite part of the palace complex, the basement halls. This is another section that imposes an admission charge but I think it is the one that is most worth paying for. It is actually just a series of vaulted cellars but they are so atmospheric and as they virtually unchanged it is the closest you’ll get to the heart of the palace’s history. If you are interested in architecture this section is a must as it enables you to see how the whole design allowed for the palace to be built above sea level and to benefit from the warmth of the sun yet still enjoy a breeze.

In September 2009 we joined the locals in watching one of Croatia’s football qualifiers on a screen in one of the squares within the palace walls: it was quite odd to be watching this modern screen in the midst of so much ancient history but one of the great things about the palace is the way it fits in quite effortlessly with modern life. Several thousand people live within the palace walls and tourists can stay in private rooms and apartments too. There are cosy cafes, slick modern bars, pizzerias and top end restaurants; the outdoor cafes are a great place to people watch and aren’t as expensive as you might expect.

There is more to the palace and the sights within its walls than I can describe here; besides discovering these secrets is part of the joy of visiting so I would want only to give a tantalising glimpse of this really quite remarkable place.

Are there any disadvantages? Well I am sure it won’t come as a surprise to know that this part of Split gets very crowded in summer; that is only to be expected. Sometimes there are short queues for entrance to some of the different sections but I wouldn’t let that put me off seeing something.

I would advise care while walking as the stone used for the pavements is very shiny and slippy. It comes from the nearby island of Brac which was also the source of the stone used to build the white house. The pavements are a little uneven in some areas so do take care after a couple of glasses of Dalmatian wine or some Ozujsko beers.

If you visit Split it’s inevitable that you’ll at least stray into Diocletian’s Palace; if you are staying up the coast or on one of the islands with an easy ferry trip of Split, I would recommend making a day trip to see the palace. It’s a brilliant example of people co-existing with history instead of it being roped off and explored in a reverent hush. Diocletian’s Palace is one of Croatia’s must see sights, as interesting and compelling as the perhaps better known Old Town of Dubrovnik and thoroughly deserving of a visit.

Note: if you buy a Split Card (currently 36 Kuna, approximately £4.44, correct on 8.11.09) you will then get free admission to all the sections of the palace which charge a fee. These can be bought from the Tourist Information Centre and larger hotels. A Split Card is valid for 72 hours. However, as admission to the individual elements is around £1 at the most, often as little as 60 Pence, you may think it’s not worth the bother if you are only in Split for one day.

Usually I wouldn’t book accommodation in advance for Croatian coastal resorts. Whether you arrive at the bus station, the train station or by ferry, you will always find someone with a room to rent. However, in September 2009 we were arriving by plane on a Saturday evening and wondered who would want to be at the station waiting for travellers at 9.00pm on a Saturday night.

A trawl on a website listing private accommodation brought up a number of choices and we emailed a couple of them, finally picking Rooms Firule. Before we arrived we had a steady correspondence with Ivica who arranged for us to be met at the airport. Our plane arrived very early but our lift was there and we were whisked to Split. When we were near the house, Marija’s son pointed out a supermarket and some restaurants and he drove down to the port to pick up his mother who, as it happens, WAS looking for people to fill her rooms. Her son doesn’t speak much English but does speak a little German. Marija speaks English and German (as well as Croatian obviously) although if she knows you speak German she’ll communicate mostly in that language (and at a fast tempo).

The house is a large family house and, I suspect, in summer they all live in the lower floors, while the upper floor is let to tourists. We were given a choice of two double rooms and chose the one with the small balcony. Both rooms were reasonably large but the balcony clinched it for us. The balcony turned out not to be much use anyway as there were no chairs on it and none in the room that could be put out there. The other snag was that is never really got any sun, though it was nice to get a little cooler air (as much as you get on summer nights in Split) at night.

The bathroom was between the two rooms. It was quite large and had a bath-tub with a shower over it; we had to switch the water on to heat ourselves but it didn’t take too long to get enough for two showers. Thankfully the other room (nor the one off the living room) was only taken one of the three nights we stayed here and even then we didn’t have any problems as we left at 5.00am before the other guests got up. Clean towels were put out on a dresser in the hall outside the bedrooms. The washing machine is, as is the custom here, in the bathroom.

We had use of the kitchen and dining room. The kitchen was pretty well equipped and even had nice extras like a coffee machine - a shame we didn’t have any "proper" coffee to use. There was one slight issue in that the fridge was very full and we had to move stuff around to get our breakfast supplies; we wondered whether the food was overspill from the family’s other fridge.

A balcony accessed from the kitchen/diner has a partial sea view but still no chairs. We sat on the ground instead and enjoyed a cold beer in the warm evening sun. A clothes line stretches across this balcony, our swimming things were dry in no time.
If you come by car there is parking space in the large drive way. This house looks huge but two families share it and a tyre business occupies part of it too. We didn’t experience any inconvenience from this at all.

Although you aren’t in the centre (it’s 600metres from Split centre), it only takes ten minutes (fifteen is you dawdle like us) to walk there. The nearest beach is Firule beach which is regarded as the best of the town beaches. To get there go out of the house, turn right and go down to the road (down a couple of steps). Turn left and then at the corner bar turn right and after the tennis courts take the stone steps on the left down to the beach. It’s a small cove and nicely secluded and less noisy than the other beaches.

Other than our arrival we hardly saw the owners but the evening before we were due to leave we tracked them down and asked if they could arrange a taxi to the bus station the next morning; in spite of leaving at 5.00am, Marija’s son once more took up the role of chauffeur and kindly drove us into town.

A double room costs €40 per night except for the high period 01.07-31.08 when you’ll pay €50 per night.

You can get accommodation nearer the centre (we were very central back in 2003) but it was good to be here to get to the beach easily and we really don’t mind walking. Accommodation in the centre is much more expensive and often the rooms are very small. Rooms Firule is a good choice, especially if you come by car.

Periciceva 8

+385(0)21/389-211, +385(0)98/661-723

ivica.brdar8@gmail.com

This wonderfully charming restaurant is where the locals eat and that means it doesn't just serve terrifc food, it doesn't cost the earth either.

It was a Lonely Planet tip that first took us to Kod Joze way back in 2003. It's not easy to find, mind you! It took us three days to track it down as we kept giving up, wandering the streets of Spilt hungry at dinner time was taking its toll on us, then a helpful old man managed to direct us somewhere near it and we stumbled on it not much time later.

In 2009 we stumbled on it entirely accidentally and as it was lunch-time we decided to revisit it for old times sake. The best advice I can give is this: just past the end of the market (the end away from the port and train station) you'll come to a kind of park Strosmajerov Park. Cross the road and keep walking straight ahead. On the left hand side is Sredmenuska - take this street and you'll find the restaurant on the left.

You can sit indoors or outdoors but be warned that in summer there are often big family groups inside and it can be noisy. Besides the terrace is very pretty and nicely shaded so I'd advise this anyway.

A "konoba" is a Dalmatian tavern and there is a relaxed feeling about the place. The building itself is a typical stone city house of which the centre of Split teems. What I like is that it's not over-designed. There are plants trailing outside and some items such as the tops of barrels have been used to play on the tavern theme but it's really quite simple and this is part of its charm.

I remember exactly what I ate the first time I visited - a Dalamatian plate - delicious air-dried prsut ham and cheese from the Croatian island of Pag. I'll never forget my first taste of Dalamatian ham even though I eat it often enough these days.

For our more recent visit we had more time and more money. However we didn't have a blow out, we were plannning on goin swimming that afternoon and didn't want to over-eat so we opted just for one dish each and a shared salad. There's an emphasis on seafood but you can get all kinds of Dalmatian dishes like pasticada - a beef stew and brodet - a fish stew with polenta.

I chose a dish of green tagliatelle with seafood - mainly small prawns, mussels and two large shell-on crevettes. It came with a lovely fresh sauce that was wonderfully garlicky. My partner chose a seafood risotto which was also crammed with shell on seafood and was packed with fantastic flavours.

I had a glass of the excellent house red - a dry and flavoursome Dalmatian wine that seems strngely to taste of the very rocks from which the city is hewn. It shouts long hot summers.My partner opted for beer and had a bottle of Ozjusko, a good Croatian beer.

A basket of bread which arrived after we'd ordered helped soak up the juices from our dishes; it was good crusty bread and we had to stop ourselves eating it all before the food arrived.

The menu here is helpfully in English as well as Croatian though the waiters speak English and German too. The service could have been faster - at times we felt we had to wait a while to get anyone's attention but it was a laid back Sunday summer afternoon and the indoor part of the restaurant was very busy. However, on both occasions we found the waiters to be polite and efficient, if not overly friendly.

The only downside to this tavern is that the toilets are downstairs and while it didn't matter to us, it may pose problems for people who can't manage stairs.

Konoba Kod Joze is well worth seeking out. There are some great restaurants in Split but it's easy to get sucked into one of the ones on the front, paying more and not getting a real taste of Dalmatia. Instead, make the short walk and experience this little gem.

Two mains, drinks and salad came to less than €20.