Hvar, our first destination of today, is the second longest island in the Adriatic sea, and has a current population of roughly eleven thousand people. It is a former Yugoslavian controlled territory, and consists of five main parts: the arsenal, the dukes palace, the fortress, and living areas for the commoners and the nobles. After a tour with a local guide, the students were given an hour to explore the city on their own.
After taking a two hour ferry from a town around Hvar to our destination in Split, we got off the boat and met our local tour guide who took us on a tour around Diocletian’s Palace. Built 1,700 years ago, the palace still stands today and has served as scenery for Game of Thrones.
It also houses many Split locals within its walls. During our tour, we were able to go inside a room once used to house sewage, and were able to actually see the remains of the sewage from Diocletian’s era, which was truly fascinating.
We also were able to walk in the square where Diocletian executed people who disobeyed him or looked him in the eye (including his own wife and daughter) and the temple he constructed as homage to the god Jupiter.
We then were able to rub the toe of a statue on the grounds of the Palace that is said to grant good luck once its toe is rubbed.
We then had a couple hours of free time to roam the city — during this time, some of us chose to climb the tall bell tower on the grounds of the Palace that overlooks the city of Split and the Palace.
After our adventure in Split, we ventured to our hotel where we ate dinner and will try to slumber before our wake up time at 3:00 AM for our early flight tomorrow morning.
This trip has truly been filled with memories that will last a lifetime!