Woke up to a beautiful sunny day. When we left our apartment, we were able to see what our place looked like on the outside for the first time. It certainly looks its age and could do with a bit of refurbishment. But as mentioned earlier, the apartment is clean, its very quiet and only half a block from the ocean. We headed into town and spent the day exploring this remarkable jewel of a town.
Rovinj was a very prosperous, well fortified town in the middle ages and was part of the Republic of Venice from the 13th to 18th centuries. So its current architecture, culture and language are strongly Venetian. Rovinj is still a fishing village at heart and has the feel of a real town and not some fancy tourist mecca. Sure there's lots of seafront restaurants and cafes but when you head into the narrow, winding streets there are lot's of skinny houses that are not fancy by any means and many look like they could use a good coat of paint. The original old town was an island that rises from the sea and reaches its pinnacle on top of a hill where its church and bell tower are located. In 1763 the bridge was removed and the canal filled in connecting the town to the mainland.
We had a wonderful day of exploring, having coffee and later drinks along the waterfront before calling it a night. We had picked up some groceries and Rita made a fabulous pasta dinner as we celebrated our 178th monthaversary with some excellent local bubbly before happily heading for bed.
Our kitchen and living room
The outside of our apartment building
Old Town Rovinj from its breakwater harbour
One of the many narrow streets in Rovinj
Four small streets leading into a small square in Old Town Rovinj
Steps leading down to the Adriatic Sea with man made sun bathing decks
St. Euphemia Church built in 1754 with its 190 ft campanile, a replica of St. Marks Bell Tower
Climbing the narrow wooden steps up to the lookout of the 190 ft bell tower is not for the faint of heart
Rovinj was a very prosperous, well fortified town in the middle ages and was part of the Republic of Venice from the 13th to 18th centuries. So its current architecture, culture and language are strongly Venetian. Rovinj is still a fishing village at heart and has the feel of a real town and not some fancy tourist mecca. Sure there's lots of seafront restaurants and cafes but when you head into the narrow, winding streets there are lot's of skinny houses that are not fancy by any means and many look like they could use a good coat of paint. The original old town was an island that rises from the sea and reaches its pinnacle on top of a hill where its church and bell tower are located. In 1763 the bridge was removed and the canal filled in connecting the town to the mainland.
We had a wonderful day of exploring, having coffee and later drinks along the waterfront before calling it a night. We had picked up some groceries and Rita made a fabulous pasta dinner as we celebrated our 178th monthaversary with some excellent local bubbly before happily heading for bed.
The outside of our apartment building
Steps leading down to the Adriatic Sea with man made sun bathing decks
However, the spectacular view of Rovinj and its harbor is well worth the effort
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