Northern Croatia

Pula Coliseum, Northern Croatia

Did you know that Rome is not the only city in Europe with a Roman Coliseum? Pula in Croatia isn’t either, but it has a very impressive and very well-preserved one. It still has its four side towers intact which is pretty impressive when you think it was constructed between 27BC and 68AD. The towers had cisterns filled with perfumed water, feeding a fountain and also sprinkling the spectators (ancient air conditioning?) who were also protected from, sun wind, and rain by velaria (large sails).

Some of the underground passageways built along its axis where the gladiators and animals were ‘stored’, were open and it was possible to imagine the shops built into the underside of the raked seating. Under the arena, there is also an arrangement of canals for collecting waste and rainwater and channeling it to the ocean pretty much across the road.

This stadium was part of the circuit of the gladiators. When we visited there were only a handful of people and a little sausage dog. Amazing to stand in the middle of the arena, imagining what it was like way back then.

I think one of the reasons the arena is now so well cared for is because it is still used as a performance venue by (appropriately) Foo Fighters and others such as Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, Jose Carreras, (aka collectively the three tenors) Anastacia, Sinéad O’Connor, Elton John, Sting, Michael Bolton, Seal, Il Divo, and Tom Jones. It has a capacity of about 5000 spectators and also hosts operas, ballets, and sports competitions as well as the Pula Film Festival.

Pula City

PULA According to legend, Pula was founded 3,000 years ago but didn’t really have any importance till 1000 years later 1st to 3rd Century during the Roman Imperial Period (and I think I’m old). Anyway, it was during this period that the greatest classic monuments were built in this city. These buildings survived pretty well, up until WW2 when Pula was badly bombed by the allied forces.

City Markets was the first place we visited and not intentionally, lost as usual. Left our car at the first car park we found and then stumbled into the old town through the city markets. It was on our list though.

The Triumphal Arch of the Sergi was the first impressive 1st Century BC monument we encountered as we walked out of the markets towards the old town. This gate was erected by Salvia Postuma Sergi with her own money in honor of three members of her family who held important positions in Pula at that time. It has attracted the attention of famous artists, especially Italian ones, such as the great Michelangelo and also the Irish writer James Joyce whose bronze replica graces its own corner of the Caffe bar Uliks beside the Arch. Apparently, Joyce wasn’t impressed by the Pula winter and didn’t stick around for long, but the cafe has claimed him. Dante Alighieri, the world-famous writer (I’ve read all his books – ahem), mentions Pula in his works.

Twin Gates was built around the same time at the other end of the old town we thought was also impressive but doesn’t have a lot said about it for some reason. But this is where we found the tunnels.

Austro-Hungarian legacy (the Tunnels)

Below Pula is an underground tunnel world stretching almost across the entire city, known as Zerostrasse. Pula’s underground tunnels were erected during WW1 to provide shelter for people in case of air raids. The tunnel system consisted of shelters, trenches, galleries, and passages, as well as ammunition storage and communication passages.

The Roman Forum.

There were originally three temples built in the city square. The first large temple from Rome’s republican era, a temple dedicated to Augustus and Rome. Then came two identical temples built on either side. Only the central temple survived and as you can see in remarkably good condition. However, the rear of the buildings are still original, and the buildings have been reconstructed and repurposed as government administration buildings.

Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The cathedral was built on the site where early Christians gathered during the time of their persecution (until the 4th century). It was enlarged up until the 5th century to assume its present-day shape.

Pula Castle “Kaštel” is an old fortress built by the Venetians, situated on a hill in the center of Pula. It was built between 1630 and 1633, based on a design by a French military engineer (with an Italian name?) Antonio De Villa. Interestingly the shape from above was designed to resemble a flower. It was an important defensive point for Venetian control of the Adriatic in its time.

The Castle was upgraded several times. In Austrian-Hungarian times (18th-19th), the fortress received new armament, a penitentiary, and a guardhouse. After the end of World War I, the castle had lost its strategic significance. And today there are interesting displays, including a pictorial rundown of the region.

The Monastery and Church of St. Francis in Pula. The Franciscans came to Pula immediately after St. Francis founded the Franciscan Order, with the consent of Pope Innocent III, in 1209.

Koversada Island Camping, Naturist.

Did you know… if you want to let it all hang out, there is a special idyllic location in Croatia just for you: “Camping Koversada Naturist”.

It started over 60 years ago in 1961 and is said to be the first in Europe. And it is HUGE. More than 5000 people can practice naturism (aka go about nude) there, but only in the summer holiday season, which meant we got to look around. It is next door to the camping site we are currently in, (Porto Sol), and owned by the same group. We didn’t know it was a naturist campsite till we turned left towards a little island and cove instead of right into the village-township of Vsrar. Coming across a gate which we’d seen other people skirt around on the verge down to the water, we followed suit, and read the sign. And… they have The Best Spot. Beautiful mix of landscaped and natural settings, lovely little beach areas AND their own private island, accessible by a concrete causeway which is only for tents and glamping. Loads of facilities for summer fun, volleyball, bicycle paths, mini-golf, tennis anyone??? I’m trying (not) to imagine it There are restaurants, bars and cafes and a supermarket. All of which made us wonder if there were any rules or protocols… so we googled it and here they are:

1. Always carry a towel to sit on in public places such as cafes, bars, and restaurants.

2. Never stare.

3. Staff are usually naturists themselves but wear clothes while on duty.

4. No photos videos or drones.

5. Singles are not usually accepted.

6. Don’t forget to wear sunscreen.

We had a great wander around (in our clothes… because it’s only the start of spring and too early to shed the tracky pants and parkas… no other reason)

Here’s their web page if you want to check it out, the pics are great: https://adriacamps.com/…/naturist-camping-koversada/

Medulin

Travel is not all about new adventures and new places, it also can be very stressful.

Did I tell you about the time when we let our (slightly antiquated) car GPS takes us through a medieval village in Italy with streets that were built for a horse and cart instead of a five-metre car towing an eight-metre caravan up a oneway street with cars parked on either side? The local shoppers and shopkeepers who came out to watch our precarious progress were either aghast or agog and we weren’t feeling all that comfortable either, and hoping to goodness that we’d be able to make the turn at the end of the street to get back to a main road. Using Google Maps now to check out the roads.

Why are you using an antiquated car GPS??? Well, you might ask. And that’s another story…

In the meantime, we are in Croatia and even in winter, we’ve found it pleasant enough to explore the historical old towns interspersed along the forever coastline. Today we arrived in the town of Medulin and set up basecamp at Arena Kažela Campsite just outside the town. We chose this site for its location near Pula and the Cape Kamenjak national park. The trip up from Krk Island was (thankfully) uneventful, sticking to the motorways. Most campsites are closed during the off-season but fortunately for us, some are open.

Vrsar

We planned to stop in Vrsar until Fabian updated her book following some really useful feedback. For anyone who’s read it or has already bought it, the story hasn’t changed – just some of the words (and some of the typos – oops). It was an intensive month and while Fabian was occupied with that, I started looking at how best to market the book and also do some repairs to the caravan, lots to do.

Did you know that Vrsar not only has this picturesque marina but is also surrounded by cafes and restaurants and also an old hillside town, Yes, wouldn’t you know it… another old town (see next post). There are lots of vineyards surrounding the town where we could buy great wines directly from the vat. Of course, it’s obligatory to taste first, before filling your one two or three-liter bottles. So what a great time we had in Vasar. They also sell local Istrian truffles and sauces and olive oils. The harbour-port area of Vrsar is also a staging place for summer sailors. The marina is full of quite large charter yachts as well as some small to very large private luxury motor launches. Of course, there is also a mix of local tourist sightseeing vessels that will take you out fishing or visiting offshore islands and small towns along the coast.

Did I tell you about the time we were held at immigration coming into Croatia from Montenegro?

As you know, we usually plan each journey, the route, and what to expect along the way, but from time to time the pennies don’t fall into place and for some reason, the customs and immigration people at the border decided we might be dodgy and they should inspect the caravan. All would have been well, but she wanted us to maneuver into the tight space designated for inspections. In hindsight, I should have pointed out a safer option, but you don’t really want to start saying no to a border official do you? Well, I didn’t, and on my way into the spot she was pointing at I scraped the paint off one of the stand-alone monitoring cameras and almost scratched the caravan.

Five or so uniformed officials checked the camera was still working and we thought that would be the end of it, but we were mistaken. We were told we had to wait for ‘my colleague’ to investigate. Not that we could go anywhere as they had our passports.

We wondered who and when this person would materialise and whether we would arrive before the campsite was closed for the night and the 70knot winds expected would hold off for us.

Close to three hours later a van with police markings sped into the parking area and a friendly traffic officer got out his laptop to complete the traffic incident report (what incident???). Again… not about to argue the point, and we had to follow him up the road for about 5 minutes to a service area. Where we could also withdraw the cash-only fine payment of 160 euros and after waving him off, headed for the duty-free where I decided a Tullamore Dew might be needed for my frayed nerves.

We made it to the campsite before closing – JUST. But they’d lit a fire for us in the main restaurant area, so after finding a spot out of the wind which had started making its presence well and truly known, we headed for the warmth and the whiskey and had beans on toast and an early-ish night.

Vrsar, Old Town

Did you know, that the hilltop town of Vrsar in Istria, (northern Croatia) was the home (at least for a while) of the famous romancer Casanova?

His full name was Giacomo Girolamo Casanova born in Venice, Italy (1725 – 1798). He was an Italian adventurer and author. His autobiography aptly called The Story of My Life has become a go-to for authentic information about 18th-century European social life. Probably not as good a read as “The Outing” Link https://amzn.to/3Llr0If

But back to Casanova. He has quite a reputation but I prefer not to accept labels such as scammer or womanizer because they imply we share the same standards as he did several hundred years later. I would however agree that he lived larger than life, and I think it’s amazing that his manuscript survived a direct hit during WW2 so that we can have a glimpse at what that life was like. Oh – I forgot to mention, he was one of the only people to ever break out of the prison at the Doge’s palace, he mixed with loads of famous people, invented the lottery in Paris and was among other things, a librarian.

I’m not sure how long he stayed in Vrsar, which in those days, was part of the Republic of Venice (1420-1797). Then the French had a turn, till 1814 when the Austrian Empire took over from Napoleon. Then about a hundred years later, in 1915 the Austrians had to give it back to Italy, who had it till it became part of Yugoslavia in 1947. It finally became the Republic of Croatia in 1991.

Camping Porto Sole in Vrsar

So what’s present-day camping all about? Past perceptions mean we all have a mix of positive and negative ideas about caravanning. Being Irish, my initial experience with this mode of travel or lifestyle started with the gypsy or tinkers. They pitched their caravans by the side of the road where (as my mother said ), they created an ‘ungodly mess’. The men looked after the horses and collected and sold scrap metal while the women went door to door begging, and sometimes resorting to theft when that didn’t work. Not a great first impression.

And did you know that the word caravan came from the Persian word karwan meaning camel. The word was used to describe groups of people and animals that travelled along the Silk Road, a network of trade routes that connected Asia, North Africa, and Europe.

The world’s first leisure trailer was built in 1880 for William Gordon Stables, a popular author of teenage adventure fiction, who ordered a “gentleman’s caravan”. It was a two-ton, 18-foot (5.5 m) horsedrawn home on wheels, which he called Wanderer, and he wandered around the British countryside in it. In 1885 he wrote The Gentleman Gypsy, a book about his travels. The Duke of Newcastle was taken with the idea and commissioned his own caravan and called it the Bohemian.

Seemingly caravans attracted both the gentry and the tinkers.

[Not sure where we fit.]

Our caravan is a Sterling Eccles twin axle and would you believe that the Swift Eccles story began back in 1913 when a guy called Riley built himself a motor caravan on the chassis of a 1909 Sunbeam Talbot. Not sure if this was a caravan or a motorhome? Anyway…

Leading on from this the middle classes took up caravanning in the 1920s & 30s. Families had the time and the money (and the car) to take a caravanning holiday. Mostly, people would set up camp wherever they pleased, but official caravan sites also popped up during this time. Then along came WW2. Many caravan manufacturers collapsed. Even in the years following, petrol rations and nation rebuilding pushed caravan holidays to the back of most minds.

Well, that’s all about the history. Today Swift Eccles caravans can cost up to 50,000 GBP ($AUD100,000), and Motorhomes start at around the same but can peak at 500,000 GBP ($AUD1,000,000). Thinking now… we must be closer to the tinker end of the scale.

To cater for the growing number of caravans and motor homes on the road and the expectations of the people in them, campsites have had to update and modernize their facilities. Some today have changed from campsites to Premium Camping Resorts with everything including dishwashers and underfloor heating in the bathrooms. In Vrsar (Croatia) we resorted (??) for five weeks at Maistra Camping Porto Sole https://www.maistra.com/properties/campsite-porto-sole/#/. Check them out. They also have log cabins, apartments, and villas so could be a holiday idea? There are also quite a few others close by.

Rovinj

Did you Know… That after Dubrovnik, Rovinj is the most popular town with visitors in Croatia. I’m so glad we made it there on our last stop heading north to Ljubljana, Slovenia.

The history bit: Rovinj was established in mid-200 AD by Venetian tribes before the Romans took control then the Byzantines and all the usual others followed. More recently it was part of the Austrian empire, then the Italians had a go, till after WW2 when it became part of Yugoslavia. Finally 1991 the sovereign Republic of Croatia (and yes I’m definitely repeating myself).

In the 18th Century, the canal separating the island of Rovinj from the mainland was filled in.

During our visit, we walked around and through the old town and up to the town centerpiece, the Cathedral of St. Euphemia. St Euphemia was arrested, like many women, for not doing as she was told. Except in her case, it didn’t end with the lions deciding unanimously not to eat her body. Preserved in her sarcophagus (big heavy stone casket) it was safe until the arrival of the Iconoclasts (people who didn’t like Christians and were set on destroying their icons around 800). The story goes that the sarcophagus floated, coming ashore at Rovinj where her miraculous power was well and truly recognised when the only person who could move it, to the top of the hill no less, was a child and his two cows. That’s where it now sits inside the cathedral which was built in the early 1700s over the remains of the older, early Christian structure.

We saw it… and we’re convinced. Definitely a miracle.