On my first day I did what I normally do and ventured out to explore the city. Like most European cities, Split has a really beautiful, walled 'old city'. Once you get out of the very touristy areas it was a very peaceful experience. The homes in the area are still in the old style, all stone and stucco facades and orange tiled roofs, with rustic stone stairways crawling up the outer walls and aged wooden shutters. It didn't take long, maybe a couple of hours, to make my way through the old city, and since I still had several hours of daylight left I decided to walk along the waterside. There were a ton of beautiful, expensive looking vessels moored in the port, and just beyond the port a park. As I continued my walk through the park and back along the waters edge I came across a small cliff edge where people were sunning and swimming. The cliffs were only 15-20 feet tall but they were perfect for some light cliff jumping. I didn't have my bathing suit but I came back a couple other times during my stay to enjoy a lazy afternoon of jumping, swimming and baking in the gorgeous Croatian sun.
On day 2 I was joined at my hostel by 3 British guys who made my short time in this city a lot more fun. They were wild and constantly joking around, which was fun and refreshing, even though I was the butt of 90% of their jokes and was given at least 3 nicknames. I went out with them 2 nights, only after the 3 of them knocked back a liter of vodka. I really wish I could have joined them in Hvar. I'm sure it would have been an amazing time and its definitely one of the places I regret not having time to see.
My last day was spent on the island of Brac. Its the closest island to Split, and so I was able to get there rather inexpensively, which was a goal of mine since as I've said before, my funds are dwindling. There is a famous beach on the island in a small town called Bol that juts out into the crystal blue waters of the Adriatic. The tides and winds change the trajectory of the sandy/rocky cape on a daily basis. The beach is very crowded but is still a beautiful place to relax. Sometimes the wind was quite brutal, but if you just move away from the tip of the cape it gets much nicer. The shaded pathway to get to the cape from the town of Bol is also really nice 20 minute walk.
By my final day in Split I was finally feeling the groove of this place and didn't want to go, but my plans for 3 days in Split, another 3 in Zagreb, were already set. In the end I actually ended up cutting my entire time in Croatia in half so I could fit an extra country into my last month of travel through Europe. Looks like I've just got one more reason to make my way back, but I'm psyched to say...Romania here I come!