Italy 106 - Miramare a Disney castle , that bloody wind which howls and seasonally british weather

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My knee seems fine Hallelujah . It hurts but not enough to put me out of business. So it’s a saying that comes to mind again. Ripping todays thought of the day off the calendar Thich Nhat Hahn said “Waking up this morning I smile. Twenty four brand new hours before me. I vow to live it fully in each moment . Bad knee and bruising or not – it’s Miramare or bust. Glenn has always wanted to see this castle but never quite made it. It is not the easiest in a motorhome to get to so we knew we needed the bus/buses. We managed to purchase a ticket from Sistiana Camping Mare Pinea to the nearest stop to the castle . This still meant a 20 minute walk for Hopalong Cassidy. I had to go across the road to the restaurant to buy the ticket from Miramare to Trieste and the one back. The work of fiction that is the weather got it right again. It is cold and chilly with rain. Unseasonable for Italy. The bad weather has followed us up to now wherever we go. We are now on the edge of the country bordering on Slovenia. Last night we had adreadful meal of Scallopina Milanese which sounds more exotic than it actually is. The wine half a litre was fine but we had to pay for bread and cover, a pork dish that tasted like reconstituted cardboard and frozen chips. Hardly haute cuisine and a poor show and expensive compared to our asparagus feast of the night before. Still it filled a hole . I am living the meal fully to the best of my ability.

The ride to Miramare was eventful in that the bus turned up on time. I asked the driver to tell us where to get off and he ignored me. The only words he said apparently were Italian for get going. He was in a hurry and was not going to help two lost Britons. He drove at breakneck speed. Italian bus drivers hate being asked things at times, ,they hate having to sell tickets and take money and can be quite rude. He was that rude type you do come across. We tried to count stops. Impossible as he didn’t stop at every stop. In the end we guessed and got up. We are still smiling and are going to enjoy our day whatever.

I asked another lady getting off if it was the right stop and she said yes pointing us in the general direction . 10 minutes walking later we came to a nearer bus stop although we could not tell if it was one number 51 would stop at . The walk to the castle e was worth the effort . It sits on the headland overlooking the Golfo Trieste and Slovenia . So what can we say about it. The castello di Maramare was built on the Gulf of Triese between 1856 and 1860 for the Austrian Archduck Ferdinand Maxiimillian and his wife Charlotte of Belgium,. Designed by Carl Junker the plans of the castle we later saw on our tour. The castle's grounds include an extensive cliff and seashore park of 22 hectares (54 acres) designed by the archduke. The grounds were completely re-landscaped to feature numerous tropical species of trees and plants. What a lovely site it is too. I would give a fortune to live in a place like this with fantastic views of the sea to all directions. It was heaven even though the weather was far from kind to us. The castle looked like a cross between a Disney creation and a schloss in Germany. Fairytale in every direction. I offered my 50 euro note to pay for our two tickets at 8 euros each. No discounts here unless you are under 25 and even if we tried we would fail miserably. The machine bleeped and the counter clerk gave us the note back and asked for another . Had we got a bum note? The second one failed the test and was handed back. We began to wonder how two notes from a bank could be counterfeit . Ah well some soul will take them.



On entering there is a huge mahogany staircase with knights carved into the ballastrades. Armour on the walls in a sort of Scottish baronial style. Each room was full of wood. The walls panelled in oak and mahogany. The furniture inlaid wooden tables and chairs. A library rich in oak panelling. Hammer beam ceilings in baronial halls. Paintings some exotic featuring the interest of the east and the orient which had fascinated the owner ..The library, whose walls are lined with bookshelves and the rooms of the Archduchess with their tapestry of light-blue silk. All the rooms still feature the original furnishings, ornaments, furniture and objects dating back to the middle of the 19th century. Many coats of arms of the Second Mexican Empire decorate the castle, as well as stone ornamentations on the exterior depicting the Aztec Eagle.

We found ourselves taking a large intake of breath as fantastic room followed fantastic room A Chapel to die for. Everywhere you looked fantastic views over the sea. There was a throne room , guest reception rooms and magnificent panelling including hammer beams . Chinese and Japanese drawing rooms and paintings covering every available space.

There was however a complete change in one part of the castle which was plainly decorated in a 1930's art deco style. None of the heavy wood nor the paintings just comfortable utilitarian chairs and tables and white walls . The one time home of a relative reflected the changes from heavy 19th century decoration to the decorations of the 20th century. There was though the stench of oppulence everywhere you looked.

The gardens were pretty in a plain sort of way. Wisteria hanging from pergolas and from trees. Statuary and steps down to the waters edge. As we left we wondered if anything would compare and concluded perhaps the Burges built Castell Coch and Cardiff Castle for Lord Bute and his ancestral home on Bute again built and designed by Burges. This was fascinated and if you ever pass this way go and look at it . For once it is well worth the entrance fee.

We enquired how to get into Trieste. A fifteen minute walk and a bus number 6. We are heading for the electrical shop no doubt here run by the chinese, we need a coffee and we want to try and go up the old tram. There is still much to see in Trieste.

Shame about the wind which seems to be howling off the sea. The cold too is very unseasonable . Still it is better sitting here than working .

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Artsy
Love these kinds of photos. Very nice.

[JenGog]

PHOTOS
Thankyou.