Pula
Well shall I pretend that I've never stopped posting or shall I say something? I'll go for the former! :-)
I'm in Italy at my parents' but only 3 weeks ago we were both in Istria.
It was a surprise trip for Adrian's birthday and he only found out that the destination was Pula at the boarding gate at Gatwick.
It turned out to be a good choice because the weather was glorious for most of the week, and we both loved it.
Adrian had been before when we was a child, although he doesn't think he had visited Pula then.
The hotel I booked was near the Roman Arena and so we had a look around after having a pizza (it was a late afternoon flight from London).
Sunday was spent walking around town.
The Arena is the 6th largest surviving Roman amphitheatre and arguably the city star attraction:
After the visit, we walked along the harbour
to the cathedral
and the main square, which stands on the site of the Roman forum.
Here we saw the temple of Augustus (blown to smithereens in WWII but painstakingly reconstructed), the town hall (which incorporates part of another Roman) temple... and a few vintage cars.
(I learned to drive in one of these! A Fiat 850)
We had a restorative drink at a cafe' in the square and then carried on 'exploring'.
We looked at a Roman mosaic,
admired the Roman arch of the Sergii
and then climbed up to the castle/fortress
which owns much of its present appearance to the Venetians.
From here there are great views of the city.
We visited the museum
then I climbed the tower
Next stop was the Franciscan monastery
before taking in another couple of Roman gates
On the way back to the hotel we stopped for an aperitivo
After a rest, we were out to watch the Lighting Giants, Pula's newest attraction: the giant cranes in the shipyard are lit up in a variety of colours.
followed by dinner at a restaurant at the back of the townhall
It was lovely to be able to eat outside at the end of September!
On the way back, we stopped by this fountain
near the Arena
The following morning we left Pula and picked up a car at the airport and drove to Rovinj, stopped at a few place on the way.
I'm in Italy at my parents' but only 3 weeks ago we were both in Istria.
It was a surprise trip for Adrian's birthday and he only found out that the destination was Pula at the boarding gate at Gatwick.
It turned out to be a good choice because the weather was glorious for most of the week, and we both loved it.
Adrian had been before when we was a child, although he doesn't think he had visited Pula then.
The hotel I booked was near the Roman Arena and so we had a look around after having a pizza (it was a late afternoon flight from London).
Sunday was spent walking around town.
The Arena is the 6th largest surviving Roman amphitheatre and arguably the city star attraction:
After the visit, we walked along the harbour
to the cathedral
and the main square, which stands on the site of the Roman forum.
Here we saw the temple of Augustus (blown to smithereens in WWII but painstakingly reconstructed), the town hall (which incorporates part of another Roman) temple... and a few vintage cars.
(I learned to drive in one of these! A Fiat 850)
We had a restorative drink at a cafe' in the square and then carried on 'exploring'.
We looked at a Roman mosaic,
admired the Roman arch of the Sergii
and then climbed up to the castle/fortress
which owns much of its present appearance to the Venetians.
From here there are great views of the city.
We visited the museum
then I climbed the tower
Next stop was the Franciscan monastery
before taking in another couple of Roman gates
On the way back to the hotel we stopped for an aperitivo
After a rest, we were out to watch the Lighting Giants, Pula's newest attraction: the giant cranes in the shipyard are lit up in a variety of colours.
followed by dinner at a restaurant at the back of the townhall
It was lovely to be able to eat outside at the end of September!
On the way back, we stopped by this fountain
near the Arena
The following morning we left Pula and picked up a car at the airport and drove to Rovinj, stopped at a few place on the way.