A LAND OF STORIES

THE OPENING OF THE PELJEŠAC BRIDGE IN SOUTHERN CROATIA MEANS IT'S EASIER THAN EVER TO HEAD OUT ALONG THE COAST ON A ROAD TRIP FROM SPLIT TO DUBROVNIK, TAKING IN ANCIENT STONE VILLAGES, UNDERWATER WINE AND PIRATE LEGENDS

- ADRIAN PHILLIPS

Four frogs with violins gather beneath a window to serenade another frog in a dress. You don't see that every day. Nor a frog being shaved in a barber's shop. "People are so obsessed with technology, it can be tough to get them interested in frogs," says my guide Marina Bitunjac, as we ponder a scene in which one of the amphibious creatures balances a boot on his nose.

You'll find 507 such stuffed frogs in Split's Froggyland, arranged in a series of tableaux by taxidermist Ferenc Mere in the early 1900s. The various scenes on display include court cases, sporting contests and school lessons. One is titled 'Construction work on a holiday home' and features frog bricklayers, roofers and a site manager taking a pee behind a wall. Exhibits are accompanied by a soundtrack of ribbits set to music. It's utterly surreal.

I knew I'd love Split. The Dalmatian city is the first stop on a road trip I'm taking along the Croatian coast to Dubrovnik. Friends had raved about its Roman architecture, medieval bell towers and harbourside restaurants. But they hadn't mentioned its fabulous eccentricities. After Froggyland, Marina takes me to rub Gregory of Nin's big toe. Gregory was a revered 10th-century bishop, and touching the toe of his 28ft-tall bronze statue, burnished gold by millions of fingers, is said to bring good luck. "Make a wish," says Marina (I wish for hand sanitiser) before we continue through the north gate of Diocletian's Palace.