Hungary and Austria: Trieste (6.19.25)

Jonny's six-year-old son, Thomas, told me my homemade meatballs were not as good as the ones "from Italy." I told Thomas that I would go to Italy to see what really good meatballs taste like.  On June 19, 2025, Dave and I drove to Trieste, the seaport on Italy's Adriatic coast.

 

Trieste was developed by Queen Maria Theresa, in the mid-1700s, as the Hapsburgs' only seaport. Queen Maria Theresa is the sovereign on the "coin" monument above.  We took a walking tour and our guide described Trieste as a "mini Vienna," filled with baroque squares and buildings built by the Hapsburgs.

The Hapsburgs built canals so that trading ships could sail close to downtown warehouses and trading centers.

After World War II, Trieste was a free territory for several years, before being relinquished to Italy.  It was governed by the U.S. and British.  I suppose that is what this sign is all about.

As a port town, Trieste has always been a multicultural center. It still is.  Our guide led us to this beautiful Greek Orthodox church.  Trieste is, she said, full of different ethnic communities.

Trieste was originally founded as a Roman seaport.  It is also the spot where Mussolini gave his first nationalist, anti-Jew speeches before World War II.  Perhaps coincidentally, Mussolini built a house and administrative center right across the street from these Roman ruins.  He proclaimed that the Italian people would reclaim the glory of Rome.

One of the chronic problems of driving in Europe is the lack of parking.  Dave was constantly scouring city streets, looking for an empty parking space or the entrance to a parking garage.

I didn't find good meatballs in Trieste, but I did find excellent lasagna.

The gelato was great, as well.