Like all mornings on the ship, it started pretty early, but this time the wind coming into Brač was intense! Right when I opened the door to our cabin, I was blasted with sea water in the face. Using all my weight to keep the door open, mom and I headed to breakfast.

We made port in the town of Omiš. The town is very beautifully situated at the base of enormous limestone mountains and was very asthetic with the salt in the air from the wind. The first part of the road was very pleasant, and actually flat for a change! It didn’t last too long, but long enough to feel warmed up. We then started climbing a narrow winding road filled with switchbacks and headed up a very scenic mountain pass which included some really cool tunnels.  About halfway up, there was a very pretty natural spring we could fill our water bottles up at, which was very refreshing in the heat.   The top was complete with quaint beautiful towns and 180 degree views over the mountains: quite the reward for 7km of 6% grades.    After a 4 km downhill jaunt, it was time for rafting the Cetina River! Upon arrival, we changed into our swimsuits and got fitted with life jackets and helmets, had a safety briefing and met our guide. Our group ended up getting split up with 4 of us heading with a group of older (and slightly frisky…) German men. Enough on that… Lol.

The river was VERY cold for my new Adriatic standards, so I was definitely not going swimming unless I got thrown out of the boat (which was probably not going to happen on the Class II/III Rapids). The water was stunningly blue and had many scenic waterfalls and scenery along the way. For one part of the river, we had to get out of the boat as the guides took the rafts down a dangerous rapid. We had an absolute blast. I don’t have a disk drive currently so I will post pictures after we get back to the states.

It was then a short 7km bike ride back to the boat and we headed to the metropolitan city of Split.   Upon arrival, it was time to take a tour of the infamous Diocletian’s Palace. Let’s see if I can give a good summary in 500 words or less:

The palace was named after a working class Roman man turned general from the 4th Century AD. Construction on the 30,000 square meter palace took only 10 years to complete. It took until 1979 for UNESCO to declare it a World Heritage Site, so many parts of the palace are now owned by locals and other people around the world. Many have even added their own additions to the palace walls. The palace is now home to nearly 3,000 people and has become the “Old Town” of Split.     

    Afterwards, we toured the Split Bell Tower, built on the remains of Diocletian’s Mausoleum. It was a long way up but the views were SO worth it. The night was then filled with great company, drinks, dancing, and lots of laughs at one of Split’s nightclubs: Central. 🍹