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Today was Trieste day. We woke up early having had a bad night. The sounds of the local disco in Sistiana had wafted up from the harbour and disturbed us giving us a fitful night of sleep. Have come to the conclusion with campsites that some you win and some you lose. This one has everything but the boom boom reverberating from the harbour really took the shine off it. Our next door neighbours with child left having got fed up of the music and we moved to another plot further away in the hope of losing the noise. We had to sacrifice our sea view which was painful but we really did not feel inclined to listen to another night of disco music. We chose not to try the internet today as the cost of 12 euros for 4 hours seemed somewhat excessive.
I finally bought a cuffia piscine (a swimming hat to the uninitiated) which I found hidden on the counter in the Spar shop. So I managed to have a swim in the lovely swimming pool. I was informed by the lifeguard that the temperature was 25degrees and it was lovely. I was joined by an elderly
German lady who appreciated the help I gave her to find a cuffia. She declared the experience in the hot sun to be wunderbar. And I totally agreed. We may not have had a common language but gestures and smiles work wonders.
After the breakfast we caught the bus to Trieste and found it an easier alternative than trying to drive. The bus stop was right outside the camp site and the bus arrived on time. Not one minute late nor one minute early. We realised that driving the motorhome cost money for petrol and gave us some difficulties with parking so the buses seem to work better. Whenever we could use public transport we did. Caravanning does have some advantages over motorhoming but it is all about compromise.
The bus was fairly empty and the journey took about 40 minutes. The coast road reminded me of Amalfi with the high cliffs falling down the hillside to one side and a sheer drop to the ocean on the other. The only difference was that the roads here were wider and the drivers seemed less manic than the southern Italians. We passed through pretty little flower filled towns and
villages . We were able to look at at our leisure before arriving at the dull bus station in the city. Not an inspiring first sight of Trieste but then bus stations rarely are that nice.. It was dirty and smelly, diesel fumes everywhere and under coverwhich made it dark and uninviting. It sat close to the harbour which was very much a work a day type of place. None of the small photogenic fishing boats just big boats and tankers plying their trade. A busy harbour.
The city of Trieste lies in northeastern Italy. Situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the blue Adriatic and Italy's border with its neighbour Slovenia. which lies almost immediately south and east of the city.
The architecture as we walked into the city centre became much more grand and would not have looked out of place in Paris or any large cosmopolitan city. Large impressive Baroque buildings, Art Noveau mixed in with roman remains. Large open squares contained within impressive complexes of buildings - the town hall, the commune buildings and the trappings of government. The centre of Trieste appeared to have had a good deal
of money invested in it and it showed. Canals ran through the city to the sea. This was not originally on our Plan A but yet again Plan B came up trumps again.
We sat for a while in the elegant square drinking expressos a habit we have developed from our many visits to Italy and admired the architecture and the laid back life of the towns inhabitants. Mothers, children and grandparents sitting in the square drinking coffee or just idling the time away. Sites you would not see back home in Britain. There were tree lined boulevards worthy of any French city. Quite unexpected and a jewel as usual off the tourist trail. The city was quite empty.
We picked up a street map from the tourist information and walked through the arch in the town hall towards the roman forum and the cathedral. As usual the church had utilized roman building materials in its construction. We walked around the castle which appeared closed for renovations. Strange that many of the places we try to visit are being renovated and are under scaffolding. The view of the town below was beautiful and one of my endearing memories
of Trieste is the bowl of land it lies within encircled by trees and hillside which then become mountains.
Lunch was a rip off but an interesting one. We could not find anywhere to eat and in the end found a bistro in a side street which usually means cheaper prices for food rather than eat in the main square. This cafe specialised in a buffet style lunch made up of cold cuts of meat. We picked this option and shared the plate between us. There were a couple of different sausages, one smoked and the other not, tongue cooked in various ways, pork and some unidentifiable meats. Some were, to be fair quite nice but others not so good and we left them. We paid 19 euros for the pleasure and felt this was ridiculously high for what we were given.
The temperature had dropped slightly in the city due to its proximity to the sea and was a mild 18 degrees. Pleasant for walking. We found the bus station and our bus easily and boarded it ready to come home. It was packed with people carrying cases and heading for the local airport at Ronchi. We came home the same way on the bus. We spent the night drinking wine and generally wasting time filling water tanks, emptying grey water and the toilet cassettes in readiness for our move through Slovenia . I read more of my Poldark series of books. An idyliic life and I am beginning to understand why people go full time motorhoming. Not sure I really want to go back to work.
Wednesday the next day the weather had changed for the worse and any plan of a swim was abandoned as it rained heavily and thundered and lightened all day. It seemed the same type of rain storm as we had at Aquilea. When it rains it seems to bucket down and when it thunders and lightens the sky lights up. We seem to be having extremes of weather – either roasting hot or extremely wet and cold. I know which I prefer although the wet days do give us chance to catch up on chores and formulate where to go next. We had planned to travel through Slovenia and bought our vignette for the motorways. The date of entry though was a day away so had to spend the day doing very little. With hindsight we should have gone early and tried to outrun the stormy weather but then hindsight is a wonderful thing. Sometimes you need days doing nothing to catch your breath.
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Graham Vaughan
non-member comment
Still reading!
Reading your blog has extended our holiday for us. We are back home now but so many things you say remind us of our six weeks. The sites, the facilities, the wine and the mixed weather. Sun, thunderstorms, clouds then sun again. Keep writing, love to hear your views of Slovenia and Croatia. Graham and Dee.