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| Looking ahead on what appeared like an industrial park with tight security, Claudine thought she had mapped the route incorrectly. Her gaze ahead was so intent, she did not see the railway tracks on the road. Her front wheel fell into the tracks which then locked her in. 9.30 am at Riva Alvise Cadamosto in Aquilinia @ https://maps.app.goo.gl/LYQvbWmXGc385SKu7 |
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| View from Parco Pubblico del Rio Ospo |
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| In Muggia on Via Dante Alighieri. Note the brick and mortar arch which forms the gateway to the historic town. |
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| In Muggia on Via Dante Alighieri |
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| In Muggia on Via Dante Alighieri |
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| Muggia Cathedral of St John and St Paul from 1467 |
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| Piazza Guglielmo Marconi is the square where the cathedral is located. |
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| Tourist information office at Piazza Guglielmo Marconi |
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| Mandracchio di Muggia |
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| It was very steep indeed |
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| But also very pretty |
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| 11.10 am just a push of a bicycle and we have entered Cerej, in Slovenia |
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| After this photo was taken, we lost Gerard momentarily as he stops to replace the battery on his Go Pro. From the Hrvatini roundabout, Claudine had to backtrack to look for him @ https://maps.app.goo.gl/KHF32K3Cu7siXvoDA |
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| Another view from Hrvatini |
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| Praetorian Palace built in 15th century in Gothic Venetian style |
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| Cathedral and Bell Tower in Tito Square, Koper. Built in 15th century in Gothic style, it was finally completed in 18th century in Renaissance Style |
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| Another view of Tito Square |
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| Heading for Izola on Semedelska Cesta |
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| Heading for Izola on Pristaniška ulica |
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Italy's ocean liner Rex was sunk near the waters here during WWII. |
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| Palača Besenghi degli Ughi, ahead with flags. Commissioned to be built by the wealthy Besenghi family in the 18th century, it was designed by architect Filippo Dongetti. The 13th century stone carved lion placed at the corner of the building was found in the ruins where the current palace is built. |
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St Maurus Church and Bell Tower.
The current church is built in the 16th century and has gone through several modifications. It sits on the site of the old church from 14th century. Meanwhile, the Bell Tower is from the 16th century |
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| Getting out of Izola, the tall brick chimney of Nekdanje podjetje Arrigoni's factory caught our eye. This factory opened in 1881 used to produce canned food |
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| 2.20 pm, our climb began again! |
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| Breathtaking views of Izola |
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| Strunjan's salt pans |
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| Strunjan's salt pans |
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| Strunjan's salt pans. |
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| After Strunjan salt pans, we followed the road up to the point as per Google Streetview. Piran was another 2.8 km via the gravel trail while 3.8 km via tarmac. As it was already a tough climb up to this point, we decided, we were running out of time and best to abandon the town altogether. |
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| Valeta Tunnel is part of the Parenzana railway line that connects Trieste and Porec. It was used between 1902 and 1935. |
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| Sečoveljske Salt pans, past the entrance to paid site |
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| Sečoveljske bike path |
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| Sečoveljske bike path |
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| We finally reached the old town! |
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| Thank goodness Apartments Smile, our stay for the night is just 50 m away from the signboard! |
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| SMILE, we have finally arrived at 6.30 pm! |
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| The town |
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The town
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| The way to our restaurant |
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| Restaurant aModoMio |
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| When dusk fell, we gladly moved inside to stay warm |
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| Dinner party |
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| Spectacular views |
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| Coffee time! |
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| Spectacular views |
On this day, we rode through 3 countries....Italy, Slovenia and Croatia, hence the tour is aptly named CSI! Not quite out of Trieste, near Aquilinia, my front wheel was caught in between the railway tracks. My right knee was the first to kiss the road but strangely I flipped to my left. On my final descent, I could feel my left cheeks hitting the ground. The first thing I asked my first aider was how is my face! Thankfully, I only suffered minor abrasion to both my knees, a tiny bruise on my nail, a small lump the size of a bird's egg on my left shoulder and still mamaged to looked pretty.Just as expected, the ride out of Trieste was brutal. We had to climb up a steep slope. However, the route became quite flat as we approached Muggia. After Muggia, we crossed the Italian border into Slovenia at Cerej. Via di Crevatini, is a road flanked by houses on both sides so it was a strange feeling when you step out of Italy and into Slovenia in just a matter of steps. Imagine your close neighbour, separated by a whole 9 yards is also a foreigner!After Cerej, we descend into Koper. Pristaniška Ulica is a dedicated bike and jogging path that connects Koper to Izola. This route hugs the sea front.After Izola, we climbed again at Jagodje. This climb comes with a sweeping view of Izola.Thereafter, we descended again to Strunjan where we saw our first salt fields. The salt making industry here is not as vast as the ones in Secovilje which we eventually visited.At 3 pm and half way to Piran, we decided to abandon our quest to see the place as it was getting late. Instead we rode to Buje, Triban and finally the artistic village of Grozjnan.
Photo credits :
Mindy
Gerard
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