The Saltpans Feast on the Slovenian Coast

“Salt is the sea that could not return to the sky” read the words on Piran Salt, which is produced by a method that has remained unchanged since the times when the salty sea shoals of the Adriatic provided a source of prosperity to Piran, probably the most beautiful town on the Slovenian Coast. You can hear the story of Slovenian salt at the Saltpans Feast on 25 and 26 April in the idyllic town of Piran.

Would you like to know the story of salt? A clean sea, kind sun and a typical summer breeze are not enough to produce good salt. Slovenian salt harvesters know that to get the best salt, love is needed. In the past, whole families came to live on saltpans, where even nowadays the blossom of salt with its pink crystals, one of the best salts in the world, is produced. Today, as in the past, the salt harvesting season starts with the town’s Saltpans Feast.

This year the 13th Saltpans Feast will be held on 25 and 26 April 2015 Events on Tartini Square in Piran will present the old customs upon departure to the salt pans and preparations needed for salt harvesting, which, over the centuries, was the most important source of income for the whole town. Visitors can attend a fair dedicated to salt and the gifts of nature. Local associations, culinary providers and various artists will be presented at different locations in Piran. The events accompanying the fair will be enriched by a cultural programme and the presentation of a salt harvester’s family. The second day of the festival, a Sunday, will include the procession of St George. At noon, a salt harvester’s family will depart from Piran, where the sounds of Istrian music will entertain visitors, who are all invited to visit the culinary market and admire works of art.

One fifth of the Slovenian coast, which is 46.6 kilometres long, is a protected area. The Piran salt pans are the most northern still-operating salt pans on the Mediterranean Sea, while the Sečovlje Salt Pans Landscape Park is, among other aspects, a waterfowl habitat of international importance. Over and over again, people are attracted to the coast to improve their health and well-being. Olive trees and vineyards, through which salty winds blow, invite visitors to the coastal hinterland. The breeze is mixed with the music of virtuosi such as Tartini and with the songs of birds returning to the protected wetlands.

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