I can't say that Split was our favorite port of this cruise, 'cause there are a lot more ports to come, but it certainly is going to be in the top (give me a minute to look at how many ports we visit this cruise)...ten ports. Actually, make that nine ports; we liked it even better than Venice. In fact, we loved it.
Though the Pacific Princess arrived in Split at 7am this morning, we did not rush off the ship. The weather was grey and periodically drizzly and we knew that the city's walled Old Town (Stari Grad) area was just a ten minute walk from the ship. We lingered over breakfast and I gave G a haircut while the ship was docked and steady, we sorted through the paperwork from last cruise and called room ervice to change out most of the items from the new minibar setup we'd received yesterday, the first day of this cruise. (It still hasn't been done by 9pm. Something tells me the order was lost in translation.) By then it was nearly 10am and we could see the sun was starting to come out. Well, yay!
We walked through the port area, passing the many (and I mean many) huge ferries that carry people and vehicles all over the Adriatic area. Of course, that took a few minutes as G had to stop and examine how each one worked; some had the usual ramp that dropped down in the front but others had something akin to the lift gate on an SUV with a ramp inside that. Once I pulled him away from the ferries, we continued down the waterfront to the Stari Grad, but saw the beautiful waterfront promenade called the Riva and it was so inviting that we headed over there first.
The Riva, Split
There was much there to hold G's attention, too: a boat with a large skimmer on the front to clean up trash from the water, men using a suction lift to lay large concrete squares on a bed of squeegee, and everywhere we looked things were as neat as a pin and beautiful, with lots of palm trees and outdoor cafes (using heaters this time of year) and medieval architecture. We walked the entire length of the Riva and struck up a conversation with an older local woman who was thrilled for the chance to speak English (she spoke it perfectly) and we ended up talking with her for at least 30 minutes.
She pointed me in the direction of the church that stood at the end of the Riva, the Church of St. Francis, and I went in to explore. Its architecture was simpler than some of the grand basilicas and cathedrals we've seen lately but it was beautiful, with six arch-topped stained glass windows. I lit another candle and moved back outside where G and this lady were still in deep conversation.
The Church of St. Francis
After three previous stops in Croatia, we finally just today used an ATM to get a minor quantity of kunas, the local currency, something we should have done from the get-go. These will make it easier for us to take the local buses in Dubrovnik later this cruise, plus we'll be visiting another Croatian port this cruise, Rijeka. Not far from the ATM was the fish market, providing another wonderful if odorous photo op.
Restaurants along the Riva
Pizza Cut- harious!
I wouldn't even know what to do with it. ;-)
I don't want to look something in the eye when I'm about to eat it
Croatian National Theater
We walked down the main shopping street, already sporting some minor Christmas decorations, then cut east back a block or two from the sea. Eventually we ended up at the walled Old Town and it was just as picturesque as Dubrovnik or Korčula, but without stairs, so more like Kotor. I had taken the Split section of the Rick Steves Mediterranean Cruise Ports book- it contains a walking tour of the Stari Grad including Roman emperor Diocletian's palace- and never opened it. We just wandered the narrow alleys and checked out the many bakeries, and G insisted I buy a wool hat from a hat store. The wool headband is simply not warm enough on some of these really chilly days we've been having.
Exiting the Stari Grad (Old Town) and back on the Riva
Ferry schedule
We both said that Split- in fact, all of Croatia- would rank high on a list of potential future visits. If we do any Mediterranean cruises in the future, we would spend time in Croatia over Venice or Rome or Barcelona. I don't know what I was expecting from these Balkan countries, but they are not even a tiny bit like my experience in East Berlin in 1984 before the wall was dismantled (run down and drab and kind of creepy) but instead are full of beautiful buildings and scenery and friendly locals.
All on board time was at 3:30pm, but we returned to the ship just after 3pm. I went to the Panorama Buffet for a salad but G used a hot tub instead. I was just finishing getting ready for dinner when he returned and said that sailaway was going to be beautiful; the sun was starting to set but its light was still shining on the Split waterfront. I grabbed the camera and went up on Deck 10. He was right...I got some great sunset photos, which have been fairly rare lately.
The sun shining on Split with Riva along the waterfront and the Mosor Mountains rising up behind the city
The bell tower of the Cathedral of Split is front-most toward the right
Today was margaritas, and chips and guacamole night in the PES Lounge and we stopped in there before going to dinner. For dinner, I had the same spanakopita, garden salad and that lovely scallops with white and green beans entree I've now enjoyed all three times it has been offered. It's quickly become a favorite. At 7pm, the Captain's Welcome Aboard Party and Champagne Waterfall was held in the atrium with Maitre d'Oscar sporting his Venetian mask and cape as he poured the champagne. Somehow, this small ship just seems to make all of these usual events more fun. I think it's the intimate setting and wonderful crew.
Tonight's entertainment was billed as gypsy violinist Ralph Allin, and we sat in the just-in-case-iest of the just-in-case seats in the Cabaret Lounge, at the very back near the door. Well, Ralph played just one gypsy-type song and several other kinds of music and had an excellent delievery style as well and we stayed until the very end.
Captain Domenico Lubrano made an announcement during dinner that the weather tomorrow in a Kotor is supposed to turn very bad starting at about 4pm, with 50 knot winds, and he made the decision that we would sail out of the fiord by 4pm, instead of leaving at 6pm as originally scheduled. You might recall that Kotor is the port where the Pacific Princess experienced a tornado as we left after our first visit in early October, and we are certainly not anxious for a repeat of that...or Nice. Captain D said he could give us an extra hour in Santorini as pay back, and everyone seemed quite happy with the trade-off.