Sun 21 Sep- Farmers Markets, feast at Konoba 'Ribarnica Volosko'

Sun 21 Sep- after breakfast on a cool 13 C cloudy day, we met with Ivan to see the markets in Rijeka. There are three: green, meat and fish. Outside the buildings there are dozens of stalls with fresh produce of all kinds on sale by farmers - fruits, vegetables, spices, herbs, etc. In the markets, which are 100-year or more old protected structures, there are the more established vendors of produce and fruits; meats; and fish. We bought some fresh tuna, octopus, tomatoes, beans, lettuce, lemons, peppers and basil.
After dropping off the groceries, we continued to the neighboring town Volosko to the Konoba 'Ribarnica Volosko' for a fish feast: a white fish pate spread for the bread, grilled shrimp, a heaping plate of tiny fried fish finger food, a platter of grilled ray, whole fish and fried calamari, accompanied by white wine. It was delicious, fresh and skillfully cooked, and plenty to satisfy our appetites.
We walked around Volosko admiring the old villas and interesting architecture. Many of the villas were built by captains and owners of fishing ships of the 19th century. There are narrow winding roads too narrow for cars (and no place to park anyway), staircases up and down connecting the roads, other little seafood restaurants, art shops, museums, churches and chapels.
Ivan took us then to a hotel and restaurant high over Lovran that had an incredible view of the surroundings. On the way back, we stopped by Hotel Astra to see the rooms we are considering to stay one night in for the experience. The hotel is a protected villa with only six or so rooms available. We saw the Red and Green Rooms, and were quite impressed by the luxury and beautiful decorations.