ja_mageia

Buzet

From Istarske Toplice it's only 10km northeast to BUZET, the second largest town in the Istrian interior, whose original old hilltop settlement quietly decays on the heights above the River Mirna, while the bulk of the population lives in the new town below. Though it's not as pretty as Motovun or Groz'nj'an, Buzet has more accommodation and is a good base from which to explore the region. The town's importance as a truffle-hunting centre is celebrated by the Buzetska Subotina festival ("Buzet Saturday"; usually the first weekend of Sept), when an enormous truffle omelette is cooked and shared out, and local pop-rock bands play on a pair of outdoor stages - the tourist office has details. Another local speciality is biska, a mistletoe-flavoured brandy available in local hostelries; it can also be bought direct, along with other herbal firewaters, from Eliksir (Mon-Sat 1 lam-2pm & 5-10pm, Sun 11 am-lpm),Vidaci 25, 3km out of town on the road to Cerovlje.

Old Buzet's cobbled streets and ruined buildings seem a world away from the new quarter down on the valley floor. A plaque affixed to a house on one of its tiny squares commemorates Stipan Konzul Istranin, a sixteenth-century Croatian writer active in the Reformation in Germany, and the first person to translate the New Testament into Croatian. The Town Museum nearby (Gradski muzej; Mon-Fri 12.30-3.30pm) has a smll collection of Roman gravestones and a display of folk costumes, particularly strong on the functional wool and hemp garments worn by the hardy villagers of the d6arija, the ridge to the east which separates Istria from Slovenia. There's an expansive view from what remains of Buzet's ramparts of the Mirna Valley below, and east over lush green hills to the imposing grey ridge of the b6arija. Buses arrive on Trg fontana, a small square in the new town. About 200m east of here, the tourist office, on the second floor of the town hall at II Istarske brigade 2 has information on private rooms, most of which are in out-of-town farmhouses. The Fontam hotel, Trg fontana 1 is a plain but tolerable three-storey place; while the smaller Sun Sport Motel on the corner of Sportska and Riječka just northeast of the tourist office, offers cosier, brighter, more modern en-suite rooms, although the ground-floor cafe can be noisy at weekends.

For eating, most local foodies head up to the Toklarija 5km south of town in Sovinjsko polje. In town, you're limited to the Bistro Panorama, just off the old town's main square, which serves up grills and fuze- and njoki-based standards in a dining room with great views of the new town below. The bar at the Sun Sport motel is the liveliest place in town for a drink.