Porec lies in Istria, at the top end of the stretch of coast that forms Croatia. It can be easily reached from Italy or (as I did) from Slovenia. It has all the characteristics of other Croatian towns that I've visited over the past few years: pretty silhouette against the Mediterranean, grey stones, orange tiles. It really is different from the mountainous and forested Slovenia.

The town is small enough to easily get your bearings. There's large public parking just inland of the old city center. From there I walked along the seashore to the sharp tower that indicates the location of the Euphrasian Basilica. Entry is from the back, somewhere in the warren of streets, but I found it right away. There's an entrance fee of 40 kuna (about 5.20 EUR). There were a handful of other visitors around.

The basilica is a complex of buildings, and there's a route signposted that takes you through all of them. It starts at the atrium, a nice open space nowadays where a group of musicians were rehearsing for some concert later. Behind it lie the stairs that will bring you to the top of the bell tower. Climbing it is a must here: it has great views over the orange-tiled roofs of Porec, and on the mosaics that cover the facade of the basilica.

The circuit then goes on to the "Mosaics Museum": a collection of loose stones and tiles that have been recovered from this site. It includes some excellent early mosaics of subjects like vines, reminiscent of Roman pieces. Finally, you'll end up in the main church - with a Byzantine blinking golden apsis. I just sat down for a while to take all the glitter in. It's not as exuberant as the ones in Ravenna, as other reviewers also noticed, but still pretty enough for a regular Thursday afternoon...

When you study the figures in the apsis closely, you'll discover Bishop Euphrasius himself. He is carrying a model of this basilica in his arms.