My second Intrepid tour in the Balkans is divided into two parts, and except for my fellow travelers from the first half, every one else finished their one week Croatian tour, and I’m about to meet a new group for the last bit.
The beginning of this ending began with another early boat ride – one particularly choppy and filled with the sound of seasickness – to the second largest city in Croatia: Split. We gave our luggage to a taxi, had a spot of lunch, and then had a guide for a walking tour of the old town…
I knew that Diocletian had divided the Roman Empire into two halves which now constitute the Catholic Church (western empire) and the various Orthodox Churches (Greek, Russian, etc. in the eastern [Byzantine] empire) Popes v. Patriarchs? But that was not his plan. He was the last pagan emperor, the end of Roman Mythology as a state religion. After him comes Constantine, making Christianity official, and turning Diocletian’s temples into cathedrals. The other thing that’s unique about Diocletian is that he too retired after an uncommonly long rule – rare for one in a job where almost everyone else is out to kill you. His palace, the seed from which Split has grown, was for Diocletian’s retirement. (Gotta build me a palace!)
More of our tour around Split…
This batch focuses on local art and local fish…
More views around Split, including a one euro visit to a very small church…
This batch starts out with a picture of our tour leader Tamara from Ljubljana, after she left us for her next gig. And, the roof pool I never used, the laundrette I found, and wanderings thereabouts…
For our free day between tours, after resting up, I explored the five sites in the middle of Diocletian’s palace. This batch is mostly of the treasury…
This batch includes the rest of the sites in my combo ticket. The bell tower (thus the views), the cathedral, the crypt, and the baptistry – all converted to Christianity after their original construction in honor of Roman Gods!
More ambling around Split, including a walk up to a viewpoint and beyond to yet another old church (yet half the age of Diocletian’s palace…!
Got a haircut, ate some Croatian food, took a couple of Uber rides, and watched the Eurovision finals with folks in the lobby/restaurant at our “Art Hotel” – these remains of the day…
Up and off to our next destination – Zadar!