Split

The second largest city in Croatia is situated in the central part of Dalmatia and it is known for numerous sights. Split is situated on Marjan peninsula surrounded by the mountain Mosor on the north, by hill Kozjak on the northwest, and the hill Perun on the east.

Split peninsula is surrounded by many islands: Brač, Hvar, Šolta and and Čiovo. Being the largest city on the coast, Split attracts numerous visitors with its unique look where the past and the present are interlaced.

Not only cultural monuments, that tell the story about the past of this city, are appealing to tourist, but also many new things that are appealing especially to the young.

It has been mentioned before that Split has a rich history and Diocletian himself is a part of it being a reformer of Roman Empire. He was a persecutor of Christians that called themselves gods. He built the palace for his retirement days.

Although the beginnings of Split are traditionally associated with the construction of Diocletian's Palace, some recent archeological findings have shown that the city was founded many years before as the Greek colony . The Greek settlement lived off trade with the surrounding Illyrian tribes.

Previously mentioned Diocletian’s palace is one of the greatest sights in Split, and most importantly it is the biggest and the most preserved late-antique palace in the world. Once a luxurious palace, today is a historical monument with its remains: walls, four gates (Golden – Porta Aurea, Silver – Porta Argentea, Iron – Porta Ferrea and Brass – Port Aenea), the mausoleum of the emperor (St. Dujam cathedral), corner tower, temple of Jupiter, square – Peristil and Vestibul.

Gripe is another interesting sight in Split. It is well-known fortified complex built in XVII century in order to protect Split from Turkish invasion. However, the most beautiful place is a hill, peninsula and the forest park– Marjan, with its highest point Telegrin (178 m). Except its extraordinary beauty, Marjan has many old churches and some of them are valuable archeological monuments. The most important ones are the church of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows, built in XV century, and St. George church from IX century.