Italians are sick of tourists. No, they are really tired of American wine visitors who travel massively in their country in boot and disrupt their lives with our enthusiasm.
Selfies have been banned in the portfolio, Venice has stopped large navigation ships and will now charge daily entrance attractive, Amalfi has stopped tourist buses, Rome will not allow you to sit in the Spanish steps … and Cinque Terre has imposed a fine of $ 2,800 on the blasphemous act. Last year, in Florence, the locals took Graffiti to tell visitors “Tourists go home!” – Because, as we know it, detail simply confuses people.
Got got so badly, the BBC even published an article called, “Is Italy sharing with you?” (Answer: type).
To make things worse, earlier this year, even before the start of the tourism season, thousands of tourists exceeded a small Italian city, and later, the US government issued a travel warning of the country citing the fear of terrorism.
So what is an Italophilic to do?
Go to the East, my friends, to Istria, the Croatian Peninsula that was once part of the Italian Empire for over 600 years, and still holds similar charm – vineyards, truffles, Italian and Roman ruins – with one exception: Istrians not only welcome visitors, they are doing everything they can to attract them.
And, since last year, some luxury hotels have opened on the Adriatic coast -including some luxury offers for his former Croatian dictator Josep Brod Tito (formerly) private islands (which includes the remaining animals of his former private zoo).
On my last birthday, I decided to visit an old friend, Zrinka Marinovic, who runs Croatia adapted and specializes in the luxury tour of Croatia. While Zrkka lives and works as a luxury travel adviser in the country and therefore is the master, I allow her to plan my unnecessary journey – and it was a player.
I went down to Zagreb, a miniature Vienna that is walking and architectural (and cultural) fascinating as half of the city is from the Hapburg Empire – and half built during the communist regime.
After being searched at the Zagreb Esplanade Historical Hotel, I made the Yugos Tour in the city (my guide swore from old Yugoslavian cars, once called the worst in the world), visited the museum of broken relations (a heartbroken alternative and ridiculous museum, full of loved ones, With dots, with the whole country, with the whole country, with all the country, and withdrawing all over the country. (The former dictator refused to stay in hotels and, on the contrary, would build or houses appropriate across Yugoslavia, some of which were visited only one or twice in Tito’s life).
After celebrating my birthday inside the clumsy bath of Esplanade, my friend Gillian met with me and Zrinka kidnapped us in Istria, the unique peninsula who was once led by Venice and Napoleon, where only a small ribbon of Slovenian land separates it from Italy.
But unlike Dubrovnik or Dalmatian Islands where stars like Beckhams, Beyoncé, Kim Kardashian, Jeff Bezos and Katy Perry have visited in supersyachts, Istria is relatively undiscovered by Jet Set – despite being all Adriatic by Venice.
And thank God for that. Despite having much in common with its former homeland, Istria is full of medieval cities that lead every hill, with vineyards and bases of truffles in the middle – and on the coast, pure water aqua -water, with no potholes of other angry tourists or locals.
Our home base for Istrian adventure was the Grand Park hotel in the ancient coastal city of Rovinj. It was just a year ago, locals gather at the hotel’s Spa Wellness Albaro, which has a sauna-like floor and two Rovinj Restaurant with stars Michelin Agli Amici Rovinj. Located at the bottom of the city port, the hotel offers views of almost every Adriatic room, medieval city and the golden Cape forest.
From Rovinj, Gillian and I went into chickens to visit the ancient Roman arena – one of the six largest arenas in the world surviving – and the ancient city (as I mentioned, there is one at the top of every hill in a very hilly area). In the middle, we went to the Truffle hunt in Prodfan Tarufi, just off the edge – one of the many truffle farms in the area.
“We had no idea what (Truffles) were until 1999,” Visnja Prodan told me.
This was Giancarlo Zigante, a local hunter of Truffle, found the world’s largest traffle near Buje, Istria, weighing 1.3.1 kilograms.
“By then we had always thought they were pig food,” laughed Prodan. Since then, Truffles have undermined many local millionaires of agriculture with their products that are sent around the world. And there is no better way to enjoy Truffles than with Croatian wine.
And, not different from its western neighbor, Croatia has spectacular wines. For a special treatment, reserve a weekend attitude Hotel Meneghetti and Winery
Twenty minutes from the car and located in the medieval town of Bale Hill is the Relais & Chateau Hotel, where guests can stay in one of the ten stylish rural rooms that bypass the surrounding vineyards and cities. Guests can walk or bike in the vineyards before they have a taste of wine and olive along with a meal in the field-in-pyrun-or board the hotel compliment service, which will take you to the Private Club Meneghetti nearby.
But while inside it was also opening up, the culmination of the trip were so far the BRIJUI Islands – once Tito’s private game square.
Veliki Brojuni is especially fabulous as not only has three large hotels on the island, as well as some residences that can be rented (including what is kept intact from Tito’s time) is also the home of the former Tito Zoo.
“Everyone world leader would visit and bring with them an animal from their country,” Zrinka explained. While many of these animals – including lions, Jaguars, Monkeys etc – died (and then were filled and interred in a nearby museum), there are still zebra, ostrich, Hindu cows … as well as an old lonely elephant.
Gillian, Zrinka and I spent a full day on this island, spread to Tito’s old cadillac and we could have stayed for a week.
It was the perfect Adriatic departure – without the crowd and all the benefits of Italy … but without dissatisfaction.
#Forget #Italy #east #Croatia #Istria
Image Source : nypost.com