Mediterranean Cruise: Koper, Slovenia (2)

To follow our Cruise trip read blog (1) here:
https://peakd.com/hive-163772/@zo3d/mediterranean-cruise-venice-1

We boarded cruise ship Norwegian Star from Trieste, Italy. It was a two hour Train ride from Venice and an easy walk from the train station to the Cruise Terminal. The Norwegian Star is one of the smaller ships in the fleet and more suited to couples rather than families with children.

First thing we did was head to the upper decks to take in the views of Trietse. We didn't have enough time to explore the town but we knew that we would have more Han enough adventure ahead of us.

That night we had our first taste of Cruise food. It's quite an interesting experience as all of your meals, drinks, room and obviously transport between cruise ports is included, yet there are different levels of access to specific restaurants which then incur additional charges. Being from South Africa we only used the inclusive options and had a fantastic time.

We woke up on our first morning in a new place which was Koper Slovenia. This is an incredible way to see a diverse array of Cities and Countries in a short period of time.

Koper
We disembarked as early as possible. It was a dark, cool day in Koper, but nothing was going to stop us experiencing as much as we could in the time that we had.

First we got a lift from the Harbour level up to where the town began. We had investigated and wanted to walk through the old town which was adjacent to the Cruise terminal. The streets were either stone paved or cobbled throughout the old town making for a quaint old world feeling. But the buildings were an interesting mix of old and new. What immediately struck us was how clean Koper was.

Walked down the first Main Street towards Titov Square, the centre of old town. On the square as we approached we were immediately confronted with the Pretorska Palace. A beautifully maintained Gothic style building with and arch over the gate to the old alleys and shops.

Before heading to the old town we first looked to our left and found the Stolnica Marijinega Vnebovztja, the Catholic Cathedral. The outside wasn't flashy, but the mainly white interior was beautiful!

We walked into the large cross shaped church with incredible domed roofs with elegant details and gold leafed lights.

The pulpit and Pipe organ were especially beautiful, but its the neatness and simplicity of the white an gold detailing that face a fresh appearance. On the glass windowed entrance and banners at the back of the church were the words "I Feel Slovenia". This slogan is the messaging of Slovenia. It is a patriotic statement of love for country and pride in its people.

Shortly after our visit the church service began and were heard the pipe organ bellowing through the passages of Koper.

We walked through the Palace Arch and entered the older part of town where we found various shops from clothing and shoes to Ice Cream parlours. Many were closed as it was a Sunday but we weren't there to shop, we wanted to explore and experience the culture of the Slovenians.

We walked and walked until we reached the other edge of the town and cam across various markets with locals selling their wares. Most were collectables and antiques or second hand clothing. One was selling knives and old artillery! We wouldn't find that at a market in South Africa.

We turned right and found a massive green park that went all the way back to the coast with a walkway connecting the Old town to the new. Ahead we saw larger modern buildings, apartment blocks and bigger roads. We opted to stay along the coastal walk and explored the local yacht basin.

All of Koper is pedestrian friendly with very little traffic and mostly pedestrian walkways. This is one of the things that I love about Europe. No cars or parking, just spaces for people to roam. Some people used electric scooters or bicycles but most walked like us.

After spending some time near the harbour we made our way back through to Old town to the western side of the Old town. Here we found even older buildings, so strapped with steel girders to hold them up. as well as an ancient well in the centre of Brollo Square. This well must have served the local community for a hundred years and it is now a monument to time gone by.

Around a corner on our roundabout way through Kobe we can across a large mural by a local artist. It was quite the juxtaposition of Modern art with the surrounding buildings, but a fun addition to our adventure. We were near the end of our day and ready to head back to the ship. Our feet were aching and Koper had delivered.

We said our good byes to this quaint old town and would absolutely come back with more time on our hands. I would stay in one of those old town buildings and have a coffee at a street cafe and a gelato on a sunny day.

Follow along as we explore the Mediterranean on our 15 day cruise from Venice to Lisbon.

//:# (!worldmappin 45.54911 lat 13.73037 long Mediterranean Cruise: Koper (2) d3scr)