We used Saturday morning to plan the final weeks of our trip. We've decided to base ourselves in Split for ten days and take day trips or perhaps an overnight to an island. We will take a bus to Dubrovnik on the 8th and fly to Venice, where we overnight and fly to Boston very early the next morning. When we got tired of looking at airbnb possibilities in Split, we headed out to get bikes again, and ride to the Botanical garden. "Established in 1810, the Ljubljana Botanical Garden is Slovenia's oldest cultural, scientific and educational institution operating uninterruptedly since its foundation. The Garden contains more than 4,500 different species and subspecies. One third of them are endemic to Slovenia, while the rest originate from other parts of Europe and other continents." My favorite parts ... read more

"Standing placidly in the shadows of the Julian Alps, ringed by thick forests and guarded by a stern medieval castle, is Slovenia’s beloved Lake Bled. At its center is Bled Island, home to one most beautiful churches on the planet and the “wishing bell,” a 16th century chime consecrated by the Pope himself that is believed to grant the wishes of all who ring it." On Thursday, we took a bus to Lake Bled, where the quintessential Slovenian photo of the church on the island in a lake is taken...It was still cool in the morning, and the sun started to come out just after we arrived. We decided to walk around the lake on the 6 kilometer path and opted not to hike up to castle. Part way around, we came to the Olympic Rowing ... read more

Slovenia is a new and old place: It only gained independence in 1991. Slovenia has historically been the crossroads of Slavic, Germanic, and Romance languages and cultures, and there are sizable Hungarian and Italian populations here. Nearly all of the population between the ages of 25 and 64 speak at least one foreign language and almost three quarters of them speak two!! This is the highest percentage in the European Union. Present-day Slovenia has been inhabited since prehistoric times. There is evidence of human habitation from around 250,000 years ago. A url=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divje_Ba... read more

We took a bus up to the Victoria Faro (lighthouse) this morning, having packed our swim suits for a trip to the "beach" afterwards. We got off at the Faro, realized that we couldn't walk around it because it was a military zone, and decided to wait for the next bus, and see where it took us. We ended up Prosecco, of wine fame, riding a bus packed with high school kids going home for lunch. Once in Prosecco, we realized we would have to take a bus back down the mountain to get to the coast. This was fine, since we only got glimpses of the spectacular views on the way up. We changed buses on the coast, and got off at Barcola (if you have been paying attention you will remember that this was ... read more

We bought two-day transportation and museum passes yesterday, and started to use them today with a trip back down the coast to the Miramare Castle, and then on to the beach resort town of Sistiana. We got a bus to the Castle, but got off a stop too soon (the stop said "Miramare" in our defense!). We walked in the wrong direction, but finally found a path down towards an entrance with the help of a young woman. She told us that she has complained to the city numerous about the lack of signage! We are at the Castle after a walk along the water, and joined large tour groups of Austrians, on a pilgrimage to bask in Austria's former glory. The Castle was built from 1856 to 1860 for Austrian Archduke Ferdinand Maximilian and his ... read more