Saturday, October 13
My tennis coach, Vanya, from Belgrade has been following our travels and has offered us all kinds of advice on things to do and places to see in Croatia. Today he arranged for us to meet someone he knows who lives in the area. We met him at the “James Joyce” cafe.
We actually met up with Tim, Mario, Petra, Dragana and Vanya’s uncle, Igor. They joined us for coffee and presented us with a bag containing olive oil that they produce. It was interesting to chat with them about their lives in Pula. They gave us some great advice on things to do and restaurants to visit. Unfortunately, they had a prior engagement so we were only able to visit with them for a short time. They were charming and amusing. We wish we’d had the opportunity to get to know them better.
We were anxious to get home and try our new olive oil but first we had to stop at the market and get MORE SHRIMP. We had to have our daily fix. Yes, we’re developing a habit. This time we went straight to the booth that we bought from the day before; they had the best we’ve had in a long time.
When we got back to our apartment we realized that we received not one but two HUGE bottles of olive oil and a pomegranate to boot. We poured some of the oil out onto a spoon to taste. It had a dark rich color, a bright, fruity taste and a peppery finish. We liked it a lot. We used it to dress our salad that afternoon. We’ve got a lot of oil now so we’re going to have to come up with some creative ways to cook with it. Traveling is a bitch 😉.
(Istrian Olive Oil)
We spent the rest of the day tracking down all of the sites that were still on our list of things to do. Our first stop was the Roman mosaics near the Chapel of Saint Maria Formose. After the bombings in World War II the remains of some old Roman era houses with intricate mosaic floors were found near the center of town. One of the most impressive was fully excavated and can be found in the back on a modern day parking lot more than six feet below ground level. The mosaic features a depiction of “The Punishment of Dirce”. Dirce is a character from Greek Mythology and is featured in Euripides play Antiope.
(The Punishment of Dirce)
On our way to see the Small Roman Theater we stopped to visit the Sacred Hearts Museum Gallery. The gallery is hosted in the former Church of Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary from 1908. The gallery was featuring an exhibit on Prehistoric Croatia. It was a small gallery with few authentic artifacts but it was free and did have some interesting narratives.
Before we got to the Small Roman Theater we ran into another item on our list: The Church and Monastery of Saint Francis. We entered into the cloister where they had ancient artifacts on display from the 13th century. We had fun watching several tortoises “frolicking” in the garden. Inside the church we saw the famous Gothic style wooden altarpiece from the 15th century. The fee for entry was 9 KN / $1.50 per person.
(15th Century Altarpiece)
After all that we finally made it to the theater. It’s an outdoor theater carved into the side of a hill that, in its day, could seat the entire population of Pula (about 5,000 people). It was built in the first century AD. The stage area and some of the lower level seats are intact but most of the rest is in ruins. It was fun to walk along the ancient pathways and discover the remains of the various arches and columns that have been excavated. It’s a charming place to spend a few hours. There is no fee to visit.
(Small Roman Theater)
There’s a path that leads from stage right to the top of the hill from which you can access the Venetian Fortress / Maritime Museum of Istria more often referred to simply as “The Castle”. We climbed up through the rocky path and visited the museum. It’s not really a museum in the traditional sense of the word. It’s really just an opportunity to explore the fortress. There’s a lookout tower that you can climb and some cannons to see but the main attraction is really just the view. It overlooks the harbor and commands a 360 degree view of Pula. Cost of entry: 20 KN / $3.25 per person.
(View from the Moat)
Distance walked: 4.9 miles