La Parenzana
An historical monument becomes a sportive tourist attraction in Istria
This year a major new attraction was opened in Istria: ‘La Parenzana’, a new biking and hiking trail starting in Savudria, passing Buje, Groznjan, Livade, Motovun and ending in Vizinada. The path is a great way to discover Istria, passes cozy towns, offers impressive panoramic views and is accesible to all, since it is nowhere steep. Indeed it follows an old railway track, nicknamed ‘La Parenzana’. The name comes from its final destination: Porec or Parenzo in Italian.
The original railway was a project of the Austria-Hungary Empire, to which Istria belonged from 1815 to 1918. The steamlocomotives were operating on this track from 1902 to 1935. Then, during the Great Depression, it was decided to abondon the railroad. This original railway was 123 kilometers long and was one of Europe’s longest narrow gauge railway’s. Leaving Trieste it first followed the coast and then turned eastwards towards the Istrian interior with its hilly landscape. The track reaches its highest point at an elevation of 293 meters above sealevel. Due to the many bends and ascents the average trains’ speed was only some 25km/h. There were all together 35 stops. The whole journey between Trieste and Porec took around 7 hours. At slower sections passengers could even jump off the train, pick some fruit from one of many orchards or releive themselves (there were no toilets in cars) and return back to the train. Many “blind passengers”, who could not afford to buy the expensive tickets, used the option to just jump on the train. At the steepest sections locomotives often could not handle the slope. So passengers had to disembark the train and hep pushing. Sometimes the train stopped because children greased rail tracks with figs. The journey could only be continue when the tracks were cleaned.
After World War II several ideas were formulated to reconstruct or reuse the railroad at least partially for the purpose of tourism. During the preparation of the railway’s centennial celebration in 2002, with the financial support of the European Union, the Italian and most of the Slovenian sections were used for the realisation of the ‘Trail of Health and Friendship,’suitable for pedestrians an cyclists. Somewhat later similar works started at the Croatian side. In 2008 the trail from Trieste tot Vizinada was completed. Only the last section from Vizinada to Porec (approximatly 10 km) still remains to be completed.
Today ‘La Parenzana’ is suitable for walking, jogging or bycicling. The trail runs through old towns and villages, along the sea, passes vineyards and fields with olive trees, through tunnels, over bridges, across valleys and over hills. There are several stops where visitors can take a break. On the farms along the way visitors can taste local wines and olive oil. The most beautifull part leads from Motovun, via Livade to Grosnjan. It offers spectacular views on the valley of the Mirna down to the Adriatic Sea and on its way it also passes Zaversje (Piemonte) and Opertalj (Portole), two remarkable small hilltop towns, embedded in the green landscape of the beautifull hinterland of Istria.
For people who want to avoid the crowd of tourists at the coast and enjoy the calm and beauty of nature in combination with a more sportive program, this Parenzana offers just the right thing. And why not staying in a villa or typical natural stone house along the way. You have houses that offer all the confort that you may wish, including a swimming pool and spa. For houses located in the neighbourhood of La parenzana we refer to Istra Panorama
A last information: on september 2008 the 26th, 27th and 28th the bicycle race Istra MTB Tartuffi Tour will follow the track of La Parenzana. With its specific formula (tourism and professional race) it attracts numerous home and foreign cyclists coming from all over Europe.
