I am constantly reminded of the wealth of unusual or widely unknown but, yet, very interesting archaeological and historical heritage that occurs here in Istria.
The other day I witnessed the dramatisation of the, admittedly, rather far-fetched legend about a famous British privateer and one-time lieutenant governor of Jamaica, Sir Henry Harry Morgan. I had never heard of this before but the legend is widely reported in official Istrian tourism commentaries especially in relation to Kanfanar and Dvigrad.
The legend suggests that Harry Morgan buried his treasure in Dvigrad, itself a very interesting ruined Roman basilica/medieval castle near Kanfanar in central Istria, set in the valley which becomes the Limski Kanal (Lim Bay). Whilst this may or may not be true, as the treasure remains reputedly undiscovered, it was portrayed in a lively and fun-filled play, the production by a very jolly bunch of actors from a local acting troupe, with songs, dance and gymnastics and very definitely with audience participation! In order to encourage the audience, very satisfying food and drink was provided in the manner of a pirate’s likely feast, “post-action”.
This happy evening entertainment encouraged me to think about the other many unknown surprises or informative activities that can be found here to increase one’s better understanding of the culture and lifestyle of the Istrian population over the centuries and which has brought it to today’s very hospitable but also healthy environment. There is a trove of archaeological treasures to be found from pre-historic times to the twentieth century – the 21st century is a bit too recent for the moment!
And the point is that the adventure of discovery of these “treasures” can be part of one’s medical rehabilitation programme or post-operative recovery period. One can easily enjoy the very informative (and historically accurate in essence) but loosely-scripted, improvised presentations on various aspects of the history and development of Istria by requesting inclusion of such activities as part of one’s medical tourism package. Such activities would clearly be a welcome addition to ordinary recreational tourist activities in the locality of your place of medical care. Istria inspirit* has a regular programme of events each summer and they are spread around Istria so that a greater knowledge of the peninsula can be experienced at the same time as benefiting from the invigorating air and climate of Istria towards your medical care needs.
