The map for reference.
Leaving Zagreb I snapped a couple shots of mundane parts of the city and surrounding area on our way to Opatija.
Signs of the earthquake on outlying buildings
Plastered facades suffered
Lunch stop statue
We saw very few campers of any size, or camping possibilities for that matter. However, in the lunch area parking lot were 2 monsters from Slovakia so there must be some options.
We passed a ski mountain near the port city of Rijeka. There are 3 large ski areas in Croatia, (one near Zagreb). With global warming, ski areas are having a difficult time keeping enough snow to ski on.
We stopped near Rijeka for a pasta making lesson. Brutalist architectural buildings are still standing. Rijeka is the third largest city.
Located at the very north end of the Adriatic Sea, just south of Trieste, Italy, lies the small resort town of Opatija. Because of its mild Mediterranean climate, it has long been a holiday destination for European aristocrats, dignitaries of all flavors and artists. Grand hotels and villas dot the shoreline and hillsides. There is a 12 km-long promenade along the entire riviera. The coastline to the north and south of Opatija is rocky, no sandy beaches here.
Opatija from the highway above town.
The oldest hotel, Kvarner, along the promenade.
Kids playing like kids everywhere. English is rarely heard.
Historic buildings front the scenic promenade
Villa Amalia stands out among the historic buildings. During its prime, it was a favorite destination for European nobility .
Disturbing fountain
Agapanthus flowers were all in bloom
The town’s modern history began in 1844, when a wealthy merchant built the Villa Angiolina manor in an extended park, still there today.
The town park Angiolina contains many species of plants from all over the world. It has been protected since 1968.
Near the park is an art wall featuring famous people from all over the world.
Even some American actors are included. DeNiro is next to Vladimir Nabokov.
Looking out from the promenade; Opatija harbor. Hotels and restaurants line the waterfront.
The little harbor where boatmen with their small row boats formerly picked up tourists and rowed them around the Riviera. Not a row boat in sight these days.
I just thought this little tub was funny.
Children’s water playground with a trucked-in sand beach.
Opatija is known for its Maiden with the Seagull, a statue by Zvonko Car (1956), which stands on a promontory near the promenade. It is the iconic symbol of the town, much like the little mermaid is in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Croats began settling the region in the first century. Opatija means abbey. The town was first mentioned in 1453 when it was built around a Benedictine abbey. In 1873 an Austrian Railway company opened a branch line close to Opatija. In 1882, the director of the railway started the construction of the Kvarner Hotel and the Hotel Imperial where we stayed. Tourists began arriving in large numbers thereafter.
The red carpet entrance to the Hotel Imperial
The original, elegant ballroom is now the restaurant.
At every meal, Brahms was playing over the sound system, evoking visions of dancers waltzing in their finery.
View of the town from our hotel balcony.
View from the balcony looking the other way.
One afternoon we passed up the optional tour and wandered up to see the cathedral under the turquoise dome. The neo-Romanesque Church of the Annunciation was designed in 1906 by architect Karl Seidl. The interior is strangely stark, very unlike the glitz of other cathedrals. After the walk we bobbed around in the strangely warm and ultra-salty upper Adriatic. There are few seagulls because the warm water is so low in oxygen there aren’t many fish. Other than many swifts swirling by our hotel window, we saw very few birds.
The street to the cathedral.
Church of the Annunciation; our goal.
Imposing entrance to the cathedral
The stained glass windows from 1913 are the only color in the nave.
The interior is all brick with very little adornment.
The simple crucifix above the altar.
There are interesting gardens across this main street, but we went swimming instead of investigating. The highway above is where the next photo is taken from.
Opatija is surrounded by woods of pine, other evergreens, and bay laurel. The peak behind the town is 4,596 ft. That would be the place to go to find relief from the sweltering summer heat.
On the way to our next stop we stopped at the Postonja Cave, a 15.12 mile-long limestone/karst cave system in southwestern Slovenia. It is the second-longest cave system in the country. Apparently, Slovenia is riddled with caves. Only about 3.3 miles of the cave system are open to the public.
While waiting for the train to take the next hundred passengers into the cave, a local group, in costume, entertains the tourists.
A large cavern visible from the path. They hustle tourists through, no dawdling.
Stalactites…
…and stalagmites.
Postonja’s large cavern. (A plug for our Carlsbad Caverns in the USA. They are even grander)
Electric lights were added in 1884, preceding even the capital city of Ljubljana. Interesting little trivia, in WWII, Germans used the cave to store 1,000 barrels of aircraft fuel, which were destroyed by Slovene partisans. The fire burned for seven days, destroying a large section of the cave. The destruction is no longer visible to tourists.
There were a gristmill and a sawmill on site from the 16th century. The rebuilt mill was abandoned in 1972 after another big flood. The cave company owns it now and keeps it open as an historic attraction.
The cave’s endemic animal star; Proteus anguinus, is a blind salamander. Photo from Wikipedia.
The blind cave salamander is Postojna cave’s famous inhabitant. (tourists don’t see them except in a tank, if one is lucky). It has evolved in complete darkness. While the eyes are undeveloped, its smell and hearing are acute. The pale skin and regressed eyes are sensitive to light, and the salamander will swim away from it. They exhibit neoteny; retaining external gills into adulthood.
Enough for this post, for the grande finale, we go to the capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana. (pronounced Lube-liana)