A Fairytale Anniversary

My husband and I completed forty years of marriage in May. Knowing we would be in Croatia, we decided to wait and celebrate in Split on the Adriatic Sea. Well worth it! Fabulous time!

Split was originally the retirement home of the Roman Emperor Diocletian in the fourth century. The facade of these buildings is the wall of his palace, facing the sea with this well-used modern promenade full of --you guessed it--coffee shops.

The view from our hotel window inside Diocletian's Palace. My first thought was noisy, but I revised that thought to community. The sounds of church bells and people in the cafe below were never far away. It reminded me of a giant family reunion. Even when you retreat to your bedroom to put your feet up as I was doing when I had these thoughts, you are never far from what is going on.

I felt like I was sleeping in the International Showcase at Epcot --people everywhere in this exotic, fairytale setting.

The best preserved part of Diocletian's Palace is the cellars beneath--now a shopping arcade. Weird to think this mall is 1700 years old.

Behind this facade was Diocletian's private quarters over the cellars you just saw.

My husband is not comfortable with heights, so I climbed the medieval bell tower added to Diocletian's mausoleum (now a church) by myself.

Today's first picture was taken from half way up this hill. Tomorrow I'll show you pictures of our hike.

With his fear of heights, my husband
made a wise choice when he decided not to come.

These steps were considerably higher and steeper than normal modern stairs. The rail is definitely needed!