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As part of our tour of Croatia, we spent several hours in Rijeka, the country’s third-largest city. Not far from Opatija but in sharp contrast to it, this is a down-to-earth, industrial center which is Croatia’s number one Adriatic port and ferry terminal. Nevertheless, Rijeka has several attractions in its old town area and in its hilltop suburb of Trsat.
Our first stop was the Croatian National Theatre building opened in 1885. Today, it is the venue for opera, concerts, ballet and theatrical presentations:
You can almost hear the “oohs and aahs” as our group takes it all in from some of the best seats in the house:
Back outside once more, pigeons play “king of the mountain” while tourists jockey for the best camera angle:
The main shopping area is the pedestrianized Korzo, running left and right in this photo:
The City Tower started life as a medieval gateway to the old town from the sea front which once was where the Korzo is now (before landfills extended the city). The old gateway was topped out Baroque-style much later.
This pretty canal marks the east end of the Korzo:
After time for shopping and walking, we boarded our coach for a lift to Trsat on a bluff high above the city center. This is the home of a famous pilgrimage church. None more famous a pilgrim than Pope John Paul II came here on a blisteringly hot day in 2003. This touching statue commemorates that visit:
The statue is directly in front of the shrine, the Church of Our Lady of Trsat,
where Pope John, in his own words, “joined the pilgrims who venerate Our Lady there”:
After a short walk from the Church, we wrapped up our tour of Rijeka with this fine view of the port:
