Things to do in Gulf Of Kvarner
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Rijeka Carnival
The Rijeka Carnival in February is the largest and most elaborate in Croatia, with seven days of partying. Balls are by invitation only, but there are plenty of parades and street dances that are open to everyone.
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Our Lady of Trsat
The most renowned church in Rijeka is Our Lady of Trsat , a centuries-old magnet for believers. According to legend the angels carrying the house in which the Annunciation took place rested in Trsat before depositing the building in Italy. A chapel erected on the site attracted some pilgrims, but numbers were increased in the 14th century when the local nobility petitioned the pope for the donation of a 'miraculous' icon of Mary thought to have been painted by St Luke.
A bigger church was soon needed, and in 1453 the Frankopan prince Martin built a single-nave church to house the painting and a Franciscan monastery next door. The monastery was rebuilt in 1691 after a fire…
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Capuchin Church of Our Lady of Lourdes
Rijeka's churches are open Sunday morning and Monday to Friday from early-morning Mass until noon. It would be hard to miss the Capuchin Church of Our Lady of Lourdes with its ornate neogothic façade looming over the bus station. The Capuchin sponsors of the project ran into financing problems midway through the construction and enlisted the aid of a 'St Johanca', who allegedly sweated blood in front of the credulous masses.
Gifts and money poured into the coffers and the building was finally completed in 1929. ('St Johanca' was arrested for fraud in 1913.) The ceiling was decorated with frescoes of angels by a prominent local artist, Romulo Venucci.
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St Vito
St Vito . St Vito is the patron saint of Rijeka and construction of this building was begun in 1638 on the site of an older church dedicated to the saint. The Jesuit order supervised the project, which lasted several hundred years. Massive pillars support the central dome and surround chapels with multicoloured baroque marble altars. The main altar has a 13th-century Gothic crucifix that belonged to the older church.
According to the legend, someone threw a stone at the crucifix in 1296 and blood began to flow from Christ's body - the blood is still held in an ampoule.
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Trast Castle
High on a hill overlooking Rijeka and the Rječina River, the 13th-century Trast Castle occupies a position of immense strategic importance. There may have been a Liburnian hill fort here, but it was the Frankopan dukes of Krk who built the present castle to protect their holdings in Vinodol, further east. The Konak, an enclosed yard with a cistern, is the best- preserved part of the original structure.
From the 13th to the 15th century, Trsat belonged to the Frankopans or their relatives, but it was seized by the Habsburgs at the end of the 15th century.
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St Jerome
St Jerome . The church was part of a 14th-century Augustinian monastery complex that once dominated this square and was financed by the Counts of Duino, the feudal lords of Rijeka at the time. Construction lasted from 1315 to 1408 and the church sanctuary houses the tombs of the financing families. Little of the original Gothic structure remains due to the 1750 earthquake. The church was rebuilt in a baroque style in 1768 and contains tombs of captains, noblemen and patricians from Rijeka.
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Villa Angiolina
The exquisite Villa Angiolina has been restored to its former neoclassical splendour. The interior is a marvel of trompe l'oeil frescoes, Corinthian capitals, and geometric floor mosaics. The exterior and interior were designed in accordance with strict classical rules of harmony and proportion, which is extraordinarily pleasing to the eye. Currently it is being used to exhibit contemporary artists and artisans, with plans to stage various concerts - classical of course.
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Monokini
Opatija's nightlife took a hit when the police started cracking down on drink-drivers, ending the practice of driving from Rijeka to Opatija to drink along the harbour. All is not lost however. In the summer, a bar scene populated by locals and tourists is still centred on the harbour and the ever-popular Caffé Harbour or Hemingways. Along Obala Maršala Tita try Monokini , the current favourite watering hole of Opatija's nightcrawlers.
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Cathedral of the Assumption
On the site of the first-century Roman baths and an earlier basilica, the Cathedral of the Assumption is a Romanesque structure from the 12th century. Note the rare early-Christian carving of two birds eating a fish on the first column next to the apse. The left nave features a Gothic chapel from the 15th century, with the coats of arms of the Frankopan princes who used it as place of worship.
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Naval & Historical Museum
The Naval & Historical Museum was founded in 1876 at the height of Rijeka's shipbuilding years and gives a vivid picture of life among the seafarers. Part of the museum traces the development of sailing, with models and paintings of ships and portraits of captains. There are also various archaeological finds, weapons and documents, as well as furniture from the 17th to 20th centuries.
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Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum , just east of Muzejski trg, is devoted to the geology and botany of the region. In addition to a wonderful aquarium, there are also exhibits on bugs, snakes and frogs. Afterwards, you can relax in the new botanical garden with nearly 2000 native species on offer.
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Feral
This fine restaurant has a subdued marine-theme décor that complements the many fish specialities on offer. Try the cold baccala (cod with potatoes) with parsley, olive oil and wine. Occasionally, there are piano players on weekends and the ambience is romantic.
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Restaurant Bevanda
At this excellent fish restaurant on the eastern edge of town, you can get the usual specialities such as scampi, grilled calamari and the freshest fish available. The setting is equally as wonderful, especially if you get a table on the terrace next to the sea.
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water ski lift
Adrenaline junkies can get their fix at the water ski lift, a 650-m-long cableway for wakeboarding and waterskiing, running at a speed of 32km/hour. Located between Krk Town and Punat, it has a restaurant, a cocktail bar, a board shop and the surfer crowd.
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Kaštel
The fortified Kaštel facing the seafront on the northern edge of the old town has a 12th-century tower once used as a Frankopan courtroom and another round Venetian tower. The castle is now used as an open-air venue for summer concerts and plays.
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Konoba Nono
Savour local specialities like šurlice (homemade noodles) topped with goulash or scampi, just a hop and a skip from the old town. The arched rustic interior covered with fishing nets houses a small olive oil production in winter months.
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Diving Centre Krk
A number of outfits organise diving trips around the island. Try Diving Centre Krk. Popular dive sites include a sunken Greek cargo vessel and a variety of underwater caves, tunnels and coral walls around the island of Plavnik and as far as Cres.
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Šime
While it's nothing to write home about, this popular konoba by the harbour serves a good selection of pastas and local meaty treats like ćevapčići, all in a medieval-type environment or the alfresco tables.
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Adria Krk
A number of outfits organise diving trips around the island. Try Adria Krk. Popular dive sites include a sunken Greek cargo vessel and a variety of underwater caves, tunnels and coral walls around the island of Plavnik and as far as Cres.
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Glagoljica
The Glagoljica , a display of manuscripts written in Glagolitic script, is housed in the University Library. You must call for an appointment, but it's a worthwhile look at the script that is the centrepiece of Croatian national identity.
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Roman Gate
Passing under the City Tower and continuing through Trg Ivana Koblera, you'll find the oldest architectural monument in Rijeka, the Roman Gate. The lack of decoration indicates that it was probably the entrance to a Roman fortification.
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Opium Buddha Bar
The décor is Asian, the sounds are electro and the look is sleek at this temple of trenditude. With a sprawling outdoor terrace, a shadowy lounge, an exhibition space and nibblies at all hours, it's hard to find a reason to leave.
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Galija
If you don't mind foregoing sea vistas, make a climb to this cavernous place on the northwestern tip of the old town. Open year-round, it's popular with locals for its bread-oven pizzas, as well as risottos, meat mainstays and fish.
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Hemingway
With its classy wrought-iron chairs outside, this cocktail bar is hard to miss. The comfortable interior pays homage to the bar's namesake with large photos of The Bearded One on the wall and drinks named after him.
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St Quirinus
The 18th-century campanile topped with an angel statue is shared between the Cathedral and the adjoining St Quirinus, an early Romanesque church built of white stone and dedicated to the town's patron saint.
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