Croatia: Istria - Rovinj - Poreč (1/2) - Travel Report from the TV series "Time Out"

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• published: 13 Apr 2015
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Istria is the destination of my “Timeout”, to relax on the Adriatic Sea, enjoy the water and have fun with friends. Istria seems to be the right place – not as overcrowded as Italy 01:26 In Punat the sailing trip begins. First stop is the harbor of Male Losinj. We visit a Dolphin station in Veli Losinj and sail out to see the dolphins of the Adriatic Sea in nature. The sea is calm, so we might have a chance of spotting the dolphins. 03:24 Visit of the Late Roman and Early Byzantine Euphrasian Basilica in Poreč. From the church tower we have a beautiful view of Porec. Just outside we visit the stalagmite caves, where we see the rare animal olm, or proteus. 05:22 Paladini further inland is known for its specialty, which can be found under oak trees: black truffle. The truffles are searched with dogs that dig the black truffle. We taste the truffles: A truffle plater and afterwards the specialty of the house – a truffle-egg dish. The black truffles are in season all year round, the white ones only from September to January. The black ones you find on the mountain, the white ones in the valley. 10:17 In the bay of Rovinj we are supposed to get an introduction to diving. The diving teacher explains the basics of diving. The bottle has a pressure of 200 bar, which means that we have 2000 liters of air. 12:35 The hotel manager Peter Lösch tells us that Istria is the Tuscany of the future. Tom, a star-chef, is a well-known TV chef in Croatia: We want the direct contact with the guest, so there is no menu, the menu comes from conversation. We eat Adriatic scampi with chickpea puree, a Japanese Tataki, scallops panfried underneath a paste of white beans, foie gras with salt and sugar, cognac and port wine, duck terrine with white bacon. 17:37 We make a boat tour on the 13 km long Lim canal, also called Limski fjord. Here's a pirate's cave because according to a legend the pirate Captain Morgan lived here. Some call it “Winnetou cave” because the movie “Der Schatz im Silbersee” (The treasure in Silver Lake), with Goijko Mijtic, was filmed there and at Mitvicer Lake. 20:50 We are invited to sample olive at Sandy's, known for producing the best olive oil in Istria. Oliveoil tasting is very similar to wine tasting. We have to pivot the glass with the oilfor two minutes, then smell it and if you taste it then, take a small quantity in the mouth, then you take a small quantity of air and you wait a few seconds before you drink it. When you put the oil in the mouth it's a very intensive taste of green olives, when you drink the oil, than comes the aftertaste that is spicy and bitter. When the oil is spicy and bitter this means that it is full of antioxidants and polyphenols. If you have a sweet taste, then it's a low quality olive oil. A film by Peter Stromberg from the documentary series "Time Out"