Zadar

Zadar sits on a small peninsula of white stone, water on three sides. Along the quay, waves push air through the pipes of the Sea Organ and play chords under the steps, by day and by night. The rest is Roman and medieval, often in a single glance — the paving of the Roman Forum serves as the floor of the Church of St Donatus, a ninth-century rotunda built from the stones of the temple before it. The city kept its Venetian gates and ramparts from the centuries when it was the capital of Dalmatia. Offshore, islands run to the horizon: the bare limestone of Kornati National Park, the cliffs and salt lake of Telašćica Nature Park. The water is clear to the bottom, and people swim in the middle of town at Kolovare Beach. Inland, the waterfalls of Krka National Park drop through terraces of travertine. Grilled fish comes under local olive oil, and maraschino, the cherry liqueur, has been made here for two hundred years.