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Hello everyone!
We are here in the heart of
Diocletian's Palace in Split, Croatia,
and we are about to take a walking tour
with Dino, and explore more of this
amazing, UNESCO heritage site.
Hope you enjoy! :)
A fountain of cascading water,
and a statue of Gregory of Nin,
mark the Northern Entrance,
also known as the Golden Gate,
leading into Diocletian’s Palace.
It is here, where we met our guide,
Dino.
A former history teacher,
Dino’s family roots in Split can be
traced back hundreds of years.
Dino would begin to share his wealth
of knowledge about Split’s history,
on the city’s waterfront,
also known as the Riva.
Here, Tricia and I would learn about
the construction of Emperor Diocletian’s
palace around 300 AD.
Spanning over 30,000 square meters,
this extraordinary complex of beautiful
white limestone was built as a retirement
home for the Roman Emperor Diocletian.
Used as a waste disposal area for hundreds of years,
the lower chambers of the palace are beautifully preserved,
having been excavated in 1952.
The acoustics are absolutely fascinating.
The Vestibule of the palace is where
the emperor would greet his guests,
and allow his people to worship him.
From here, Dino would take us inside
Emperor Diocletian’s Mausoleum, which was
later converted into a Christian church,
and is now one of the oldest in the world.
Ornate columns stand next to the more recently
constructed bell tower of the Cathedral,
which was built a mere 800 years later
in 1100 AD.
One of the most narrow streets in the world
lies next to Jupiter’s Temple,
where an intricately carved, barrel-vaulted ceiling
once provided a place of worship
of the Roman God Jupiter.
It was later converted into a baptistry.
In and around Diocletian’s Palace,
thousands of years of art and artifacts
can be found. Including Diocletian’s prized
3500-year-old sphinxes from Egypt.
Some of them are decapitated.
But still hanging around.
With that said, it was time for dinner,
at the Konoba Varos Restaurant.
Magical aromas of a wood-fired grill
and festive holiday decorations were the setting
for the final act of the tour.
Over a bottle of Plavac Mali,
from the Blato winery on the Croatian island of Korcula,
we would experience a fine selection
of Central Dalmatian food.
Delicious, grilled Scorpion fish.
Vegetables drizzled in Dalmatian olive oil.
And a fantastic, cuttlefish risotto.
it was an extraordinary end to an extraordinary day,