What does a Croatian magician exclaim when he produces a bunch of flowers seemingly out of thin air?
Zadar was the penultimate port of call on our 2023 Adriatic cruise aboard Azura and we’d decided not to take any excursions while visiting. This meant we could be a bit more leisurely about waking up, enjoying the sights from our balcony, having breakfast, then making use of the shuttle bus service to get us to the city as where we were was not even remotely close. I reckon we were docked about five kilometres away from anything you’d really like to see and, having taken the bus, it’s not a route I’d have enjoyed walking. I mean, I don’t particularly enjoy walking anywhere at the best of times but it wouldn’t be a visual feast for the eyes for anyone who does anyway.
The bus dropped us off at the very tip of the peninsula on which the old town of Zadar was situated, and it would be from this same spot that we’d be picked up later in the day. The amount of blue everywhere was staggering; this was a gorgeous part of the world to visit when we did. Piercing blue sky over deep blue, calm water, and blue silhouettes of the land masses of the Zadar Archipelago, the group of islands forming a natural protective barrier to the mainland.
If you’re trying to determine from a map precisely where we were then do a search for the Monument to the Sun and that’s it. This impossible-to-miss circular patch of glass set into the blindingly white stone tiles of the surface is made from three hundred glass panels containing solar cells that power the light show that turns on each night. This large piece of public art, as its name tells you, represents the sun, but if you walk along the peninsula then you’ll find small circles set along it for each of the planets of the solar system.
In the background of that photo above you can see people sitting down on a stepped area down from the main level, facing the water. They’re enjoying the views, of course, but that’s also where Zadar’s famous Sea Organ is located. Created by Nikola Bašić, the same architect responsible for the Monument to the Sun during the reconstruction work along this part of the waterfront, the organ uses the natural movement of the waves pushing through a series of tubes to generate sounds. It’s a fascinating thing to hear for a short period but if, like us, you have to stand next to it for twenty minutes as you wait for a bus at the end of the day, then its random tones might just get a little grating.
We’d known before visiting Zadar that it had a lot of ruins out in the open, originally part of a Roman Forum, but we hadn’t expected there to be quite so many. It was absolutely wonderful to see things of this sort of age and arguable historic importance in plain sight.
While this land along the Adriatic had been inhabited sporadically since the prehistoric period, a merging of various tribes from about the fourth millennium BCE onwards created a new ethnic group called the Liburni, and Zadar as a proper laid-out settlement arose in the ninth century BCE. With good coastal access they gravitated towards sailing activities, gaining a reputation for their seamanship and trading, and had established a large area over which they effectively governed before the Romans started to spread across the continent in the second century BCE. However, because their trade was important, the Liburni were able to avoid most of the conflicts in the region, even when the Romans were engaged with allies of theirs. This lasted until 59 BCE when civil war in the Roman empire between Julius Caesar and Pompey dragged the people of Zadar into the conflict on the side of Caesar. At the conclusion of that war, the victorious Caesar awarded Zadar the status of Roman Colony and settlement by Roman citizens then followed, along with the sort of architecture that you find in ruins all around the Mediterranean to this day.
The tall column below is known as the Pillar of Shame as it was used to tie those accused of bad deeds to so that the public could taunt them.
It wasn’t just the forum itself that was fabulous, but some of the buildings around it couldn’t help but be admired too, and the one that stood out to us more than any other was that of the Church of St Donatus. Constructed around the ninth century CE this was built with some elements taken from the forum so it’s still possible to see some Latin inscriptions and Roman decorations on stones inside despite dating from centuries after the empire’s collapse.
We went inside because we were nosey but also because we felt that it would be cooler out of the blazing sunshine on this part of Croatia, but our respite from heat and sweating was quickly eliminated when we realised we could climb up part of the building’s twenty seven metres in height, and proceeded to do so even though neither of us really wanted the extra exertions.
Back outside, and directly opposite the church was Zadar Archaeological Museum. We like museums. We like archaeology. We liked Zadar already from our short time there. We paid a visit and took some photos, and you can read that here: Zadar Archaeological Museum.
After our enjoyable visit to the museum we decided to head roughly eastwards towards a park. We passed some bars on the way and, amazingly for us, fought off the temptation to grab a drink, then came to Five Wells Square. You won’t be surprised to learn how many wells were there. The area dates from the medieval period, around the sixteenth century, when the city came under threat then siege from the Ottoman Empire, and defensive walls and a secure water system from a public cistern became necessary. Gates set into the walls can be found around the old city of Zadar and the one we passed at this point is considered the most attractive, sporting a Venetian lion sculpture above it.
We then arrived at Queen Jelena Madijevka Park, an oasis of green amongst all the white buildings and orange tiles under the blue sky we’d experienced thus far in Zadar. Leaving my wife on a bench at the bottom – getting her up one set of unexpected steps in the church earlier was quite enough for her for one day – I made my way to the top of the hill that forms the centre-point of the park and affords a lovely view across the old city in every direction. A lovely spot, but not very large, and not a must-see by any means if you’re visiting Zadar to be fair.
We decided we’d make our way back to the bus at this point, and if we passed anywhere that did local beer then we’d stop for one, but our route along the shoreline was devoid of anything that would quench a thirst and so we soon ended up back where the bus had dropped us off.
We had quite a wait as a lot of cruise ship passengers were already queueing and it wasn’t until the second bus turned up that we were able to get out of the baking sun reflecting off the blindingly bright surface near the Sea Organ. As I’ve already mentioned, this also treated our ears to tens of minutes of its random, occasionally harmonious, more often discordant tones.
We really liked the old city of Zadar a lot. Great history, great sights, by the sea, easy access to ruins, a nice variety of historic periods and associated architecture to admire, wonderful little alleys with plenty of indication that the nightlife would be wonderful here in the summer. Certainly, we’d not be unhappy to return for a longer visit at some point, but for this occasion the remainder of our day would be spent back on board Azura for the sail away.