Cat sanctuary

Having only one full day in Split, I awoke early and headed out to explore. For those not in the know, the Roman emperor Diocletian built a palace here that today makes up the center of town. Many of the walls from the palace still stand. Today it thrives as a tourist haven. It is on the Croatian coast and I would highly recommend it as a stopover if you are in the area.

I started in the farmers/craft market. The fruit was amazingly good. The plums and the pear that I ate were without doubt, the best I have ever eaten. I bought a variety of nuts, raisins, and cranberries and mixed them together in a plastic bag to create trail mix. I expect it to last for the reminder of my trip – a really cheap tasty snack.

Next I wandered around the palace area and then went into the ancient temple/converted church. Not much to see, but interesting, especially if you walk around while imagining yourself during an earlier time period. The catacomb is basically a basement for the temple. I suspect it was used by the Jews during their high holidays when sacrificing christian children and feasting on their remains. Whelps, perhaps my imagination went a little too far.

Later in the day, I trekked up the side of the major hill that the town is situated around. At the top of the hill is a small fortification. The view is spectacular. I stopped at the Split zoo on the way down. This is a tiny zoo. If it only possessed domesticated animals, it would have been a nice treat, especially for children. Unfortunately, the zoo has other animals for which it does not have adequate facilities. For example, 3 bears in tiny cement and metal cages. The cages reminded me of the cages used by old time traveling circuses. My non-expert opinion would be to move the larger animals to a proper setting and convert the zoo into a petting zoo. The zoo is already full of all types of farm yard animals – why not clean up the place, adjust the layout slightly, and allow for more interaction. My penny.

For those wondering about the title, I have never been to a city which so visibly contains such a large number of feral cats. They are all over. Split reminds me of Key West with their wild chickens.