Today is Saturday, September 2, 2023. This is the day when we were able to speak for a short while with Dave, Alison, Erika, and Johnny by phone. We are loving this trip—and—our family is never even a thought away! We were unable to connect with Scott today despite our attempt. Next time, for sure.
Early this morning, we docked in the port of Trieste, Italy. This is the day when those who took a single cruise to Trieste disembark. Their cruise has finished. In their place, new people are boarding for the second cruise from Trieste to Barcelona. Finally, there are those, like us, who are continuing our cruise and therefore spending the day in Trieste on our own or taking an on-shore excursion. The all-aboard is not until 8:30 P.M. Some are going to Venice for the day. Ships can no longer dock in Venice because the traffic is malaffecting their environment. Venice is only a 1.5-hour express boat ride away from Trieste. John and I elected to take an excursion into Slovenia and explore Trieste on our own upon our return from the excursion.
Our tour was partly by bus and partly on foot. We passed Capidistria, the biggest town in Slovenia. It is an important port on the Adriatic Sea because it is the only port for Eastern Europe. Note: Although the Italians call the town Capidistria, the Slovenians call it Koper. We continued through this Teresian region of Europe (named after Maria Teresa of the Hapsburgs of Austria) to the beautiful town of Isola. That warranted a photo stop to see the beautiful countryside at the top of a hill from which we could see the contrast among the bright green vegetation, the blue of the Adriatic, and the Alps in the hazy distance. We continued to the pretty resort town of Piran (Pirano in Italian). It is an important and busy Adriatic port. All cars produced in Europe go through the port of Piran. We were able to walk about the town of Piran with our tour guide to get a flavor of the narrow streets, lack of parking spaces, stone stairs leading to residences and vacation homes, a farmer’s market where local farmers sell their goods to the public in the Piazza of Giuseppe Tartini (a famous 17/18th century violinist whose birth house is also in the Piazza), water bottles at the base of doorways or along the narrow streets (intended for pet owners whose pets urinate against the outside of a building or on the street. The pet owner should then use the water bottles nearby to rinse the pet’s urine from the building or street), the beautiful Church of San Rocco, with a bell tower, perched at the top of a hill—the views of Piran and of the Adriatic from this height were breathtaking, the arched entrance to the city of Piran, showing the influence of the Venetians as evidenced by the sculpted figure of a lion (Florence’s patron is San Marco, who is shown as a lion. The open book the lion holds is a symbol of peace, I.e., enter this city in peace), and the ascents/descents and uneven stone streets and walkways throughout the city. One elderly gentleman from our tour group fell as we walked through the piazza. An ambulance was called, and he was transported to the hospital in nearby Isola. We think he will be fine, but the uneven terrain demands caution from the most sure-footed among us. We saw the walls of the city that were built to keep pirates away from Pirano. There is a lighthouse at the top of Piran today, but in early times people built a fire to signal to mariners that they were approaching land. One is reminded of pyro in English, meaning fire, and its connection to the name Pirano. We also saw a weather vane on a bell tower in city center; again, it featured San Marco (the lion). The residents of Piran pay close attention to the direction of the wind at all times because this region is known to get some winds that are extremely dangerous at times. They study the winds as a way to predict the weather. Whereas Piran is an ancient city, the next town, Porto Rose, was a bustling modern community where beaches, water sports, and resort hotels abound. (Natually, shops, restaurants, and cafes are everywhere tourists might be. This goes without saying). There is even a sand beach that attracts tourists for its rarity in the area, but the sand was imported. It is not a naturally sandy beach. We continued our drive to Padna, a small city atop a tall hill. Along the way, we passed the border between Croatia and Slovenia. Since Jan. 2023, Croatia joined the European Union, so the border is now open. One of the major products of this region is salt. We passed sea salt flats along the road. Squares of land are carved out, and sea water from the Adriatic somehow fills each square. The sun and heat evaporate the water over time, leaving a layer of salt. The salt is harvested, and the rest is history. The muddy earth that remains in each of these squares of land is sent to the spas to be used for mud baths. In Padna, an extended family occupies several houses on a hilltop, and they prepared a tasting opportunity for us, featuring all vegetables, cheese, wines, grappa, herbal tea, fruit jams, truffle pasta, olives, olive oil, garlic spread, prosciutto, bread, soaps, and pies….most of which were hand made/grown by the family itself. Perhaps it was a grandfather who played several instruments as we sampled and walked about to relish the country setting/the overall experience. The “buffet” was arranged for us outdoors, adjacent to an old school that is no longer operational. From there, we headed back to Trieste where our tour began.
The narration from our tour guide was quite informative. Following are some info bytes from what she told us that I can cite herein:
—The land in this part of Slovenia is green—very, very green, due to the climate that never sees snow. Snow does fall on the Alps, but not in coastal areas bathed by the Adriatic Sea.
—Beaches are typically rocky. Sometimes, as in Piran, people stretch out over the rocks and, as the water from the Adriatic rises and washes up ashore, depending on the direction of the wind, those people get wet and bathe that way. The rocks bordering the shore at the Adriatic in Piran are there also to keep sea water from flooding the streets in town. The tour guide joked that in cases of flooding, people can get wet by just lying in the middle of the street, no need to stretch out over the rocks at the shore.
—In Piran, there is an annual sailboat regatta of sail boats that takes place in October. It is called the Barcolana. Given the wind situation in this part of the sea, competitors must know how to read the wind directions and how to navigate in such if they wish to win the race. Last year, a 64-year-old woman from the US surprised everyone and won!
—This part of the Slovenian region (within two hours outside of Trieste) is known for salt production, Illy coffee, Barilla pasta, olive oil, olives (different from those in Greece), garlic, mussels, and truffles. Fruits and vegetables abound.
—Because of the taller peaks, I.e., the Alps, bordering the region, skiing is a favorite competitive and recreational sport. Local skiers have competed in the Olympics.
—Almost everyone has a bike, and because bof the hilly terrain and absence of snow in coastal regions, competitive bicycling is a popular activity/sport. Local cyclists have successfully competed in the major bike races known to take place in this part of Europe.
—Schooling is free.
—Children are required to learn Slovenian and Italian. In high school, they also learn English. As they progress in school, they have the option to learn a fourth language. So, children, by the time they finish high school, know how to speak three different languages!
—In the Padna region, agriculture is a second job—not the primary occupation. Most people work at a primary occupation, plus agriculture or horticulture as a second job.
—We also learned that a yacht docked next to our ship was one of those confiscated from Russian oligarchs by the European Union in admonishment of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I believe this yacht was Andrey Melnichenko’s, and now, it belongs to Trieste.
—There is one priest and ten churches in the Pirano region.
—In Italy, churches close between 12 and four.
—People in Trieste consume more coffee than any other coffee drinkers in Italy. They drink Illy coffee.
—The Trieste/Pirano region is also known for the production of Prosecco.
Back in Trieste, John and I walked about the Piazza dell’Unita, saw the palatial government buildings at the periphery of the open square, saw a bit of the Makers’ Fair that was going on in the Piazza today, watched a bit of a young boys’ animated basketball game, saw the Grande Canale, some of the lovely side streets, the financial district, a beautiful Greek Orthodox Church/San Spiridione, and accomplished our goal of tasting gelato, Trieste pizza, and Illy coffee. John ordered egg plant parmigiana, and I had Pizza Bufala e Praga (pizza with ham and Buffalo mozzarella). The waiter said that this would be the most Triestan pizza on the menu. The be.buffalo mozzarella was almost milky when it arrived at table. The ham was moreso a prosciutto, but more pink….The coffee was served in a tiny cup and accompanied by a tiny 70% cacao dark chocolate square. Although I ordered a macchiato, it tasted rich, thick and…strong to me. John had an iced coffee concoction, served in the same small cup.
Tomorrow is a day at sea. It is also Sunday, and I look forward to Mass aboard our ship!
Our Travels 