 |
| Howdy from Slovenia! The land in the very back is Trieste, Italy. We were told there is a tower in Piran where you are standing in Slovenia and can see both Italy and Croatia. |
When we left Ravenna the captain pointed the ship in a northeastern direction, back towards Trieste, where we were the previous day. With a little research we figured out just how close to Trieste we would be when we reached Koper, Slovenia. We were within walking distance! Yes it would be a four hour walk, but it was walkable and by car you could get from Koper to Trieste in about 20 minutes. We’re not exactly sure why the itinerary was set up this way, but we were sure happy to have time in Trieste, Ravenna and Koper.
Slovenia is a small country, with a population of around 2 million people. Koper’s metropolitan population is around 50,000, which makes it Slovenia’s fifth largest city. Koper is the countries largest coastal city and has a busy port that accommodates both commercial and cruise ships (around 80 cruise ships this year). In 2017 Koper was named the European Destination of Excellence for Cultural Tourism. Historically tourism has accounted for around 20% of their economy and as word spreads this percentage continues to increase. One of Slovenia’s biggest challenges right now is that their unemployment is less than 2%, so many jobs are going unfilled, especially in the tourism sector.
 |
| Somebody overpacked at the Piran Marina! |
We didn’t rush off the ship real early but we were off by 9:00. We explored a bit of the city center, which was very close to where we docked. We then took a bus to the small (less than 4,000 residents) seaside resort town of Piran.
 |
| The Praetorian Palace was once home for the emperor’s…..in a way it still is, it’s now the town hall. |
 |
| New and modern water feature, just steps away from….. |
 |
| Old and historic! |
The journey to Piran was every bit as nice as Piran, which we really enjoyed. We had several hours there before we headed back to Koper. Once in Koper, we still had several hours before we were scheduled to leave. That gave us plenty of time for a nice stroll along a walking and biking path adjacent to the shoreline. From what I understand the path was built along an old railroad line, similar to the “rails to trails” paths in the US.
 |
| A couple of salty characters in Piran! |
 |
| Free chocolate samples! |
 |
| Piran’s waterfront was filled with cafes and restaurants, all with great views! |
We had visited Slovenia for one day many years back on a previous cruise. We really enjoyed it both then and now, and hopefully we will have a chance to come back again in the future.
