The Ham Nomads

15 Apr 2015. <HR> Pula, Istria —

Today we took the bus unto Pula, and walked straight down to the Amphitheatre, only a few hundred metres from where we got off the bus at the bus stop. This is a magnificently preserved amphitheatre, dating to the first century AD. The outer walls are virtually complete, but the interior seating has been systematically plundered, most notably by the Venetians, who used the very regular Roman masonry as foundation material for many of the buildings in Venice. Having said that, a large section of seating on the eastern side has been reconstructed, and the arena itself has been given a make-over, with the subterranean tunnels being given a new concrete roof that provides a proper foundation for the arena's sand surface. Now they can set up temporary stages on the western side, and the amphitheatre is now the venue for regular concerts, opera performances, and even the annual Pula Film Festival.

The amphitheatre is unique in another way. Built on the outside of the encircling walls are four towers. These allowed access via internal staircases to the various levels of seating — the lowest level, closest to the action, for the elite of society, a second tier with seating for the slightly less favoured, and the upper level, standing room only, for the plebs. One of the towers has been the target of recent conservation work, and it now stands out whitely in contrast to the more weathered parts of the structure. Conservation is happening all the time here, so before too long the whole edifice will again be the one colour.

After wandering the arena, we went down into the subterranean galleries, where there is an exhibition of the archaeology of the site. They have well organized displays of amphorae, and then one showing they way they were piled up when first discovered. There were examples of ancient oil presses (that's olive oil, not petroleum!), and a copy of an old Roman map of the road system, including the road from Trieste to Pula. Quite a good overview.

The arena is a very popular stopping-off point for school groups — there were at least three came through while we were there. This is one thing about European kids — they are so close to their history that they would have to work really hard to remain ignorant of it!

After leaving the amphitheatre, we wandered down and along the waterfront, where we came across the Cathedral, which is an early Christian 5th century basilica. The facade, like that of most churches around here, is considerably later, but when you go inside you find a refreshingly simple building, just a staight nave running from front to back, with two sets of columns creating aisles on either side. Instead of intricate decorative altar pieces, you have the organ pipes set directly behind the altar. Maybe this is a sign that music has a higher profile here than iconic statues scattered about! Whatever the reason, the simplicity gives the place the majesty that baroque or rococo places just miss out on! The two fonts just inside the entrance on either side are of the most marvellously-coloured marble!

The bell tower outside is separate from the cathedral, and carries a clock on its front surface, so there is no excuse for being late to mass! Interestingly, the bell towers we have met throughout southern Europe are all based on the one model, the Islamic minaret. (More closely in Córdoba, of course, as that bell tower actually started life as a minaret!)

From the Cathedral, we walked about a block to the old Roman Forum, dating back to the first century BC. The square is still there, and the original Augustan Temple (which has been turned into a small archaeological museum), but the other buildings around it, like the Town Hall, are far later. There are quite a few restaurants here, with the typical al fresco eating, so we stopped off for a late lunch. While we were there, a group of French students also stopped off for a very animated lunch — they took over two large tables, somewhat separated, and then proceeded to text each other across that space!

The Augustan Temple and the Town Hall

A relief on the Town Hall

Head of the Egyptian god Hathor,
from the amphitheatre, 1st century AD
(now in the Augustan Temple)

Fragment of 2nd century frieze with head of Dionysus
(now in the Augustan Temple)

After lunch we to a tourist office to book a tour out to the Brijuni islands park fro the day after tomorrow. Then we went went back over to the the Giardini square where we first landed and up to an old Roman Theatre. This was almost unheralded, but we were able to explore it almost undisturbed. From here we went back to our bus stop and took the bus back to the camp.

If we thought last night's sunset was magnificent, tonight's was more of the same!

Distance driven — today, nil; to date, 18,113 miles ( 29,150 km )