What makes a spirit of any city, including Split? Yes, there is heritage, sports, art, architecture and many other things I've been writing about in this blog. But one thing is probably the most important; people. I'm not talking only about all those famed, distinguished residents of Split who left their strong mark in history. Split has its own, little big characters known to everyone, no matter how they might look small and non-important. A Mediterranean at its best.

There are such two people that you can't miss whenever you walk into the old town Split, and Diocletian's Palace. Ladies first, of course.

As you pass through the western gate of the Diocletian's Palace, under the city clock, you can't miss seeing woman sitting next to the old, mechanical scale. Her name is Marija, and she holds that spot for almost 30 years, inheriting her mother as unofficial city's weight watcher. Everyone in Split knows her and her scale.  Businesses around her change, bookstores turn into fast food joints, pharmacies into exchange offices, florists and watch repairmen into bars, but Marija is always there. And hopefully she will be there for long time, because if there was no her scale there, it wouldn't be the same city anymore. You won't see her only when it rains, or on Sundays, but any other given day she is there. So, next time you pass Ispod ure, which is local name for that spot, literally meaning "Under the clock", stop there and let Marija weigh you. For just a few kuna you will know your weight, but even more important you will preserve a little, but important piece of Split.

Next stop of the same mission can be a spot at the eastern part of Split waterfront, close to the southern entrance to the Diocletian's Palace's basements. There, you will notice a man, always dressed up in suit or jacket with a tie, standing next to a stand filled with shoelaces, and "armed" with shoe brushes. If you ask anyone in Split, you will learn that his name is Papec (pron. Papets), and that he inherited his father's spot as the most popular and last of shoe cleaners in Split. City granted him that location, treating his small business as a monument, or protected piece of modern heritage. If you don't want your shoes polished, look for laces, Papec will always know and have exactly what you need.

Photo by http://apoliticni.hr