Entries in Rijeka

from Trieste | from Split | from Zagreb | from the sea

If you come from Trieste or Ljubljana…
Descending from Matulji towards the city you can see the whole Kvarner Bay, with the mountain Ućka at the foot of which is situated Opatija, and islands Krk and Cres. You are partly driving on the former racing track on which the motor races for the "Great Adriatic Prize" were driven before "Grobnik Track" was constructed. With the straight road that follows the coast you arrive at the swimming pool of the "Swimming Club Primorje" next to which is the football stadium "Kantrida" where the "Football Club Rijeka" plays its matches. The stadium is very interesting because was erected on the spot of excavation made for the constructing of the city port. Then, driving alongside the industrial units you can see the shipyard "3. maj" which developed from the shipyard "Ganz - Danubiuz", then you pass near large petroleum refinery, the skyscraper of "Novi list", well known daily newspaper, the town park in Mlaka after which follows the hospital complex. The central of the complex is the former Maritime Military Academy, the institution where the Austrian and Hungarian officers were educated from 1866 till 1918. Then you arrive at the railway station and here, you are in the centre of the city of Rijeka.

If you come from Split...
Passing the fascinating the Bay of Bakar you come to big petroleum refinery in Urinj. Then, you drive through the kilometres long seaside resort Kostrena and you come to the very successful ship-repairing yard "Viktor Lenac" the largest in Mediterranean and you are at Pećine. At the very entrance of the city stands a small stone monument, the gift from the Japanese city Kawasaki. In the residential part of Pećine are situated old villas, beaches and hotel "Jadran". Here are also the houses where the two eminent writers were born. They are Odon von Horvath and Janko Polić Kamov. The first fascinated Europe with his dramas, while the second, Janko Polić Kamov, only now days has gained deserved recognition as Kafka before Kafka and Joyce before Joyce. Passing beside "Pyramid", former milestone you come to "Croatian Cultural Home" and the hotel "Neboder", once the highest building in the state.

If you come from Zagreb…
Driving through Grobničko polje you come to the plane where Mongols and Turks were passing in their ruthless attacks. Today here is the racing track that was taken into consideration for the competition in the racing of Formula 1. Through the canyon of the river Rječina and underneath the castle of Trsat you descend by the market route of the road Luiziana, named after the daughter of the Austrian emperor and the second wife of Napoleon Marie Louise and you come to Sušak, the eastern part of the city. Beyond you are the former "Paper factory" and on the other bank of the river of Rječina, water - spring Zvir, which never drains and recently got the cupola covering.

If you come from the sea…
It is really fascinating experience to come in Rijeka by the sea because it is the only way to understand its elongation and soft placed position alongside the coast. Sailing around almost two kilometres along breakwater, where once was secession bathing place, you enter the port basin built according the ground plans of the French architect Pascal who designed the ports of Marseille and Trieste. After several rises and falls today the port of Rijeka looks almost idyllic with lots of sailing and fishing boats which start from here their cruises in Adriatic. The city façade toward the port consists of several palaces: "Adria" ("Jadrolinija"), the palace Zmajić the former hotel "Europe" and today the building with the municipal offices, the palace "Croatia line" once the world's biggest shipping companies headquarters, then the reticular façade of the department store "Rijeka" and the secession building of Transadria, once the biggest forwarding agencies in the state.