3.08.2007

We set off early for a day trip down the coast. Our first stop was to visit the city of Split, the 3^rd biggest city in Croatia. Like most coastal cities, Split has an old town that is surrounded by the sprawling newer developments. But Split is centred around the remains of the Dioclecian Palace from which it originated as early as 300AD. We were amazed at how much of the original buildings and infrastructure still stand amongst the businesses that operate on the surface of the complex. We also toured through preserved under-levels of the roman palace, which span the entire area of the palace remnants above. These halls would have been used for practical purposes such as storage and labour to service the palace above.

After touring Split, we continued on to Igrane, a small coastal town about 16km past Makarska. Our friends from Adelaide, Ivana and Ana, and Ivana’s 4 month old baby Mia are holidaying here. It was good to see some familiar faces from Oz again and to see Mia enjoying the water. We hung out on the beach and hung around for dinner at Ivana and Ana’s friends house before taking the long trip home in terrible rain. Thank God for the highway, the coastal roads can be a bit scary even in good conditions.