Jewel of Slovenia

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Hi Everybody!
Slovenia is a charming country and reminds me of Germany. Everything is lush and green with pretty flowers everywhere. The houses all have window boxes that are overflowing with bright colored flowers. Tito, the Communist leader of Yugoslavia, had a summer villa here and often entertained heads of state in Bled. Bled is a small alpine town that sits by peaceful Lake Bled. It has a 1000 year old castle hanging from the side of a cliff. The Julian Alps - named after Julius Casesar are a backdrop for the town. In the middle of Lake Bled is a fairytale island with a small church. During the Communist reign, the church was closed and wedding were outlawed in the church. Today, it is a popular site for weddings. The Slovenians have a tradition that the groom has to carry his bride up the 98 steps. I bet there are many brides that are motivated to diet in hopes that the groom makes it up all of the steps. We toured the Bled Castle and museum. We watched the rowing teams practice on the lake. Bled has produced many Olympic medalists in rowing.
Last night, we stayed in a sobe over a restaurant in a small farming village. We noticed that every village had a shrine with a statue of the Virgin Mary at its entrance. Candles were burning at the base of the statue. Over 90 percent of the people are Catholic wtih only 2 percent Muslim and 2 percent Serbs. The people are very industrious and seem to have more on the ball than the other countries that we have visited. Everything is clean and neat!
Take care,
Everette

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