Rijeka

We caught our bus to Rijeka from Trieste early the next morning. We were headed on into unknown territory, using the advice of the VirtualWayfarer as our guide to Croatia we thought we’d try a few places on our own and then make our way down into Zadar, Split, and Dubrovnik. We crossed into Slovenia and then down intro Croatia, visiting the Croatian countryside we had the pleasure of stopping in every little town along the route, taking time to drive through the city and explore by way of our bus driver. A perk of taking a longer bus route. Surprised by the green and open beauty of Croatia and reminded of Greece in its nuances we pulled into Rijeka and hiked to the Information center.

The information center helped us find a great little private apartment on the edge of the port. Our host was a newer mother dealing with a hyper energetic young boy. Adorable and frayed she helped us in and offered us café and Grappa. We settled in for three nights and began to explore Croatian culture. Rijeka has some of the most attractive people I’ve ever seen. An industrial center and third largest city in Croatia Rijeka isn’t a tourist destination it’s a reserved city focused on its industry. Even so its night life and the activity in the central square could only be described as chaotic. People wandering from every which way, intersecting and interacting… the city was a hub of activity. We wandered through the main square and meandered around seeking internet (which we didn’t find).

After our wandering we continued to explore the city and get a feel for our options. We decided that the next day we would head out into the island of Krk and then go from there south to Baska (Bashka) a small city on the Adriatic at the very southern tip of the Island of Krk. Our decision made we wandered to a small fishing restaurant down the street right on the port. They brought forth a plate containing the day’s catch and asked us to make our plates from the selection.

The fish (caught that day) was some of the best food I’ve ever had. It was deep fried Adriatic squid, salmon, risotto with scampi and boiled shrimp. The food was amazing, with polenta fried in clarified butter and garlic with onion. The flavors came together in a cacophony of taste and experience flooding our palates. After the meal we were exhausted and stumbled out to take a passigata a small walk through town. The central square was still hopping and we headed back to our apartment to spent the night in bliss.

Next up – Bashka and Rijeka Pt. 2