..the power of photograph can make you travel to the other side of the world, to past moments, to somebody else's life and memories
or even to the important moments of the world history..
From Split my travel continued further to the west following Dalmatian coastline. Less than 30 kilometers drive from Split, you can find the county’s third UNESCO world heritage site, the historical city of Trogir. This small city lies next to the coastline, located in a small island which can be accessed from mainland by foot or by car. You can also visit this city by taking the ferry trip from Split. I wandered few hours in this small city and island and enjoyed tasty lunch and some delicious ice cream here before continuing my trip to another county of Croatia. Although Split-Dalmatia didn’t impress me as much as many other places I have visited in Croatia, all in all my visit to this county was enjoyable and I saw lot of interested places.
“Trogir is a remarkable example of urban continuity. The orthogonal street plan of this island settlement dates back to the Hellenistic period and it was embellished by successive rulers with many fine public and domestic buildings and fortifications. Its beautiful Romanesque churches are complemented by the outstanding Renaissance and Baroque buildings from the Venetian period.” -UNESCO
After my stay in Hvar and Stari Grad, it was time to continue back to mainland, this time to Split. This was my second time in this Croatia’s second biggest city and so far this town hasn’t made me yearning back. It’s nice place, but it’s also really crowded with tourists and after visiting several smaller island towns that hit me against my face... Although Split is really historical city, in my opinion many other Croatian cities are still much more interesting and charming to visit. But if you anyway decide to visit Split, the historical city center is place to start.
The history of Split is rich and it has been seeing many different periods. Before Croatia’s independence it has been ruled by Greeks, Romans, Venetians, Austrians, French, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, Italians, briefly by Germans and then Yugoslavians. It’s historical center is home for one of the three UNESCO World Heritage Sites located in the county. Here you are able to wander around and investigate the ruins of Diocletian’s Palace, the Palace which construction was started 1720 years ago! History and today are living hand in hand in historical center of Split…
“The ruins of Diocletian's Palace, built between the late 3rd and the early 4th centuries A.D., can be found throughout the city. The cathedral was built in the Middle Ages, reusing materials from the ancient mausoleum. Twelfth- and 13th-century Romanesque churches, medieval fortifications, 15th-century Gothic palaces and other palaces in Renaissance and Baroque style make up the rest of the protected area.” -UNESCO
Split is also known as Croatia’s sport capital. Compared to its size, it has been one of the most successful cities in Olympic Games history. In my last morning in Split I decided to honour that and I went to run around peninsula of Marjan early in the morning. That was maybe my favourite time I spent in Split and I enjoyed a lot the peaceful forest and sea views around Marjan. But before I reached there I started my run from the Split’s west side sea promenade where you can find all the names of all those Olympic medalists. The list starts from Helsinki 1952 and it ends up in London 2012. You can find there 73 plagues currently…
A bit outside of Stari Grad lies one of the county’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Stari Grad Plain. While I had read really mixed views of this site, I must say that I enjoyed my visit a lot. What a perfect way to spend your summer evening while exploring this site and enjoying beautiful evening and countryside landscape simultaneously! Although I must say that most probably you get much more out of the site’s historical side, if you decide to explore it with the guide…
“Stari Grad Plain on the Adriatic island of Hvar is a cultural landscape that has remained practically intact since it was first colonized by Ionian Greeks from Paros in the 4th century BC. The original agricultural activity of this fertile plain, mainly centring on grapes and olives, has been maintained since Greek times to the present. The site is also a natural reserve. The landscape features ancient stone walls and trims, or small stone shelters, and bears testimony to the ancient geometrical system of land division used by the ancient Greeks, the chora which has remained virtually intact over 24 centuries.” -UNESCO
After my short visit to Hvar town it was time to move on to my main destination in the island of Hvar, Stari Grad. Make sure that when you hop on to Stari Grad bus in Hvar town, you choose the bus which is driving via old road. This bus ride from Hvar town to Stari Grad is offering some great views around the island while the bus is driving in small mountain roads through the lavender fields.
Stari Grad is located next to the peaceful bay of Adriatic Sea and town is built around the bay. Immediately when I arrived there I liked the atmosphere of the town. It feels like time has stopped in this small town, which is oldest one in Croatia. Or actually one of the oldest ones in whole Europe. There aren’t big tourist attractions in the town, but it’s a great place to explore the outdoors of island. As most of the tourists visiting the island are staying in Hvar town and just passing through Stari Grad, the atmosphere here is more peaceful and it’s ideal place to enjoy summer days and evenings in peaceful surroundings. For me small island towns like Stari Grad are definitely my favourite thing in Croatia!
I arrived to island of Hvar early in the morning. Morning ferry from Korcula town to Hvar is leaving early and as the ferry trip is not too long, the Hvar town is still mainly sleeping when morning ferry arrives to the harbour. Although Hvar town wasn't my final destination in the island, I wanted to spend half day there. So after ferry arrived, I was heading to local bus station and left my luggage to their luggage storage. After that I started to explore the silent and peaceful streets of Hvar town. During those morning hours I was seeing how this small town was slowly waking up and that was providing me the possibility to see another side of the town. Another side of this town which is mainly known as a popular holiday place among jet set. It's known as a place where people are arriving to with their big and fancy boats, and it is also known from its parties. But due those few morning hours which I spent in Hvar town, my memories of this town are totally different...
So destination of the month is in Croatia. After exploring Dudrovnik-Neretva county, it is time to explore Split-Dalmatia. Journey starts in one of its islands and after enjoying the countryside and wine yards, we will move to mainland. When comparing these two counties against each other, I must say that Dubrovnik-Neretva is clearly winning this comparison in my mind, but also Split-Dalmatia is having something to offer to traveller and I have enjoyed a lot my two visits which I have made there.
In May we continue our photography travel in Europe, this time in Southern Europe. As summer hasn’t arrived to Finland yet, I can always try to find my summer mood from the photos. So we travel to summer time, to beautiful landscapes and to one small county. This county is known from beautiful summer and that’s why lot of tourists are travelling there, but especially it’s known from its historical sites. This small county is having less than 500.000 habitants, but it is home for 3 of the European UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Any ideas where we are going to travel this month?
