Sunday, May 21, 2023

2023 Balkans - Day 14 Lake Bled, Ljubljana, Slovenia



Today was our final border crossing before heading home. But because both Croatia and Slovenia are part of the Schengen pact, there was no passport control. 

Slovenia is the only country in Europe that has love in its name. It’s a small country, slightly smaller than New Jersey, with only two million people. It’s geographically diverse, with plains, serious mountains (the Julian Alps) and 27 miles of seaside. There’s a Mediterranean climate in the southwest, continental in the middle and continental/mountainous climate in the Alps. In one hour, you can go from skiing to swimming. It’s one of the most forested countries in Europe, and one of most environmentally conscious. 

There are 90,000 beekeepers in Slovenia, almost 1 for every 200 inhabitants. There are lots of vineyards, about one for every 70 people in Slovenia. 

The people here are active. Besides champion basketball players and pro cyclists, there’s a saying that you’re not really a Slovenian unless you’ve climbed Mount Triglav. At 9,000 feet, it’s also the highest peak of the Julian Alps, and was the highest park in Yugoslavia before it split up. It winter, ski jumping (or ski flying) is popular, and in summer they hold the most vertical race in the world when competitors race 1,300 vertical feet up a ski jump hill in the Red Bull 400. 

Slovenia is a Slavic country, and part of the former Yugoslavia. For a period in the 7th century, it was united by a huge tribal alliance into a big country. After the alliance dissolved, the area became part of this country or that for the next thousand years. It was again briefly independent before becoming part of Yugoslavia. It managed to avoid major destructive conflicts by adopting a policy of rapid surrender. When Yugoslavia collapsed, there was only a 10 day period of war before Slovenian independence. Today, it’s the most developed country of ex-Yugoslavia, and the most expensive. 

We made an unscheduled stop at Grad Otecec, the only island castle in Slovenia. It was first mentioned in 1254. The Otecec castle was often accessible only by boat, but in 1958 the present bridge was constructed. The castle is now a luxury hotel, where you can pay 600 Euros per night for the privilege of staying.





We were most enthralled by the swans and cygnets. 




This jaunty crossing of the leg - what’s up with that?



We stopped at a little town for lunch on our way to what was, for me, the most anticipated place on the trip. 



The medieval Bled Castle is perched on a precipice overlooking the most visited tourist stop in Slovenia. We were happy to be here in May, instead of the overcrowded late summer months. 



First mentioned in 1011, Bled Castle is celebrated as the oldest castle in Slovenia. It’s been owned by bishops, Hapsburgs, and entrepreneurs. It’s now maintained by the state. 

It’s a steep but short climb from the parking lot to the castle. It looked like a treacherous walk on a rainy day, but we had the finest weather of our trip thus far. From the castle courtyard, the loveliest spot in the country spread below us: an aquamarine lake with the Julian Alps in the background, a tiny island capped with a picturesque church. 








We had about an hour to walk along Lake Bled. It’s a relatively small lake, about 1.2 miles long by .85 miles wide. We had time to walk as far as Bled Island to have a better look at the Church of the Assumption, but would have needed a bike to circumnavigate the whole lake. Little rowboats and electric boats dot the lake - but no gas motors are allowed. The Slovenian national rowing teams like to practice here. 


Tonight we’re in the capital, Ljubljana. During a short walk to the restaurant, we saw that the city is indeed, as Srdjan had told us, super cute. There will be many more tomorrow, so just one photo here for tonight:











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