Diocletian's Palace covers 30,000 square meters within walls that are 170 to 200 meters on each side, the scale representing what an emperor's retirement required. Diocletian abdicated in 305 CE - the first Roman emperor to voluntarily give up power - and retired to this palace where he grew cabbages until his death. The palace's transformation from imperial residence to medieval city began when refugees from Salona, destroyed by Slavic raiders in the 7th century, occupied its protective walls.

The palace is not preserved as ruin but inhabited as neighborhood. The apartments that fill former imperial chambers, the restaurants that occupy vaulted basements, the shops that line the underground passages - these represent adaptation that archaeology elsewhere would prevent. The palace walls are where Split's residents live; the Peristyle where Diocletian received visitors is where tourists gather and concerts occur. The palace is remarkable for being used, not just preserved.

The Riva is Split's waterfront promenade, the palm-lined walkway where the city displays itself to the harbor and the sea beyond. The cafes that line the Riva fill with Spalatini (as residents call themselves) conducting the social rituals that Mediterranean evenings require. The ferries that serve the islands dock along the Riva's length; the yachts that summer brings crowd the marina. The Riva is where Split's public life happens, the democratic space that wealth cannot privatize.

The view from the Riva encompasses what Split offers - the palace walls rising behind, the harbor before, the islands visible on the horizon. The sunset that lights the palace's southern facade, the evening promenade that fills the walkway, the social scene that tourists observe and locals perform - the Riva is Split's living room, the stage where the city presents itself.

Split's Cathedral of Saint Domnius began as Diocletian's mausoleum, the emperor who persecuted Christians eventually buried beneath a Christian church. The transformation is ironic in ways that history often is; the octagonal building that held the emperor's remains became the cathedral that holds the relics of martyrs his persecutions created. The bell tower that rises beside the cathedral was added in the 12th century; the Romanesque portal and the Renaissance choir screen layer subsequent periods over Roman foundation.

The cathedral's interior is cramped by modern standards, the Roman dimensions not designed for congregational worship. The pulpit and choir stalls that fill the space, the altars that multiple chapels require, the adaptation that repurposing demanded - these create density that architecturally pure buildings lack. The cathedral is Christianity claiming Roman imperial space, the theological statement that architectural adaptation makes.

Split is the hub from which Croatia's islands are accessed, the ferries and catamarans that serve Hvar, Brac, Vis, and others departing from the harbor daily. The islands that the Adriatic holds - over a thousand along the Croatian coast - provide the beach experiences and isolated escapes that Split's urban environment cannot. The visitors who base in Split can day-trip to islands or continue to them as final destinations.

The gateway function shapes Split's tourism. The visitors passing through outnumber those who stay; the hotels and restaurants and services exist to serve transit. Yet Split deserves more than transit provides - the palace that makes it unique, the nightlife that rivals the islands, the urban energy that islands lack. Split is destination as well as gateway, though the gateway function often predominates.

Split and nearby locations served as filming locations for Game of Thrones, the basement of Diocletian's Palace standing in for Meereen's dungeon where Daenerys's dragons were chained. The fortress of Klis above Split appeared as Meereen's exterior; the city walls that tourists photograph served as backdrop for scenes that fans seek to recreate. The tourism that followed the show's success has transformed Split's marketing if not its character.

The Game of Thrones tours that operate from Split take visitors to filming locations that the show made famous, the fantasy geography overlaid on actual places. The tourism is superficial in ways that serious archaeology might resent, yet it brings visitors who discover that Split's real history exceeds its fictional appearances. The palace that held Roman emperor is more remarkable than the dungeons that held CGI dragons.