Photo essay of Piran, Slovenia and Rovinj, Croatia. Venice isn’t the only city the Venetians built. Along the coast of the Adriatic Sea, Venice spread its influence for 500 years, leaving many towns in the area marked with the lion of St. Mark. These towns often look like a mini-Venice, with narrow alleys, red roofs, and bell towers. They’re on the sea and they are part of the sea, inseparable.