Opicina, Trieste, Italy

The name Opicina has Celtic origins and according to the best accredited sources, means "rock". Its first mention dates back to a document from 1308 which mentions the name Optchena. Until the early 1900s, Opicino was a rural village consisting of a few houses in the heart of the Trieste plain and has only recently become a decently-sized, proper commercial town, completely autonomous, containing a good proportion of the Slovenian minority. House prices have rocketed since the opening of lovely bars and restaurants, the installation of cash dispensers and classy shops. There still remain some original typical Carso constructions with well, stables and courtyard enclosed by large, wooden doors on which you can still see the divine inscription IHS with a cross and a heart. The church at the center of the village, is dedicated to Saint Bartholemew. Opicina also holds the tram terminus, the old means of transport that links the city and the plain and the famous Sant' Honoré confectioners, one of the city's most tasty and popular which is worth at one visit once you are up there. There are many walks and excursions in the Carso woods that set off from here as does the main road that leads to Slovenia and Croatia.