Sunday 9 September the plain takes me and Marien to Split, Croatia. Dutch former National Keeper Edwin van de Sar is on the plain and several men want a picture. In Split rental car takes a while, but in the end the car takes us to the narrow, dead end, road in the centre of Split where stay. And go directly into town for dinner.
Monday the old walled centre is the place to be. Nice old buildings, narrow streets and cozy squares. First the Cathedral. Climb the bell tower. The upper part is small iron chairs with a deep hole next to it. Not everyone’s cup of tea. The view is great. Nice roofs and a beautiful view over the sea. Part of the Cellars of the Diocletian’s Palace is a spam market for tourist and then a short stop at the Temple of Jupiter. In the meantime it’s afternoon and we saw most of town. A cool option is a boat trip to Trogir and some blue bay. The speedboat takes us to Trogir, an old town on a small island in the river. The Cathedral is nice and again the bell tower provides a beautiful view over the town. Walk around and have a beer, see Kula svetog Marka, a kind of old tower, and castle Kula Kamerlengo. Next stop is a bay with clear water, not so blue, no white sand beach, but still fine.
Tuesday we visit Sibenik. Walk through narrow streets of the old city centre and visit the medieval Jakova Cathedral. Have a cafe on a terrace and drive to the waterfalls of the river Krka. Park the car and a bus takes us down to the wooden walkway over and next to the waterfalls of Skradinski Buk. At the lowest points you can take a swim and we use this opportunity. The water temperature is quite good and it’s cool to swim in front of the falls. It’s already late in the afternoon when we visit the nearby Roman amphitheatre at Burnum. Basically a new amphitheatre after restoration. A short drive and walk brings us to a viewpoint. In the gorge we see the Manojlovac slap, a big waterfall. Last drive is to Zadar, where we stay and visit the sea organ and see the sunset.
Next morning we go to the nice little medieval town Zadar. The Church of St. Donatus is of Byzantine style and nicely restored. The next door Cathedral is younger, but old enough to wander around. Last stop in town is the Archilogical Museum of Zadar. Start on the second floor and in prehistoric times. Going down we see how Romans lived and what jewelry and statues they left. Ground floor is from medieval times. Back to the car and drive along the coast. Every turn a new cool view. In National Park Paklenica we walk up into the gorge. The riverbed is dry, but the valley is green. Right and left a lot of climbers conquer the rocks. We walk further and further. Enjoy the views and after a few hours turn around and go back. Beautiful gorge and nice to walk in the shadow. More coastal road and the last 50 km or so up into the mountains. More meandering roads and amazing views. Tonight we stay at Stari Mlin in Korenica.
