Sunday in Trieste (May 2017)

Trieste, Italy

What better way to spend Sunday than by eating cakes in some of Trieste’s oldest cafes? My best friend M. and I went on a day trip to Trieste, Italy with the sole purpose of enjoying ourselves. There was no fixed agenda apart from our wish to visit several traditional cafes/ patisseries. It’s been a long time since I had fun in Trieste because I usually just use it for flights/ train connections. When I was a child we used to regularly go to Trieste.

Anyway, it was nice to just wander around the city center leisurely and to take in the beautiful architecture of Trieste. Very much like my hometown Trieste has more of a feel of a Central European city than a Mediterranean city. Trieste is an important Italian port and a significant university center (especially for languages) but it’s also the oldest town in Italy by the age of its inhabitants. It’s seen better days and a vivid memorial of that is its grand main square Piazza Unità d’Italia. But there are other beautiful buildings and squares too.

Trieste, Italy
at the main square

Trieste, Italy

Trieste, Italy

another famous cafe/reastaurant
the terrace of Caffè degli Specchi

After some walking around the town our first stop was the traditional and yet still very trendy café of Caffè degli Specchi. It was opened in 1839. Since it’s right at the main square (Piazza Unità d’Italia) it’s a wonderful place for some people-watching. I was surprised when the waitress handed us two roses: it was Mother’s Day and they gave red roses to every woman in the café. What a nice gesture! My best friend had excellent cappuccino and I had equally good herbal tea. I also got a biscuit while my best friend got a small portion of some sweet cream. Again, don’t you just love it when you get something extra free of charge? It was an  unusually warm day and we enjoyed our drinks at the cafe’s shaded terrace. Since it was Sunday we came across two different food markets in the center: one was French, the other was German. We also saw a very unusual sports match, a kind of canoeing basketball (!?) at the Canal Grande.

at Caffè degli Specchi
Caffè degli Specchi
Canal Grande, Trieste
Canal Grande
what an unusual sport!

Then it was time to stroll to the next café. We did some window-shopping and some actual shopping too 🙂 Unfortunately we didn’t manage to get in one interesting bookshop because we first passed by it before its opening time and then again when it was closed for lunch. Yes, some shops in Italy still close for the lunch hour. The second café we visited was Caffè San Marco which opened in 1914. There’s a bookshop in it. It’s got a different atmosphere than the first café but it’s got equally interesting decor with ornamented high ceilings. This one is more bohemian while the first one is more classical. I had excellent tiramisu while my best friend had Sacher cake. We saw a synagogue nearby so decided to check it out and see whether it’s open for tourist visits. You can actually go inside for a tour but it was closed at the time of our visit.

Caffè San Marco

So we just walked back to the main square and the seaside promenade. There was a huge cruiser. I wonder where it went next. Trieste is also famous for its annual international sailing festival Barcolana regatta. We came across vintage cars show in front of a luxurious hotel. Our final stop/café was the Ginger-Tea &Cakes café. This is a rather new café/patisserie where you can also buy different spices. It’s famous for its cupcakes. Both my best friend and I had a very refreshing lemon tart and I also had freshly made ginger&orange&apple juice. Since my friend actually likes coffee unlike me she enjoyed excellent cappuccinos in all of the three cafes that we visited.

Ginger-Tea & Cakes cafe

Afterwards we walked to the train station and toyed with the idea of buying a train ticket and going somewhere further like Venice. But we didn’t do it. It was time to go home.  This was my first day trip abroad pregnant. I felt all right except from being bloated as usually. But when I got home I noticed how swollen my feet and ankles were. Oh, well. It was a fun day trip and I’m so glad I took it 🙂

Bye bye from Trieste 🙂

 

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50 thoughts on “Sunday in Trieste (May 2017)”

  19. Trieste looks a great place for an afternoon wander, and must say the coffee and cakes would go down very well. Thanks for sharing. #TheWeeklyPostcard

    Liked by 1 person

  20. I haven’t made it to Trieste yet but would love to go on my next trip. Looks like a great city for a day trip. Thanks for sharing on #TheWeeklyPostcard.

    Liked by 1 person

  24. I fell in love with that teapot in Caffè degli Specchi! And how sweet of them to give out roses to all the women! Love a spot of people-watching too, sounds like the two of you had a fantastic time! #citytripping

    Liked by 1 person

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