The first day of our travel to Split, Croatia was quite eventful and by the time we retired it was past midnight. For today we had a day tour booked to explore few historic and interesting destinations including another beautiful port town as we travel around Split.

We woke up early as the tour was scheduled to start at eight o’clock. Seeing the weather we knew it would be a day full of off-and-on showers. Too early to have a proper breakfast, we picked some fruits and cookies from the stall owner with whom we had become good friends the previous afternoon.

When you are staying in a location like this where the sea, the boat tours, ship port, bus station and the private tour buses are less than a five minute walk from your hotel, life becomes so relaxed without the hurry. There were very few people on the streets mostly the stall owners readying up for a rainy day, the cab drivers chatting with each other and waiting to start their day and few like us heading towards our tour buses.

The news was confirmed now that the sea tours had all been called off for the next two days. Felt very sad but quickly decided to move on, looking at the happy and relaxing time ahead. Our bus was almost full as it took off dot on time for our first destination.

Salona was an ancient city and the capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia. The name Salona preserves the language of the early inhabitants of this area whom the Romans called the Dalmatae. Salona (or Salon) is situated in today’s town of Solin, right next to Split.

The first mention of the name Salon originates about 7th century BC as an Illyrian settlement near the spring of river Jadro. Salona was a town with over 60,000 inhabitants and according to the legend, the birthplace of Emperor Diocletian. In the first millennium BC the Greeks set up a marketplace here.

After the conquest by the Romans, Salona became the capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia because it sided with the future Roman emperor Gaius Julius Caesar in the civil war. The city quickly acquired Roman characteristics: walls, a forum, a theatre, an amphitheatre – the most conspicuous above-ground remains today, public baths, and an aqueduct. Many inscriptions in both Latin and Greek have been found both inside the walls and in the cemeteries outside, since Romans forbade burials inside the city boundaries.

When the Roman Emperor Diocletian retired, he erected a monumental palace nearby. This massive structure known as Diocletian’s Palace, became the core of the modern city of Split. Salona’s continuing prosperity resulted in extensive church building in the fourth and fifth centuries, including an episcopal basilica and a neighboring church and baptistery inside the walls, and several shrines honoring martyrs outside. Salona was largely destroyed in the invasions of the Avars and Croats in the seventh century AD. Refugees from Salona settled inside Diocletian’s Palace. You could check it out on my previous post Split, Croatia. Let’s go around now and experience more of history.

At the westernmost point of Salona, in the second half of the second century A.D. under the influence of Flavian architectural style, a monumental building was erected. It is one of the most recognizable buildings of Roman architecture. The remains of Roman Amphitheatre indicate that gladiator fights were held in the city of Salona just as in any part of Roman empire, until the fifth century when they were finally banned.

Although Salona is one of the largest archeological sites of the Roman Empire, the park is underutilized and is not preserved and very few visitors know that Salona was one of the largest cities of the Roman Empire. Also, the site not being guarded, thefts have been reported and illegal houses have come up in large numbers. But of late renovations and new excavations have commenced. We now move from here to a very pretty port town, Trogir.

Trogir is a historic town and harbor on the Adriatic coast in Split-Dalmatia County situated on a small island between the Croatian mainland and the island of Ciovo. Trogir has 2300 years of continuous urban tradition and it’s culture was created under the influence of the ancient Greeks, and then the Romans and Venetians. Trogir has a high concentration of palaces, churches, and towers as well as a fortress on a small island and in 1997 was inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List. It’s beautiful Romanesque churches are complemented by the outstanding Renaissance and Baroque buildings from the Venetian period. Trogir is the best-preserved Romanesque-Gothic complex not only in the Adriatic, but in all of Central Europe.

Our guide Renato, a thorough gentleman and very knowledgeable was taking us through the history of this pretty town. As we walked passed the canals and entered old town, Trogir’s grandest building was on our left. It’s the church of St. Lawrence, whose main west portal is a masterpiece by Radovan and the most significant work of the Romanesque-Gothic style in Croatia.

We were feeling a little hungry now as our early breakfast was just a few fruits. The choice of cafes were wide and we settled for this particular one, with an outside sitting area. If you ask us what is a must in our breakfast, we both would shout eggs. So we decided on a cheese omelette, some bread rolls with butter and some strong black coffee for me and orange juice for her.

We were back again to exploring more of this nice little island. Come with us and feel this beautiful afternoon, a little cloudy but dry at the moment as relaxed vacationers go about enjoying their moment of happiness with their close ones.

From Split, buses and ferries to Trogir are available at regular intervals. And it’s a place where you can also stay, if you wish, for a couple of days. It was meeting time with our guide after our own free leisure time and we were soon back in the bus heading towards our last destination for the day, Klis Fort.

The Klis Fortress is a medieval fortress situated above a village bearing the same name, near Split. From its origin as a small stronghold built by the ancient Illyrian tribe Dalmatae, becoming a royal castle that was the seat of many Croatian kings to its final development as a large fortress during the Ottoman wars in Europe, Klis Fortress has guarded the frontier, being lost and re-conquered several times throughout its more than two thousand year long history.

Due to its location on a pass that separates the mountains Mosor and Kozjak, the fortress served as a major source of defense in Dalmatia, especially against the Ottoman advance. It is one of the most valuable surviving examples of defensive architecture in Dalmatia.

The fortress is a remarkably comprehensive structure with three long rectangular defensive lines, consisting of three defensive stone walls, which are surrounding a central strong point. Let’s move in and check out the beautiful views from the top of the fortress.

Back to our hotel it was time for few hours of relaxation with our beer and soft drinks in the sit out terrace offering great views, before walking back towards the sea and the promenade for a late dinner and ice cream.

While we decide on where to settle down for our dinner, you too could pick your choice as we take you around. If you want to really feel the beauty, peace and action of Split Old Town promenade close to midnight, don’t miss this beautiful journey with us.

Split. Another Croatian Beauty. Be here to experience it. And when here do not miss out on the island hopping from Split

Croatia. A beautiful country. Must feature right up there in your holiday bucket list 🏖️

Hope you enjoyed the day and the evening. PIN it for later