In the historical town of Zadar, in southwestern Croatia

 "The biggest challenge to life in Croatia is hope…. It’s as if there is some vague force of darkness trying to eclipse even the thinnest rays of optimism…. And while hope in Croatia is hard, its absence is offset by the strong personal relationships that tie individuals to the broader society. In Croatia it can be hopeless, but you never feel alone." -- Cody McClain Brown

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(in the oldest continuously inhabited Croatian city) Zadar, a historical town in southwestern Croatia (and the former capital of Dalmatia), is found on the end of a low-lying peninsula that is separated by the Zadar Channel from the islands of Ugljan and Pašman. The inlet between the peninsula and the mainland creates a natural deep water harbor. Its Old Town on the peninsula dates from the 9th century BCE, when it was a Liburnian settlement called Jadera. The town became Roman in the 1st century BCE. Spared during the Avar and Slavic invasions of Dalmatia (5th–6th century CE), it remained a thriving commercial, cultural, and artistic center of Byzantine Dalmatia. Between 1045 and 1358 the town was intermittently at war with Venice, and in 1409 it was sold to Venice. It withstood a Turkish attack in 1571, and in the succeeding period Zadar became the most heavily fortified town on the Adriatic Sea, until its fortifications were partly demolished in the late 19th century. The town was an Austrian possession from 1797 to 1920, except for a brief French interregnum between 1808 and 1813. By the Treaty of Rapallo (in 1920), Zadar became Italian, thereby losing further ground to Split as the chief town of Dalmatia. During the course of World War II, Allied bombing destroyed 75 percent of Zadar’s buildings and damaged the port facilities. Liberated in 1944, it became part of Yugoslavia. Most new construction has taken place on the mainland. The Zadar Riviera is a developing resort center for water sports. The town has excellent road, rail, air, and ferry connections with the rest of the Balkan region and with Italy. Old Zadar is especially noted for the many fine churches that survived the air raids during World War II, as did the Roman forum and several of the old, narrow cobbled streets. St. Donat’s remarkable circular church (included in this photo) dates from the 9th century; the 11th-century St. Mary’s Church has one of the most important church treasuries in Croatia; and the Romanesque Church of St. Krševan was consecrated in 1175. There are also the 13th-century Cathedral of St. Stošija (Anastasia), the largest and finest Romanesque church in Dalmatia, and the 13th-century Franciscan church and monastery. Zadar also has an archaeological museum, the state archives, a theater, and a branch of the University of Zagreb. With its Roman ruins, art installations, and white-sand beach, Zadar is now one of the most unique resorts along Croatia’s Dalmatian coast, where in-the-know travelers come to feast on seafood, watch dreamy sunsets, and sip cocktails at oceanside bars.