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There are few more pleasant towns in Istria than ROVINJ (Rovigno). Delicately poised between medieval port and modern tourist resort, it has managed better than anywhere else along the peninsula's west coast to preserve

its character by keeping major development well away from its historic centre: its harbour is a likeable mix of fishing boats and swanky yachts, while its quaysides are a blend of sunshaded cafe tables and fishermen's nets. Spacious Venetian-style houses and elegant piazzas lend an overridingly Italian air to the town, and the festive mood the tourists bring only adds to the atmosphere. Rovinj is also the most Italian town on this coast: there's an Italian high school, the language is widely spoken, and street signs are bilingual.

Rovinj's urban core is situated on what was formerly an island. The strait separating it from the coast was filled in during the rnid-eighteenth century, after which the town expanded onto the mainland, until then the site of a quite separate settlement of Croat farmers. Initially, the urban Italian culture of Rovigno assimilated that of the mainland Slays, until industrial development in the late nineteenth century encouraged a wave of economic migrants, tipping the demographic scales in the Croats' favour. Playing a leading role in this was the Rovinj tobacco factory, founded in 1872, which still produces the bulk of Croatia's cigarettes. Rovinj's other claim to fame is as the "Montmartre of Istria" - a tag which stems from the painters and other artists who have gravitated here since the 1950s, whose studios fill the streets of the old town. For one day in August (usually the second Saturday), the main street, Grisia, is taken over by an open-air display of works in which anyone can take part, providing they register their works at the town museum on the morning of the show. The other annual event to look out for is St Euphemia's Day (Blagdan svete Eufemije) on September 16 - Euphemia being the town's patron saint - which provides the excuse for a week of cultural events and concerts.