Blogs from Slovenia, Europe - page 57

Day 15 (Friday, September 19th, 2008) We awoke to a sunny but chilly day in Ljubljana, our first glimpse of sunshine in five days! After eating breakfast at our hotel, we left and walked to the nearby tourist office where we purchased tickets for the walking tour. The tour is put on by guides from the tourist information office at a cost of 10 Euros per person. We met our guide in front of the Town Hall around the corner from the Triple Bridge. During the two hour duration of the tour, our guide took us all over the central core of Ljubljana, including a trip up to the castle via a funicular ride. We also saw other landmarks such as the gorgeous interior of the Cathedral of St. Nicholas and several of the numerous bridges ... read more

Logarska Dolina - T K Perk After a relatively cloudy and cold day yesterday, this morning started bright and clear. I awoke just before sunrise, so I was out in position to get some shots of the sun coming up over the mountains in the east. The panoramic vistas are truly stunning, and the sun picked out some of the detail as it rose. Breakfast was as before, but this time we found out that the cured meat was called elodec, for which the farm had won many awards, it’s not surprising as it really is good. Today we decided to take a drive into Solčava, then to Logarska Dolina. The village/town of Solčava was packed. We found out that there was a funeral happening and there were mourners everywhere, carrying large red votives and one ... read more

Logarska Dolina - T K Perk Well the morning dawned and it was raining. We managed to have breakfast, check water levels and leave Graswang by 0855, so not a bad effort. The journey today took us via Bad Tolz, Salzburg, Villach, Klagenfurt and then into the mountains to get to Logarska Dolina in Slovenia. For once the journey was relatively un-eventful. We checked the water twice and on neither occasion did I need to fill her up, so this water business is very confusing. Before entering Austria I plucked up the courage to ask for a Vignette Oustriche, which allowed us to drive on the Austrian motorways. We entered Slovenia via a little used pass from Bad Eissenchappel, and there was snow, well enough to make the smallest snowman possible. After taking the obligatory pictures ... read more

Ljubljana, Slovenia Thursday 7th February 2008 After scouring Venice’s back streets for an Indiana Jones filming location (Church of San Barnaba, which we eventually found), we headed to the train station. Considering the time of year, and the temperature the previous evening, it was quite warm. We stopped outside the train station for an ice cream before boarding the train to Ljubljana. The capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, was our next stop, north east of Venice. The train journey was thoroughly enjoyable as we said goodbye to Italy, and said hello to Slovenia. Arriving by night in Ljubljana we attempted to seek out accommodation. We eventually opted for Hostel Celica, a converted military prison, which wasn’t too far from the train station. We signed in, had our photographs taken with a bunch of excitable Chinese tourists and ... read more

Ljubljana Saturday 9th February 2008 We woke early in order to see the city. We passed through the centre with our cameras and proceeded to visit Ljubljana Castle. Ljubljana Castle sits upon a rather tall hill and is accessible via foot or funicular. We of course opted for the funicular. The views from the castle are spectacular; the entire cityscape is visible and the Alps on the Austrian border can be seen. The panorama above was taken after spotting a small child seemingly running from something. I quickly snapped a photograph and realised he could well have been running from a certain back street bar with a ‘skeleton’ theme. We spent the following few hours in the skeleton bar consuming pints and shots. Afterward, Rob and I managed to consume one of the largest pizzas I ... read more