Putzing around in Pula

Another angle

Temple of Augustus

6th Century Roman Coliseum

Pula is the largest, most well known city in Croatia’s Istria region (see map in previous post) but I was ready to leave after four hours. You would think that a 2,100 year old city with the sixth largest Roman coliseum and a kinda sorta famous archaeological museum would keep me there for hours but….four hours was about enough as all the sights were within a quarter mile radius so I stumbled upon the next one before I even figured out where I was.

While waiting for the 6:50 am ( I KNOW, early!) Opatija to Pula bus, I met two New Zealanders, Barry and Julie, who were 3 weeks into their Croatian vacation and three months into a five month vacation through Europe. They gave me some useful tips about finding rooms in Croatia and where to go which was quite appreciated as I don’t necessarily trust guide books all the time. We accidentally saw about 35% of the famous sights in trying to find the tourist information office. Along the lines of “ well, look behind us on the square, there’s the Temple of Augustus.” Just like you see a 2,100 year old temple that had been bombed in WWII but reconstructed everyday! I’m attaching a photo of the Temple of Augustus taken from the cafe in the square where we were drinking my first coffee of the day. The town hall is the building to the right – which apparently has a bit of an identity crisis because the Lonely Planet guidebook says it reflects many architectural styles from reconstructions over the past 600 years. Just looks a little odd to me.

The archaeological museum was pretty dense but good. I always find it reassuring that people throughout the centuries have used cups for drinking, bowls for cooking or to carry things, clips or pins to hold back hair, and rings to adorn themselves. No matter what the culture, no matter where in the world, a well preserved archaeological site will divulge at least those items.

I’m including a picture of the coliseum that was pretty cool to see but that’s all you really can do is just look at it. In the background, you may be able to see the big ships that they are building. The old town area – cobblestoned roads everywhere – was quaint and they had well placed signs in 4 different languages explaining the particular sight. Food packaging and tourist signs all come in Croatian, English, Italian, and German at the very least!

I’m already starting to realize the truth of the New Zealanders’ observation – all the shops are the same from town to town. Still, these Croatian women know how to shop! If the chic factor could be measured, the average woman would probably come in at a 6 at least. Dolce Gabbana and Channel sunglasses and gold colored shoes are very common place here. Even the Nike swoop in the teenage girls tennis shoes are gold! So, I just strolled on back to the bus station in my fleecy and Dansko like clogs (LL Bean thank you very much) and picked up my 25 year old backpack from the left luggage area. I don’t stick out for my physical appearance like I do in China – instead it is just for looking tacky. Yep, let me just move my bedraggled self right out of town!

Another angle