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Few are able to decide on the colour of the Adriatic
Sea. Sometimes dark blue, sometimes greenish blue, it constantly shines forth in a
thousand hues depending on the time of day and the angle of the sun. Yet, it is always
beautiful. Unique.
When you hear ancient folk music mingling with the
classics, as you sip a cappuccino in a cafe by the sea, as you feel the heartbeat of a
tourist town of tiny streets and a thousand years of history, you will be in Istria. It is
a region living in the rhythm of tourism, measuring the time between departures and
arrivals. As the transition point between the Alpine-Central European and the
Dinaric-Mediterranean areas, Istria is an idyllic region of towns, forests, vineyards and
famous tourist centres whose names have been written on the tourist map of Europe: Umag,
Novigrad, Porec, Vrsar, Rovinj, Pula and so on.
Close to the tourist giant, Porec, we find the tiny
island of Sveti Nikola, the favourite destination of those who love beautiful solitary
beaches. Its lighthouse was built in 1402. Many claim that this island launched Porec into
the era of modern tourism. In front of Vrsar, which used to be a village of fishermen and
vine-growers, there is a string of islands. One of them, Koversada, contains one of the
largest naturist camps in the Adriatic.
A group of fourteen islands form an attractive
archipelago in front of the famous Istrian tourist centre of Rovinj, like two pearls
facing each other. The islands have the most attractive beaches of the Rovinj area, with
numerous seagull nests, and greatly appeal to top level tourists. The island of Crveni
Otok (Red Island) hosts most of them. A narrow isthmus connects this jewel with the little
island of Maskin, a naturists' paradise. The island of Sveta Katarina is only 70 metres
from the mainland.
![[ IMAGE description below ]](../images/brijuni2.jpg)
The fourteen islands of Brijuni are spread
out over seven kilometres. |
Pula is the hub of tourism and the economic and
traffic centre of Istria. It is studded with landmarks, of which the Roman amphitheatre is
certainly the most impressive. Across the Fazana channel lie the Brijuni islands,
forming a seven kilometres long necklace between Pula and Rovinj. Nature, nudged along by
man, has created a real paradise here. At fin-de-siecle, this paradise became the
obsession of one of its owners, Paul Kupelwieser. He was chairman of a steel mill in
Vitkovice and a respected expert in metal processing. When he bought the Brijuni, little
did he know that this fateful encounter would completely change his life. Initially
planning to turn the islands into a summer residence, this fifty-year-old son of the
famous Viennese painter and lithographer, Leopold, decided to leave the mill and devote
himself to the islands. They responded to this devotion unselfishly. Before the
newlyfounded tourist centres in Italy took over, the Brijuni were an exclusive European
summer resort. The peerless beauty of the national park of Brijuni with its rich harmony
of flora and fauna, historical monuments and modern hotels still draws politicians and
other distinguished guests from all over the world. |
For details and you questions please contact as here
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