How do you know when you get to the middle of nowhere? On a prominent wall in the café in the middle of the place there are three clocks showing time in New York, London, and Rome. Of course, you are in Pazin. That is, Pisino in Italian or Mitterburg in German. And the German name—in free translation, Middleville—comes closest to its essence. Geographically, it is in the middle of Istria.

Addendum (September 10, 2009)

Barbara Glauning claims that Mitterburg is an Austrian noble name—just like Habsburg, say—rather than a geographic designation. If it were, Pazin would be called Mittelburg in German. She also claims that the family name could not come from a misspelling of the town’s name. Shucks. Barbara knows her German, too. But, no matter. Pazin unquestionably remains in the middle of nowhere, anyway.