Vicky and I are sipping our after-dinner drinks in a seaside restaurant on a warm autumn evening watching the sun descend into the Adriatic Sea, along with a couple of dozen other lucky people. Next to us is an older couple from Britain (accents, don’t know know). I am pondering, softly, whether we should drive to Dubrovnik after visiting the unique and amazing Plitvice Lakes in central Croatia. After all, it’s a long drive, no divided highway – is it worth it, since our next stop afterwards is Héviz, the thermal lake in western Hungary, necessitating another long drive from Dubrovnik through Serbia. So, the chap at the next table turns to us and says, “Don’t bother, it’s not worth it, swarmed by tourists and not even original, all rebuilt since the war with Serbia. This town, right here, is much more original and authentic.” OK, no Dubrovnik.
Yep, Rovinj is a gem, a hill top town on a peninsula jutting into the Adriatic, full of tangled, cobble-stoned narrow streets leading up to, what else, the church... of St. Euphemia - it is, of course, de rigueur, that churches in hill-top towns across Southern Europe are at the zenith of their towns (closest to Heaven, don’t you know).
Devoid of hordes of tourists, OK, there were some, not overrun with bric-a-brac shops, nice
restos tucked into small squares, so...original, so…Italian, so enjoyable. This is the Old Town where the smell of fresh roasted espresso mingles with the salty air and is just so… Mediterranean.
Have I mentioned that it is pedestrian only? Wander its labyrinthine streets to find local art shops, little restos, open stall markets and, towards the top near the church welcome shade filled glades.
The architecture is a feast for the eyes, think gothic palazzos, Venetian baroque buildings, all in earth tones, Orange slate roofs, shuttered windows, hanging washing…
…the main drag is Grisia Street where local artists have their shops, selling hand-made wares, no junk here. Puff your way up to the church, and climb to the top of the bell tower, inspired by that of St. Mark’s in Venice, though smaller, for some panoramic views of the city inland (as the Old Town is just a small part of Rovinj proper) and the Rovinj islands in the bay, some of which have 4-star hotels… and the Adriatic, beyond. Look upon the sarcophagus of St. Euphemia in the church, miraculously carried here on the waves by angelic forces, after the sack of Constantinople by the Turks. Aha?
When it’s time for lunch, stop at one of the quaint (…quaint, such as overused descriptor, but, you know, they are quaint, nothing like them in Chicago, right?) cafes and have a glass of the local Istrian wines – be surprised. Chat with your fellow travellers.
Consider the thousand years of humanity that have walked these steps, lived lives, defended their town from corsairs… at one time, the town had double walls, some of which are still visible, walk along the pier for some great views. Up until the 19th century, the Old Town was actually an island, until the locals filled in the channel. Before tourism, the main source of income was fishing. The Romans were here first, (well, not really first, but…), however, Rovinj did not really exist until the 4th century CE; Pula was the main Roman town, more later. The walls were repeatedly breached in those centuries, until the Venetian Republic took over from 1283 to 1797.
In fact, all of the Istrian peninsula and down the coast to Dubrovnik belonged to Venice. Venetian architecture is much on show. The town prospered, protected by the Venice fleet.
Visit in mid-June, and you’ll be just in time for the Istrian Summer Salsa Festival, when the town gets filled with the rhythms of bachata, salsa, and kizomba, and everyone ‘gets down’. Great atmosphere.
Just a short walk away from Old Town is the lush Zlatni forest park… oaks, pines and aromatic Mediterranean shrubs form a backdrop for some lovely beaches, typically, for the area, pebbly, rocky, but clear blue, calm water. Perfect for a picnic. If you’re into that sort of thing, a few miles east of Rovinj is the Bronze Age Monkodomja Hill Fort. Nor much remains, but in its heyday, it would have had triple stone walls, six feet tall, space for a thousand individuals, and there was evidence of a hierarchical governance with the ‘upper crust’ living within another set of walls, and the hoy-polloi consigned to the middle layer and the poor, nearest the walls. We humans…sigh!
Up the coast a bit is the charming town of Porec, but, so, why would you want to go to little-known Porec? Well, for its 6th century incredibly well-preserved Euphrasian Basilica. Porec or Parentium, its Latin name, was the first Roman colony in northern Istria close by the border with today’s Slovenia. Lying also on a peninsula, though nor a hill-town, it has retained its old-world charm. It has its share of Italianate palazzos, the ruins of the Temple of Mars, ancient olive trees in little squares…(BTW, on the roadside from Venice to Rovinj, a vendor in his stall was selling his local olive oil, wish we could have brought some home)…cobbled streets, but the pièce de resistance is the Basilica, on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.
Istria is officially bilingual: Croat and Italian.
The complex is comprised of the church itself, the baptistery, a sacristy, bell tower, and the nearby archbishop’s palace. It is an excellent example of early Byzantine architecture in the Mediterranean style. Bishop Euphrasius was unhappy with the modest church he found in Parentium when he arrived, so he, ahem, modified it a bit. He fell out with the pope who called him an apostate - lots of different interpretations of Christianity in that century (not unlike our own) - but got ever by putting his face as an angel in the main fresco. The defiant bishop had had created an impressive work of art that forever distinguishes Porec.
Discover the spectacular, magnificent mosaics adorning the top section of the apse. It is impressive that these colourful stones, set in plaster fifteen centuries ago still retain their shine, their aura. Depicted are the Virgin Mary, the Child Christ on their throne in Heaven surrounded by archangels and St. Maurus (aka Euphemius), the patron saint of Parentium/Porec. Elsewhere, Christ and the twelve apostles are pictured, and step closer to the stone canopy above the altar. Look up and behold a starry sky of blue and gold. Sit yourself down and contemplate the eternal.
At the bottom of the Istrian peninsula lies Pula. An exploration of Pula, on the coast south of Rovinj begins and ends with the Amphitheatre, sixth largest in the Roman world, and the only one still complete, full circle (or actually, ellipse).
A working port, Pula used to be the main trading port of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (while it lasted). Roman ‘stuff’ is still all around. The locals walk by it with nary a thought, while we tourist ogle and goggle. As befits an important Roman town in the colonies, Pula also had a small theatre for plays and such. Not much of the walls are left, knocked down as the town expanded but one notable main entrance is (are?) the Porta Gemina, the Twin Gates, an important entry point, however, now in the middle of town.
Stepping through these will get you to the remains of the theatre, not as impressive as others in Greece and Málaga, Spain, but…OK. Nearby is the Gate of Hercules, another entrance to the old town…and another the Arch of the Sergii.
So much Roman ‘stuff’!
After passing through the Gates, right in front of you is one of the entrances to Pula’s tunnel network. Built before and during WWI by the afore mentioned Empire to guard the townsfolk against aerial attack by the dastardly British, it now serves as a convenient walk under Pula’s several hills to get to the waterfront.
The tunnel system is called the Zerostrasse (?)(Must be some story there!). It was really cool, in both senses of the word, to trek through the wet underground. It’s really a fascinating network of tunnels on at least two levels (great for getting lost), several branches. In roughly the middle is an elevator to bring you to the top of the Fortress for great views of the city. We however, were not interested in getting lost, so after stopping to read some of the posted information about this project in the central atrium, a sort-of underground museum,
we carried on to the other end exiting at what used to be the Forum, now a nice square. The tunnels stretch for several Kilometres and have several entrances. One tunnel extends all the way to the Amphitheatre. And there, on the forum stands the beautifully preserved, stunning temple of Augustus (he was a god, after all, don’t you know, OK, he was deified only after his death).
Six Corinthian columns holding up the pediment, an ante-chamber and the enclosed stone boxy building where sacrifices were offered…inhuman (in the best sort of way) sacrifices. The best guess is that it has been standing since around 10-20BC.
Then, there is that amphitheatre, where Gladiators fought wild animals and themselves, where criminals were executed, Christians? Built from the first century BC under Augustus to the first century CE under Vespasian. At the time, it was one of the largest, seating 23,000. 132 meters long and 105 wide, height of 32 meters and at one time had three levels protected against the sun by arches holding awning. It had a basement to hold apartments, staging areas and cages for animals. Each of the four towers, each of which have survived, had two cisterns to store perfumed rainwater that could be sprinkled on the spectators. These days the Arena is still in use as a concert venue and has hosted some of the best performers of the day, both classical and modern. The annual Pula Film Festival in July or August takes place in the arena.
Kazuni
The amphitheatre in Pula is truly extra, but there were other round structures in Istria, though a bit smaller: the Kazuni, stone cottages with dome roofs and a small door, serving as shelters for shepherds where they can escape from inclement weather and still keep watch on their flocks and deter the wolves. The little houses used no binding materials, so would have been drafty, might have had a fire inside; the smoke escaping through the stones. They and their cousins have been constructed since pre-historic times. Most kazuni are on private land, but pay a visit to the Kazun Park near Vodnjan, on the road between Rovinj and Pula, Hwy 21, for some nice examples and some semi-constructed ones.
This one is a little too ‘pretty’ for my taste, looks like it was built yesterday.
Now for something completely different: Truffle Hunting. These fungi are rare and as such really expensive found only in certain regions of the world. Croatia and particularly Istria is one of these. Always underground near the roots of oak trees; traditionally pigs were used to find them but these days dogs are preferred as they are easier to control. Pigs go wild for truffles. A good morning’s hunting may yield 2-4 truffles maybe 2-3 inches across. If you’re interested, truffle-hunting companies abound, easy to find – guaranteed a traipse through Istria’s woods, and maybe find a truffle or two to shave onto your breakfast eggs. If however, you want a professional dish, check out the 1-star Michelin restaurant, Zigante in the town of Livade, just a few miles north of Motovun. Have some truffles…with everything…be prepared to pay outrageous prices. Most black truffles found will weigh a couple of ounces, on display is a repro of a gigantic white truffle weighing 1.3 kilos, found near Buje. At the time, as the largest truffle found, it entered the Guinness World Records collection.
It was found by Giancarlo Zigante’s dog, yes the same Zigante. Since then a 1.5 Kg white truffle sold for $300,000.
All of which brings us to Motovun, a majestically situated, picture-perfect hilltop town, just a bit north-east of Porec, in the centre of truffle country. No cars allowed, and quite a trek to the church (where else?) from the parking lot, get there early… and the top of the town still has its walls. Great for wandering its maze of streets, great view from the lookout/restaurant – why not – its lunchtime, have a risotto…with truffles.
Nearby, on the same day, you should visit Groznjan, another medieval hilltown, a center of culture, an artists’ town, that starts to buzz in May and doesn’t stop until the fall. The streets and squares metamorphose into venues for music, dance, drama workshops – an artistic beehive, master classes with experts and well-known teachers. The town is photogenic ‘au but’ (as h*ll), some of the cobbled streets are not only steep, but angled to one side as well!!
Lastly, I should mention Stancija Collis, a winery a bit south-east of Rovinj, where you can taste four different local wines, including the indigenous teran, sample their home grown and pressed olive oil, and taste some, ahhh, donkey milk. In Pula, if you’re interested, there is a museum(?) of Istrian olive oils and, of course, a guided tasting.
And with that, I’ll leave you to go look for some Croatian wines and olive oil in your home town - good luck. Come to Istria, forget Dubrovnik. Dovidenja.
A few more pics:
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