Venezia – last few hours in Italy

Today is our last day of this wonderful 4 week trip. We are staying in Mestre, on the mainland to Venice and not too far from the airport we will be flying out of. We walked through the tiny Calle and bridges over canals in the late afternoon, very much enjoying just wandering through the quieter places and stopping for an obligatory Aperol spritz and cichetti (snack) at a Bacaro (bar).

In the evening we caught up with friends from Australia who are visiting Venice and went for a lovely meal to La Mascherata, a restaurant near Santa Maria Formosa. The dinner finished up with a round of grappa from the Veneto region. We laughed over the fact that my uncle in Monfalcone had told us that veneziani xe tuti ladri e comunisti (Venetians are all thieves and communists)!

I am very much enjoying reliving this trip through the photos I have posted on this blog. We are now (not) looking forward to the long journey back home. Thank you for reading the posts and I hope you have enjoyed the photos and memories I have shared. Arrivederci until the next trip!

Drive back to Friuli Venezia Giulia – Umago, Aquileia, Udine and more

We left Pola on Tuesday and drove back to FVG in Italy via Umago, a seaside town on the border of Croatia and Slovenia. It was a lovely sunny day and we had lunch by the water.

On the way back to Monfalcone, we took a brief trip down to Grado so I could eat my favorite peach and basil icecream. This is the third trip I have managed a visit to the same Gelateria for this same flavor of icecream! We watched the sun set over the waterfront.

We settled back into Zio Mario’s place that evening and planned for our sight-seeing in Friuli for the following days as we had to return the car on the Thursday evening. Highlights of our two days around FVG were:

(1) Palmanova – a nine-pointed star shaped fortress city. It looks amazing from the air (check Wikipedia for an image) and you could sort of make out the shape it out from walking around the piazza, which is in the centre of the star.

(2) San Daniele del Friuli – the tiny town where the famous San Daniele prosciutto is made.

(3) Udine – the capital of one of the provinces of FVG and now my favorite city of FVG. Piazza Matteotti was especially beautiful.

(4) Aquileia – which is only a 20 minute drive from Monfalcone and was once one of the major cities of the Roman Empire. It is tiny now has an archeological museum which contains a wealth of fragments, tiny pots, jewelry and other artifacts of Roman life. The church has some of the best mosaics I have seen. We climbed up the church bell tower and had a good around – you could see the hills of Friuli, the Adriatic and even Venezia in the distance.

We took our little Fiat 500L to the car wash (you can’t see Mark waving “ciao” from the car in the photo ) for a good scrub after 800km of travel and sadly
dropped it off.

After a tearful farewell from family, we left Monfalcone by train on the Friday headed for Mestre, just outside of Venezia for our last night in Italy.

Pola and Rovigno – last days in Istria

A problem of seeing so many towns in Istria is that one is prettier than the next. I had thought that Grisignano was my favorite, then it was Parenzo. Now it is definitely Rovigno, which we stopped at for lunch on the way to Pola yesterday. The port was like a massive boat parking lot and made a beautiful foreground to the colourful houses and the church perched up on the hill.

Winding up the hill, the houses were less colourful but there were lots of shops of artisans. I bought a lovely marble bowl – it weighs at least 4 kg- the marble is from a quarry between Spalato and Dubrovnic just down the coast a bit. We have not quite figured how we will get it back home…..

We arrived in Pola late afternoon to a lovely apartment right in the centre near the Arch of Sergei. Pola has an incredible history under the Romans in particular during the time of Emperor Augustus. The arena, which is one street from where my father used to live, is still in amazing condition and hosts films festivals and music concerts. We went to the museum in the arena and I finally found out why old urns for oil and wine (like the Romans used) had a pointy end – so that it could stand firm in the sand or ground.

We visited the old market, which I adore and I like to imagine my father visiting it with his mother in the 1930s. We went to see the primary school my father went to in the late 1920s/early 1930s and the house my father lived in. It has, somewhat disturbingly, been turned into a Reforming Adventist church. I wonder what papà would think (old photo taken by my father in the 1980s) – I don’t think the reformed Adventist drink much (possibly any) wine…

We caught up with my friend Ksenia and her husband Tomiza who took us to a fantastic seafood restaurant (more about that in my food blog post, click here). Then we went for a walk along the promontory at the tip of the Istrian peninsula. The beaches are beautiful here – I would love to come back for a beach holiday. The water is so clear and there is a smell of pine trees.

Last leg of trip – driving back to Friuli Venezia Giulia.

Montona d’Istria and road trips to seaside towns of Parenzo and Cittanova

Yesterday we spent the entire day in Montona, wandering and exploring the narrow streets and marveling at the views of the magnificent Istrian countryside. We found a viewing deck out of town and were able to see what it looks like, perched atop the hill.

We bought some beautiful tiny original drypoint prints of Istria. The vendor was so happy with the sale she gave us a free bottle of local Malvasia wine as well as a discount. I told her my father was from Istria and we spoke in Italian. Most townsfolk over 40 prefer to speak Italian; the younger ones speak English.

We had a picnic lunch on the terrace and got to know our little cat, La Marchessa di Montona (or so we christened her), feeding her scraps of prosciutto and local cheese. She has two tiny kittens, one black and one white, who she is still feeding but both are quite camera shy. There was a para glider in the sky whilst we were eating. What an amazing view for him!

Today we drove around the countryside and ended up by the sea. Highlights included visits to:

(1) Cittanova – the water was divine – we wished we had brought our bathers to have a dip in the Adriatic Sea. It was so blue and clear. The township had many colourful houses and narrow streets hidden by the walls of the old fortress.

(2) Parenzo – there was a festival on when we arrived, an historical event called Giostra, and many locals were dressed in costume. The waterfront was quite ritzy with a few fabulous yachts, quite a contrast to the narrow but very pretty streets of the old town. We had a fantastic (and expensive by Croatian standards) lunch there. Still great value by Melbourne standards! The town also boasts a UNESCO listed 6th century Basilica with gorgeous mosaics. There was a great view from the bell tower of the Basilica.

Walking around, I kept thinking of the folk song my father used to sing in dialect about a girl who lived in Parenzo – “la mula de Parenzo, ga messo su botega; de tuto la vendeva…“.

Next stop Pola – my father’s hometown.

Central Istria – Buie, Grisignano and arrival at Montona

Our second car adventure involves a white Fiat 500L – not as flashy as the Giulietta we hired in Sicily but as I have been the designated driver of it thus far, it feels like it is my own Italian car. On Thursday we left Monfalcone and went over several borders – Slovenia and into Croatia. On this part of the trip we are visiting the Istrian peninsula, where my father is from, so it is particularly close to my heart. I will be referring to all the places we visit with their Italian names as this is what they were called before the late 1940s when the former Yugoslavia was given these lands as a outcome of WWII. Istria is known for its beautiful coastlines on the Adriatic and its mountains, where truffles are plentiful and Istrian prosciutto is made. There are also a lot of small wine, grappa and olive oil producers. It has a long history of Italian influence – the Romans were here as were the Venetians for hundreds of years. The emblem of Venezia (Lion of St Mark) is on the walls of most old towns.

Our accommodation is in Montona but we visited a couple of towns on the way. The first was the hilltop town of Buie, where we stopped to look for an old well, in a private courtyard that my zio Mario had told me about in Monfalcone. He had discovered that his family, originating from this town, have noble blood and that the well bears his family coat of arms (photo below). I can’t wait to show him the photos. Buie is also a very pretty and unspoiled town. We found out that they are holding a grape/wine festival this coming weekend, hence the large barrel in the piazza.

The second stop was in Grisignano, which was even prettier that Buie. And had lots of shops of artisans in its narrow streets. I also found out my zia Alide (my father’s first cousin who I knew) was born here. What a beautiful place.

The drive down the hill from Grisignano towards Montona was quite a challenge – 10km of hairpin bends on a narrow two way dirt track. Luckily we did not pass other cars going in the other direction – one of us would probably have needed to do some reversing! Montana is perched on a hill (more photos in next post) and our rental home is right at the top. I have yet to take photos of the town, but here are some of the house, which is very rustic. It has a terrace with breathtaking views and grape vines on a trellis. The grapes are ripe and as sweet as confectionary. Mark says that it is “more south of France than the south of France”!

In the morning, from the window, the valley was covered in mist. As the sun rose in the sky, tiny houses and villages were emerging.

The next few days will be exploring Montona and the Istrian countryside.

Trieste and time with family

We caught a plane from Catania, which stopped in Naples and then headed north to Trieste. My window seat meant I could take great photos of the land below.

Monfalcone is on the Adriatic Sea, close to Trieste and my home away from home. My mother and father met there and my mother’s family still live there. In planning for this trip, I was very much looking forward to giving my mamma’s love to her big sister Vice (91), big brother Livio ( 89), her sister in law Dina and brother in law Mario. When I was there last year I wrote a story about zio Livio and his breakfast (which has remain unchanged for about 85 years!). His health has deteriorated quite a lot since then, but I will be so happy to see him. Vice still goes shopping every day – taking care not to walk “quando xe la bora” (when a wild wind is blowing from the Adriatic Sea) as it will surely blow her over (or take her to Kansas – Dorothy style), she is so tiny and frail!

We are staying with the ever generous zio Mario who has insisted in taking us out for lunch each day at a fantastic restaurant in nearby Sistiana called Ai Sette Nani. The photo below is of the gregarious Antonio, the owner plus some of the home made pasta we had today with fresh porcini mushrooms – delizioso!

We rented a car and drove into Trieste on our second day. The car in a Fiat 500L and I love driving it (I have got used to driving a manual car on the wrong side of the road). Trieste is a grand town with many beautiful edifices built by the Austrians when it was their only city on the Adriatic Sea. The streets are clean, the buildings look quite Austrian and a wild wind blows there most of the time.

There is a medieval fortress on the hill overlooking Trieste and it has a church San Giusto that was on the site of a Roman temple. Such amazing history.

Tomorrow we are driving to Istria (in Croatia) to the hilltop town of Motovun (Montona d’Istria), crossing two borders to get there.

Taormina and Catania – last days in Sicily

We arrived in Catania last night after a 40 minute flight from Valletta, Now that is my kind of flight! We are staying in an old palace in Catania that was owned by an admiral in the 1800s. It has been structurally repaired but retains its old world charm. The frescos on the ceiling of our room are particularly delightful and the room has several tiny terraces that give a view of the street.

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Catania seems to have once been an orderly regal town, but looks like it is past its prime, with many beautiful buildings in disrepair. The Piazza Duomo was an exception and it has a large elephant at its centre (emblem of the city). A highlight was the Catania fish market, which has street food in the evening – we went on our last night – slightly edgy but fun.

We caught the train to Taormina, which is about 45 minutes from Catania. The town itself is nowhere near the train station, but rather a climb of several km up a precipitous hill (or a car/bus ride). We walked. It was worth the climb as the view was breathtaking. I even spied a lovely blue pool (that I dearly wished to dive into – it was 33 degrees and the hill was terribly steep). It was quite daunting seeing Mount Etna blowing off a bit of steam in the background though.

The township of Taormina is beautiful though somewhat of a tourist trap. The main street, Corso Vittorio Emmanuele, was full of restaurants, jewelry and clothing shops (I am not saying it is a bad thing!). It is good for the failing Italian economy and I am happy to help out by shopping a bit!

It has a Greek Theatre that was originally constructed early in the 7th century BC. It had a backdrop of Mount Etna so those Greeks were onto a really good thing very early on. The Romans came along much later in the piece and built a wall on the “stage” effectively blocking the view of Etna. However time has corrected that as the wall is no longer standing in the centre allowing us spectacular views now. It is still used for performances – imagine going to one of those, it would be magical.

Tomorrow we leave the sun and fly to northern Italy to see my family. We will not have Internet access for a few days so the next blog post may be delayed. Ciao for now.

Malta – a whirlwind tour of the island by double decker bus

We decided that one of those “hop on, hop off” double decker sightseeing buses would be a good idea to see more of the island in a short period of time – we bought a two day ticket so we could cover a lot of ground. So feeling like the complete tourists, we sat on the top level right at the front of the bus to get a bird’s eye view of Malta.

Highlights included:
(1) Mdina – a medieval fortress town that was partly destroyed during the 1693 earthquake and rebuilt baroque style. It was once administrative centre of Malta, with its central position on a hill and had clear views of the whole island from its walls. Horse drawn carriages are used as a way of getting around the narrow streets (by tourists at least). I felt a bit like I was in a Monty Python movie – you would hear a bell ring and the clip-clop of horse hooves approaching – I half expected a knight in armour to appear on the horse!

(2) Domus Romana – In 1881, the remains of a roman villa was uncovered in Rabat, right next to Mdina. There were some beautiful mosaics in the domus romana and relics in the museum including makeup containers, jewelry and kitchen pots. The large mosaic with the image of central water container with two doves had formed the floor of the peristyle, which is an indoor type garden and it was almost intact.

(3) Mosta – a town renowned for its Cathedral, which has a cupola that was famously bombed during WWII. Whilst in there, Mark overheard a tour guide telling a group that the almost life size statue of the madonna is paraded through the town annually in a massive carved wooden receptacle. The whole lot is carried by men in Mosta (undoubtably those with weight lifting capacity as it must weigh a ton!).

(4) Marsaxlokk – a pretty fishing town, which we visited during the busy Sunday Market. There was delicious fish on sale – if only we could have bought some to take home and cook!

(5) The Blue Grotto – the rocky southwest shore of Malta is rocky and has many caves (grottos). The most famous of these is the Blue Grotto, because the water appears so blue. I put my hand in the water and my fingers looked blue! We took the obligatory boat ride out to the grotto (it is a bit of a tourist trap) but it was loads of fun.

Back in town, we visited the Casa Rocca Piccola, a 16th century palace and private residence of the de Piro family. Some 14 of its 50+ rooms are open to the public for hourly tours, including a private chapel and an underground bomb shelter. The rooms were delightful, filled with antique furniture, ornate chandeliers and the walls were filled with art work. The family pet was also on show – a colorful parrot was perched on a tree in the courtyard, refusing to be put back in its cage.

At the end of the day, we took a spot in Hastings Gardens to watch the magnificent sunset. We sat on the city walls, looking at old and new Valletta in the fading light.

Tonight – back to Sicily to visit Taormina.

Valetta and Floriana – Malta

We touched down in Malta at about 11.40pm on Thursday night after a 40 minute flight from Catania. Our taxi ride to the apartment was amusing (kind of). The speedometer didn’t work, the driver took no notice of the directions the GPS was giving in English, he was driving fast in 2nd gear and we got dropped off in the wrong street! One positive – the Maltese drive on the right side of the road (at least it is right for those of us who live in Australia!). Our apartment is in a narrow pedestrian only street only a block from Republic Street, the main drag in Valletta. The houses are very pretty. The galleria (the enclosed terraces that sit proud of the houses) are often painted bright colours and add interest to the residential streetscape.

I am surprised at how beautiful Valletta is. It is quite the buzzing town with lots of people (many English and Italian tourists), clean streets and many beautiful buildings made from yellowing limestone. The old city wall was massive – the Knights of Malta certainly protected the city (successfully so in the case of the Ottomans in the 16th century). Mark felt right at home among his people whilst we walked the streets of Valletta. I spontaneously bought several beautiful Maltese vases (which are being shipped home) – the coloured glass is local and just divine!

We went to the Church of St John, where all the Grandmasters of the Knights of Malta are buried. It is also where the only signed painting by Caravaggio hangs (the painting is of the beheading of John the Baptist and the signature is written in the blood dripping from St John’s neck). Interestingly, the room where it hangs is the same room where Caravaggio got booted out of the Order of St John (after which he fled to Siracusa, where we were yesterday!). The inside of the church was very ornate and had gorgeous mosaics, paintings and stone carvings.

After a lovely lunch by the water, we headed over to Floriana, just outside the old city walls where Mark’s father, Alistair was born. He had spent several years of his childhood there before migrating to Australia.

After finding the Church of Saint Publju (where Alistair was baptized), we headed through “the mall” (the park) to Trij il-Konservatorju, the street where Alistair lived. We wandered down the street, not knowing which house to look at (Alistair was 8 when he left so does not remember the house number), but getting a sense of the street where he and his brothers would have played back in the 1940s.

Later in the day, a bit too late to see the sun set, we walked to the Grand Harbour and took some photos of the fading light over the cityscapes. It was a great night on the water – warm, calm and beautifully lit. Valletta is a very special place.

Tomorrow – touring the rest of the island by bus and a visit to the beach.

Siracusa – Greek and Roman ruins and a cruise to the grottos

Sicily is a great place to go if you are a history nerd, in particular ancient history. On our last full day in Siracusa/Ortigia, we headed out to see the Greek open air theatre and the Roman amphitheater. The Greeks were in Siracusa for a long time and built a magnificent theatre in around 400BC. It seated 15,000 spectators and amazingly is still used for classical theatre performances; they put a circular wooden stage over the center.

When the Romans moved in on the Greeks, in around 300AD, they were not to be beaten and built their own structure – an amphitheater (though I imagine they weren’t watching many plays in it but practicing blood sports). This was the largest Roman amphitheater in southern Italy however not much of it remains – mainly because the Spanish wanted to build some fortresses in the 1600s so they pinched the huge stones that the Romans had placed there 1300 years before.

Surrounding the ancient structures was a park in what looked like an old quarry (they had to get the stones to build the theatre and amphitheater from somewhere). It has a feature called “the ear of Dionysis”, apparently named so by Caravaggio who spend a few months in Siracusa in 1607. It is a huge opening to a cave with a pointy tip (like a pointy ear).

A few hours before catching the train to Catania, we decided to go on a boat tour. It took us around Ortigia (including going under an impossible bridge where the canopy of the boat came down and we had to duck to the level of the rim of the boat) plus to some grottos. This is a photo of the bridge before I knew we would be going under it.

The usual group of Italian men stared at us as we pulled out of the port (there were four female passengers on board after all). There were some other interesting characters in the inlet as we sailed past, I especially enjoyed Gaetano Excursion.

Luciano was steering the boat and he clearly was an experienced hand. He was constantly talking on his phone or playing with it whilst steering. He thankfully put the phone down when he took us into a couple of grottos, expertly maneuvering it around the rocks and even doing a three point turn in the cave. It was impressive. One of the caves had an entrance shaped like a heart – grotto degli innamorati (lover’s grotto).

We got to see some great platforms set up over the rocks for those seeking a dip in the Mediterranean and some terrific views of Ortigia from the water. There was a boat anchored on the waterfront that Mark was particularly keen on – we thought it would be a great way to arrive in our next destination (rather than a 49 minute plane ride) – Malta!

One of the girls on the cruise kindly took our photo (we are squinting a bit – it was bright out on the water).