Sopot Waterfall and Pićan, Croatia

Once again, the Oldies managed to drag themselves (and me) away from the seaside and set off on another outing into inland Istria. No sea for me this time, but it was a fascinating trip all the same.

First stop was Pićan, a medieval walled town perched on a hilltop overlooking the vineyards and with stunning views of the panorama of hills beyond. I found it very reminiscent of Motovun, just not yet as well restored. Consequently, it is not yet overrun with tourists either, so we had the place more or less to ourselves which was lovely. Many of the main features of the town have been fully or at least partly restored. The remains of the town walls, the 14^th century town gate, the Bishop’s Palace and the beautiful Parish Church of the Announcement are all well preserved. So too is the bell-tower which was built in 1872. This is a particularly beautiful example of these typical Istrian bell-towers and, at 48 m, it is also one of the tallest.

Some of the houses in the old centre have also been well restored, but many are mere shells. In fact, I think it is a miracle that some of them are still standing. I’d have thought they would have fallen down the hill long ago. They must have extremely solid foundations!

It’s great to see that this house has a new electricity supply. All it needs now is a new door, new windows, new shutters, new roof, new floors… There are dozens more houses like this crying out for major work. Those old stones still have their uses though. I thought this was a clever repurposing of an otherwise redundant doorway.

A lone builder working on a restoration project spotted the two curious noses (and one beak) poking through an opening and immediately invited us in for a look around. Health and safety regulations are not such a big deal around here, it seems. His Lordship managed to communicate with him using his rusty smattering of Italian. No, it was not his house, the builder explained. He was just working there. But in typical Istrian fashion, he described, not the technical details of the build, but which parts of the project were especially dear to his heart.

This ancient town has a long history and many legends. Come to think of it, I suppose a legend is the ancient equivalent of our modern day ‘fake news’… Anyway, there were actually two patron saints of the same name in this town, adding to the confusion. The first was Saint Nicephorus the Bishop, the second Saint Nicephorus the Martyr. I particularly liked the story of the second one.

Apparently Constantine the Great ordered the martyr’s body to be put to sea on a ship which set sail from Constantinople. Wherever the ship came to shore, a church was to be built on that spot in his honour. The extended version of the story has it that after the ship landed in Istria, the body was put on the back of a horse which was let run free. The church was to be built wherever it chose to stop, which, of course, was in Pićan. Now, why the horse chose to climb that steep hill, I don’t understand. I mean, it carried the body from sea level to an altitude of 360 m! Whatever about Nicephorus being a martyr, I reckon that makes the horse a bit of a martyr too. Or a bit of an eejit, whatever way you like to look at it.

After our recent trip to the stunning waterfalls in Krka National Park, we have all become big fans of vertical water. It was a no-brainer where our next stop would be when Her Ladyship spotted Slap Sopot (now there’s a tongue-twister if ever I heard one!) on the map. This stunning waterfall, at 30m is the highest in Istria, but it is its unusual setting that makes it so special. Only about 6 km from Pićan and a short walk from the tiny village of Floričići, Sopot waterfall can be viewed from above, where an ancient stone bridge spans the river. It drops dramatically through a hole in the rocks just past the bridge, falling into a deep pool of an almost unreal green hue.

The whole place has a touch of the unreal about it. This would make a brilliant setting for a fantasy film! ‘Superhero Seamus swoops down by the thundering falls. Without a moment’s hesitation, he fearlessly dives into the icy waters to retrieve the fallen key to the Empire of the Birds before it is lost forever…’

The Oldies were far too much on edge to allow me indulge my fantasies, however. They were terrified of venturing close to the falls, especially once they realised that the underside of the cliff face was eroded away beneath their feet. Boring Oldies. I think this is the only film we’ll be seeing today: https://youtu.be/M-5xyQ63ZPc

Superhero Seamus has had his wings clipped once again.