A three hour drive from Plitvice National Park to Split. Split is on the Dalmatian Coast and is a shipbuilding town, the guide books refer to it as "a real and vibrant city with ugly sprawl surrounding an atmospheric old town" . As we drove into Split, the comment about ugly sprawl is correct. Lots of factories, cement plants and industrial type buildings. Found our hotel, just outside the old wall, dropped off our luggage, then returned our rental car. We are in Split for two days, then heading off to the island of Hvar for the following two days. For our next three destinations we will be travelling by ferry from mainland to two separate islands then on to Dubrovnik, back on the mainland.
In my previous blog post, I commented on the fact how hard it is to pronounce Croatian words. For example Croatia is spelt "Hrvatska". We are going to the island of Hvar next, it is pronounced "Var". We had being saying " huhvar" and someone said, they always know tourists by their pronounciation!
SPLIT
Split is Croatia's second biggest city after the capital, Zagreb. Split is known for its beaches and the fortresslike complex at its center, Diocletian's Palace, erected by the Roman emperor in the 4th century. Once home to thousands, its sprawling remains include more than 200 buildings. Within its white stone walls and under its courtyards and galleries are shops, bars, cafes, cathedrals, hotels and several houses. We overheard one tour guide telling a group that at one time there was over 4,000 people living within the old walls some twenty years ago, but now that number is down to about 300. (Why pay for a tour guide!). A lot of the buildings have been converted into rooms for tourists, known as Sobes. Locals can make money this way and they have moved out of the old city.
Once we dropped off our car, walked around the town a bit. The harbour was very busy. Throngs of people coming and going, lots of shops offering luggage storage, bus terminal, ferry and cruise boat terminal and lots of adolescents around, more noticeable than any where else we have been. We discover some of the old city, it's walls, many ancient buildings including the Prokurative (an arcade) which has now been transformed into hotels and restaurants.
Our hotel here in Split is a small boutique hotel with only five rooms on the third floor of an apartment building, very modern. They arrange for you to have breakfast at a local restaurant, different but not inconvenient. We come back to our room early afternoon to relax a bit, very hot here (+30) even with the sea breeze.
We start watching the tennis final and Wawrinka is leading in the third set. Robin says lets go out and walk around, we only have a day and a half here. WHAT, miss the rest of the tennis match! O.K., we go out and walk a couple of blocks and I realize I have left the camera in the room. Robin waits for me in a square and when I get back, he has found a cafe/bar that is showing the tennis match. Great, we order a drink. Even the waiters are outside watching the match, as well as the waiters from the bar next door. I would say the majority of patrons were cheering for Wawrinka, but a few backing Djokovic. The waiter just goes nuts every time Wawrinka misses a shot. We are now in the 4th set. The waiters are standing right next to our table. Jokingly, I say to the waiter, "What if I wanted to order another drink right now?" He looked at me with a big smile and said "Not a chance!". The waiters, of course, are naturally cheering for Wawrinka as Djokovic is Serbian, and they would never cheer for a Serb, not in a million years! A few people passed the television as the game was happening, and people would tell them to move, very passionate these people who watch tennis! Everyone cheers at the match finishes, lots of fun to watch a sporting event with others around.
We continue on our way, just wandering through the alleys. Lots of people now in town, seems the evening has brought everyone out. We finally make it to the Riva (the name of their seaside promenade). It is Sunday night and crowds along the Riva include families with little children, young adults having pre party drinks, couples, tour groups, etc. In one outside bar, we see about twenty young women all dressed up. What was amazing about these women, was their makeup, hairdos and hats. They almost look like they were from another planet. Tried to take a picture, but a little hard. We asked a young person in a shop if she knew what this was all about, she didn't know....we thought perhaps a "stagette" or some sort of girls night out.
I spot some booths along the Riva, a lot of which are for tours, boat trips, trinkets. Some touts also walking around to try to get you on a boat trip or such. I noticed one young girl only targeting young people with her brochures. Finally figured out why she wasn't approaching us.....she was selling a pub crawl tour. When we were at lunch today, a couple of young girls at a table nearby were talking about how hung over they were and they thought the best remedy would be more drinking! Oh to be young.....or not!
Wonderful meal at a restaurant recommended by the hotel, then more walking along the Riva. We came along a group of elderly people (probably in their 80's) who were siting on benches and some standing. One was playing a guitar and the rest were singing Croatian folk songs. They were just enjoying themselves....no guitar cases open to get donations. We stood there for a while listening.....love these special moments when one is travelling. Overall another great day.
At breakfast this morning, the waiter looks at Robin and said "I hope your knee is o.k., does it hurt?". Most of those reading would know that Robin wears a knee brace when a lot of walking is involved. Robin then had to explain to the waiter how he hurt his knee (skiing and rugby) and the purpose of the brace. The waiter pats Robin on the back. We gave him a tip....monetary that is.
We head off to discover Diocletian's Palace. Diocletian was from the Dalmatian coast and ruled the Roman Empire for 20 years. He is best remembered for dividing the rule of the empire among four Emperors (finally led to the downfall of the Roman Empire) and torturing and executing thousands of Christians on the Dalmatian coast. His successor legalized Christianity and made it the official religion of the Empire...so there! The Split palace was Diocletian's "retirement palace". It took 11 years to build starting in 293 A.D.killing many slaves in the process, huge sections of the Palace still exist.
As we enter the old walls, we come across the bronze statue of Grgur from Nin by Ivan Mestrovic a famous Croatian sculptor. It is said that if you rub the statues toe, your hopes and dreams will come true. I said to Robin, I wonder where, go around the statue, not hard to figure out; one toe is gold in colour from all the rubbings, compared to the rest of the bronze statue.
One of the most amazing sites is the Peristyle, a large open space, framed by columns and steps on three sides. Today a bar is located in one of the rooms that looks on the Peristyle and they have put cushions all along the steps to encourage people to sit down and order a drink.....works well by the way. They have concerts here during the summer, the bar provides live music every night.
Next we visit the cathedral of St.Mary. I say to myself, why a Catholic Church if he killed so many....answer, it was his mausoleum, before becoming a church after his death. Not very ornate, but an interesting copula, carved statues and beautiful carved doors. Then on to Jupiters Temple, the baptistery of the cathedral.
We continue through the winding alleys and find ourselves at the morning fish market. The shrimps, fresh fish, eels and smells are overwhelming. Great to see everyday life in a port city. Then we decide to walk to a view point the the hotel recommended. Now mind you, they told us to go in the evening when we could get wonderful pictures of the City and Riva. But no, we decide to go at the hottest time of the day....why not?
This area is known as the Marjan. Well....you have to climb many stairs to get to the viewpoint....298 stairs to be precise. O.K. nice viewpoint, but we decide to go on.....a long ramp type walkway. Then we reach a sign that says " 314 Stepinice". Allright, my Croatian is not that good, but I can figure out that this is telling me that we have another 314 stairs to climb. Robin is laughing, as I am counting the stairs...yes, Claire was an auditor at one time in her banking career and I can attest that the audit was perfect...yes there was indeed 314 stairs. Our climbed stairs totalled 1,425 as we managed to find another set of stairs instead of using the ramp....yikes...that definitely calls for another glass of wine, which we had!
After recovering from all the stairs, we continue our walk along the Riva beyond where the normal tourist would venture. The City of Split is extending the Riva over to a private marina and along the new section they have inset bronze plaques to honour all of the Croatian Olympic Medalists. Great to see these improvements taking place. We then continue walking to the Mestrovic Gallery. Robin says...." It's Monday, I wonder if it's closed". Takes us about 20 minutes from the furthest point on the Riva to walk there and sure enough...it's Monday, it's closed. We were however able to get into the gardens and we saw several of the Mestrovic sculptures....wonderful. Mestrovic was a pupil and friend of Rodin and one can certainly see this in his sculptures.
I love the signs I see when we are walking around...I especially like the one about "Free Beer Today". When you first look at the sign, that is what you see, but read the fine print below each word. Must get customers in the door!
Another wonderful meal last night topped off by desert, haven't done this often. I had a semifreddo, an Italian style desert which is partially frozen, somewhat like an ice cream cake. Mine was caramel flavoured and Robin had chocolate crepes....yum.
Have enjoyed Split. The city is very clean, but they must deal with the graffiti everywhere, kind of takes away from the beauty.
We are headed off this morning to the Island of Hvar, which will take 1 1/2 hours by high speed catamaran.
HVAR
Got to the pier about 40 minutes before departing and already a line-up. The ferry holds about 200 people, but they were turning people away as the sailing was sold out. Thankfully I had read that this often happens, so we bought our tickets for the three ferries we are taking when we arrived in Split. The party crowd is definitely headed to the islands, the majority of the people on board were under thirty. A lot of young English men who were talking about what they did the night before and asking each other what they did. During the sailing, which I mentioned was only 1 1/2 hours, this crowd ordered four rounds of drinks....yikes it's only 10:30 in the morning. Robin and I guess that they will pass out on a beach somewhere and then get ready to party again tonight. Needless to say, I skip the chapter on "where to party" in the guide books.
Our accommodation in Hvar is a Sobe, a room in a locals home. Very modest, but very clean, with a small deck. Our host, Teo, met us and another guest at the ferry. When we arrived at his home, we sat in the shade on his outdoor patio and he offered us beer or lemon beer, and he went over things to do, where to eat and where the best beaches were. By the way, my first lemon beer (I had seen this in other places) and it was very refreshing, like a shandy and it is only about 1% alcohol. Might have to partake in these more often!
Teo tells us the town of Hvar has a population of 2,700 which grows to 35,000 in July and August. They say the island of Hvar is the "Croatian Riviera". A fortress overlooks the town and the port itself is quite narrow and everything climbs up from the port. Apparently big yachts moor in the harbour here and the jet setting crowd has discovered the island of Hvar and surrounding islands.....that is not us!
We spent the afternoon walking along the port and discovering some of the beaches (mainly rocky). Again very noticeable that it is definitely a young crowd here. When we were in Split, we had ordered a fresh grilled tuna salad for lunch, which we shared. Did that again today and must say it is so good. We have been enjoying fresh grilled fish since back on the coast....delicious! Must say after one afternoon here, not sure where 35,000 people would fit! The water in the Adriatic Sea is so clear and a beautiful green/blue, spectacular.
Out for dinner at a local restaurant that our host has recommended. I had a local dish called "Pasticada" which is Dalmation beef stew served with gnocchi and Robin had shark. Like to try local specialties wherever we go; these were both very good. A complimentary desert after our dinner....yikes....hope my clothes will still fit after this trip! Well, well....guess who shows up at the same restaurant.....the morons from the boat who were drinking so early this morning. Forgot to mention that when we saw them on the boat, they all seemed quite well dressed with the exception of one young man who had a speedo bathing suit on with a flowered Hawaiian shirt...really I though to myself! Well must be a special kind of party, because tonight he shows up wearing leopard tights and a neon safety vest....oh yes, he is already drunk. Time to leave.
The island of Hvar is know for its wine, olive oil, lavender and honey. We decide to take a tour of the island for today, Wednesday the 10th, to get an idea of what the island is like, and not just the old town and port. Well, certainly glad we did, what a great day and definitely a different perspective of the island and what life is like. Our tour guide was very informative. He and his wife spend six months of the year here on the island of Hvar and the other six months, the winter season, in Zagreb. He tells us that most residents leave the island of Hvar during the winter season. Only one Cafe/bar stays open and the grocery store is only open for four hours a day.
We head off in a four wheel vehicle over dirt/ gravel roads around the island. We visit the historic deserted towns of Malo Grabje and Velo Grabje (7 men live here, I didn't ask what they did here!). At one time these were the centres of vineyards, olive groves and lavender fields dating back to the 15th century and everyone left about one hundred years ago to settle in the port towns.....except for the infamous seven! What great scenery today with steep cliffs where wine growers still tend their vines by hand, the rock formations that used to divide farmers plots ( our guide called this area, the Machu Picchu of Hvar) and some beach time. A stop in a small town for lunch where we were served lamb cooked in a traditional method called "peka". They cook the meat for about three hours under a bell shaped lid covered with hot coals, very tender. Had another lemon beer today, might have to look at importing this stuff! Drive to the highest point on the island, great views.
Our guide would continually stop the truck, jump out and come back with a hand full of wild herbs....mint, rosemary, dill, anise, oregano and sage. He said no need to buy herbs in the store. He also said they use a lot of these herbs to make/season hard liquor/grappa. Also fig, olive, caper and mulberry bushes and trees. In olden times they used to put rocks on the olive trees so that the branches would grow down, easier to pick the olives. Some lavender fields left, but over the last twenty years they had two major fires that destroyed the lavender crops and this crop has not been replanted to the extent it had been before. At one time the island of Hvar produced 10% of the world's lavender. He also said that the fires revealed a large number of the stone walls that had previously been covered by bushes. Also saw a three hundred year old "trim" which is a stone shelter used by farmers.
Robin and I said that our best meals on this trip so far have been in Croatia. Delicious seafood and very good meat. Dinner tonight was no exception, absolutely superb. The restaurant served us a carab aperitif (known as a substitute for chocolate) along with a small piece of carab and olive/garlic bread. The waiter told us that they call carab, St. John the Baptist bread. The ancient story says that when St. John was in the desert he survived on carab, he did not eat meat.....sounds like he was just a chocoholic! After our dinner, they served us a glass of sage flavoured liqueur and after desert a glass of grappa. Did I mention we had wine for dinner! Yikes, lots of stairs to get to our home stay....good thing we walked to help wear off some of the food and alcohol!
Off to the island of Korcula tomorrow morning.
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