Dubrovnik is top dog on the Dalmatian coast, but there are plenty of other magical spots along these shores – and at the top of the list is a city with perhaps one of the world’s most unusual historic quarters: Split. It’s fair to say the mix of history, dining, beaches and more here is a mix unlike any on the planet.
Founded in the 6th century BC against a backdrop of high, rocky hills as the Greek colony Aspálatos, several centuries later it had not only become Aspalatum as part of the Roman Empire, but also was the spot where the locally-born emperor Diocletian chose to have his massive retirement palace built in 305 AD. After the area invaded by the proverbial barbarians in the 7th century (among them the Slavs who ended up dominating the Balkans ever since), many locals took refuge in the abandoned Diocletian’s Palace (top), and their successors still live there, among the marble and columns and temples, to this day.
Read more in my post A Split Decision is a Knockout.
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