An Unplanned Year

Today we headed into Slovenia for a couple of days in Ljubljana on our way south.
Our first stop was at Lake Bled for a quick lunch on another very hot day.

Walking back to the car we stopped in at an ice rink because 1. it was cold inside and 2. we’ve never seen an ice rink before!

Our main activity was a walk through Vintgar Gorge.

A 2km walk through a gorge just outside Bled. The water was crystal clear and so inviting but there was no way to access it until we reached the end of the gorge.

We were not willing to walk down the steep hill to get in, especially as we’d have to climb back up it afterwards to continue the trek.

The second part of the trek/slog (in 35°C) was 4km up a hill and back to where we started. It was disgustingly hot, sweaty and steep.

Slovenia so far is very hilly, no wonder Pogacar goes up hills on his bike so easily.

When we got back to our car via a shuttle from the starting point we finished the trip into Ljubljana. Just want a shower right now.

---

We had a food tour booked this morning, so we jumped on a bus into town and wandered around for a bit, browsing some early markets before meeting our guide.

It was already hot.

We were the only two on the tour so it was essentially a private tour.
We started near the central markets with Burek, filled with cottage cheese.

Yum.

Our second stop was at a family owned small goods and wine producer where we had a glass of Krampač, Slovenian wine and ate a platter of prosciutto, pickled ham, salami, grated fresh horseradish, duck pate, pork crackling, pickles and cucumber.
Third stop was a truffle shop for tasting truffle oils, olive oils, pumpkin seed oil (amazing-bought a bottle) and some delicious fruit liqueurs called Borovničev’c.
Fourth stop was at a shop that makes Potica a traditional dish made with walnuts and a pastry, rolled and baked in a special handmade dish. We saw a video on how they make both the dish and the cake.

It was then on to another site to try the traditional Slovenian sausage
Carniolan kranjska klobasa served with Mustard and a horseradish puree and a traditional Slovenian wine Cviček.
We then stopped at another restaurant for Bograč goulash with štruklji and a Slovenian cabernet sauvignon. Delicious.
Our final stop was for a sweet Štruklji made with walnuts and a cold Traminec wine.
After the tour we made our way back to our hotel to take a break from the heat, 38°C today. If/when it cools a bit later (🤞) we might jump on a bus back into town. I did some admin and Kevin did our laundry.

The heatwave has been so strong here they’ve installed a temporary spray shower for people to cool down in.

---

It was still 35°C at 9pm so we didn’t go back into town last night.
This morning we jumped on the bus and went back in, optimistic the day would be cooler. It was, 33°C, but those 5° make a huge difference on how much you enjoy walking around a city. Or anywhere.

As we wandered the cobbled streets and lanes it rained, only lightly, and for about 10mins but it rained. The first rain we’ve seen in a very long while – maybe since May in Faroe Islands.
Our first main stop was Stoinica sv. Nikolaja, a very ornately decorated cathedral with an amazing ceiling.

The doors to the cathedral are amazing copper works of art. A bit like Rodin’s ‘Dante’s Inferno’ but reflecting the history of Ljubljana from Jason and the Argonauts to more recently.

Then we walked up to hill to Ljubljana  Castle. Over 900 years old it has been used as a garrison to protect against the Turks, a military hospital and an Arsenal. Today it is a tourist attraction and an exhibition centre. There is also a funicular to take you up if you don’t want to walk, however the queue for it was well over an hour.

There was a nice view over the city to the hills in the distance, but you couldn’t see much of the old town from above because of the trees and brush.

Fun fact: in Slovenia, forests cover almost 60% of the land and it is the third most forested country in European Union, behind Finland and Sweden!
Lunch was a shared potato goulash with Slovenian sausage, yum.
We then walked through Kongresni trg Square  on our way to the river for a boat trip.

The boat took us along the Ljubljianica river out of the city centre

and back again.

It was starting to get hot and with Kevin feeling a little under the weather we headed back to our hotel, stopping for an ice-cream along the way to cool down.