Fairytale Trail

Today after our routine of getting dressed and breakfasted, we hopped in Otto and headed northbound for about 45 minutes, almost to the Austrian border, to the town of Bled.  We passed more adorable alpine looking towns with chalet-style houses and a big orthodox-looking church in the middle of town.  

Once we reached Bled, we headed straight for the lake (fittingly called Lake Bled).  We found great parking and started snapping photos and breathing in the fresh clean air right away.

On the one end of the lake is a medieval castle perched high on a cliff, but it's what's in the middle of the lake that we were most interested in: a tiny island with a church, belltower and cafe.

There is a special kind of boat that takes you across the lake called a pletna.  They have been built the same way for centuries, and a proud guild of oarsmen will ferry you to the island for a small fee.  These pletna rowers are all part of a Lake Bled pletna union - they pool their earnings, give a cut to the tourism board and evenly divide up the rest of the funds between them.  There have been other ferries who come in and try and undercut the pletnas, but the locals know which pletnas are the original.

We picked a pletna and shared it with an American couple, an Israeli couple, a Belgian couple and a large Saudi family.  Our rower used short strong bursts with large oars to push us across the lake.  We decided we would not want to be challenged to an arm wrestle with one of these guys.

The scenery is stuff that fairytales are made of.  The leaves have just started to change and the air is crisp, but not yet cold.  Most of the other buildings on the lake are pretty romantic looking as well, except for some of the communist era hotels (Ron jokes they are long on concrete, short on style).  Former Yugoslav president-for-life Tito has a villa on the lake, which has been turned into a hotel.

Also on the lake we noticed some yellow lane markers - the lake has hosted the World Rowing Championship several times.

Once we docked on the island we were given a paltry 30 minutes to explore, so we headed up the steaps and took a look at the Church of the Assumption of Mary, then headed into the cafe to try one of the two cakes that are native to the lake - a walnut roll with cream, usually eaten around Christmastime.  The cafe sold a coffee table book about the cake, recipes and cake accessories.  We ordered our slice and quickly ate it as the clock was counting down.  We give the cake a 5/10.

Back on the pletna boat (we had to wait a while for the large family to get there) and we were on our way back to the mainland.  We struck up a conversation with the American couple, who had been in Slovenia for a few weeks and stated of all the places they have traveled (and it sounded like a lot), Slovenia was the most beautiful.  It's difficult to disagree.

One animal we saw a lot of at the lake were swans.  They were everywhere.  If you stop anywhere along the lakes banks, they will swim up to you, hoping that you feed them.

Back on the mainland and it was time for a late lunch and to try the other cake native to the area, the Bled cream cake.  We noticed that we were just a few days early for the Bled cream cake festival.  Well shit.  We headed to the Panorama Restaurant that overlooks the lake and ordered some soup, and then the famous cake.

As you can see from the photo, it is cream and custard sandwiched between pastry.  It is delectable.

After our cakes and a cup of coffee, we headed back to Otto and decided to take a scenic cruise around the Julian Alps.  The road was generally pretty good, although there were a few nerve-wracking switchbacks and hairpins turns.  Again, the scenery was nothing short of stunning - red, yellow and orange leaves, green hills, picturesque vistas.  We drove up and around Mount Triglav (the mountain on their flag), slowed down to take long looks at the beautiful little villages with their flower-lined balconies and Slovenia's traditional roofed hay-drying racks.

We wanted to get back into Ljubljana before it started to get dark, so we decided to end our Alpine odyssey and head back home via Bled.  

Conveniently enough, right next to our B&B there is popular pub, so we settled in there for dinner and a couple (4) pints.  We ate, polished off our brews and turned in.

The Runaround

Yesterday was a travel day for us.  Again, no photos. 

We packed up our things and checked out of our apartment, loaded up Otto and headed due north - to Slovenia!  While in Slovenia we're setting up home base in the capital of Ljubljana.  We gassed up and tried to spend our last Croatian kuna as they use Euros in Slovenia.  About an hour on the road and we approached a small border crossing.  We handed over our passports which got stampeda nd handed back,  We all cheered "hooray!  We're in Slovenia!"  About one minute later we approach another border stop.  A Slovenian border guard asks for our passports, which he scans, stamps and hands back, sending us on our way.  "Hooray!  NOW we're in Slovenia!"

We read about Slovenia on our drive - a little smaller than New Jersey with a quarter of the population. Slovenia was virtually untouched in the Balkan war because as soon as Yugoslav president-for-life Tito died, Slovenia said "peace out" and were on their own.  No one else argued with them or came after them as their population is mostly ethnic Slovene.  Of all the Balkan nations, Slovenia is the most Germanic - efficient, industrious and organized.

We noticed a change in the topography as well - from Adriatic palm trees and red tiled roofs to coniferous trees and Bavarian style chalets.  A drive along a misty mountain and we ended up at a beautiful blue river - and our B&B, Dvor Tancen.  The building is a repurposed country mansion with 7 clean and romantic rooms.  We dropped our bags and chatted with the innkeep.  She offered us great directions to the closest laundrette, so Ron headed up to the room for a snooze and Kelly and Judy went and did some laundry.  

Once laundry was washed, dried and folded, we headed back to the inn and woke up Ron and headed to the inn's quaint restaurant for some dinner.  We lingered on the patio as it was such a beautiful evening, then headed up the stairs and snuggled down into bed.

Today the 3 of us got ready, ate a great breakfast at the inn and then hopped on the bus, heading for downtown/old town Ljubljana.  Ron had to go to the ER to get his cast off and stitches out, so once we found the beautiful old town, Judy and Ron headed towards the hospital and Kelly was on her own.

Kelly hung out in the town square, took a few photos and people watched.  Slovenians are very stylish in their fall duds, the women in their beautiful double-breasted trench coats and men in their sweaters over button-down tops and sumptous leather shoes.  Everyone she spoke to was extraordinarily friendly as she did a short walk about the town, not wanting to see too much without ma and pa.

Kelly sat at the statue of Slovenian poet Preseren, watched the stylish locals and listened to the street musicians.

Kelly then decided she would do something that she knew her folks wouldn't be interested in, and that was explore the local museum of modern art.  She went to the tourist info and picked up a city map and headed over to the museum.

One of the pieces was on the pavement in front of the museum was a comment on directions and pedestrian instructions in public spaces around the world.

No photography was allowed inside, but Kelly lost track of time amonst the Slovene modernist, expressionist and avant-garde works.  She particularely like the Partisan resistant art and lithographs.

One of the workers informed her that there were more works at the contemporary art museum on the other side of town, which houses 21st century works by Slovene masters.

After an hour and a half, Kelly headed back to the city square to relax on one of the Triple Bridges.

Meanwhile, when Kelly was enjoying her day, Ron and Judy were getting the runaround.  They had headed to the ER to get his stitches out.  They told him that it wasn't there he would get it done, he would have to go to a clinic where he was staying in the Tacen area of Ljubljana.  They then came back to the town square and asked at tourist info where they could go.  The clerk called a clinic who said that they could go there to have the stitches out.  So they headed up to the clinic, where they were told to go to the ER to have it done.  Annoyed, they headed back across town to the hospital, and told them the situation.  Finally, the nurses agreed and they sat in emerg until it was time.  43 stitches out and a new cast and Ron was ready to go, and met back up with Kelly at the town square.  

We were all pretty hungry so we found a traditional Slovene restaurant where Kelly and Ron had beers.

We had a great meal (definitely more German, with mustard, cabbage and schnitzel) and found the bus back to our B&B, where we had a dessert and then turned in.

Tartufi Up the Wazoo

Yesterday morning we had another leisurely time getting up and ready before taking the 1-hour drive to an Istrian hill town called Motovun.  We had heard that if you are going to go to one of the hill towns, Motovun is the one you should visit.  Fun fact - it is the birth place of former Formula 1 champ Mario Andretti.  I know what you're thinking.  Isn't Mario Andretti Italian?  Turns out until 1946 Motovun belonged to Italy and was known as Montona, but as we all know, Italy lost the war and had to hand over some land to Yugoslavia, including Montona/Motovun.  Andretti was born in 1940, so then it was technically Italian.

Anyway, we had a lovely scenic drive through very Tuscan looking landscape when we finally got to the base of the hill.  Visitors (us included) are instructed to park at the base of the hill and climb the wobbly winding cobblestoned streets to the top.

Along the way up, the streets are lined with shops and vendors selling what Motovun does best - wine, olive oil and truffles (both of the black and white varieties).  It was a beautiful warm day and a gentle cool breeze blew through the town.  We learned about the town history and took a look at its crest.

The town itself is heavily fortified, with not one, not two, but three defensive walls.  We took the Rick Steves walking tour which took about 5 minutes (seriously) and looked through the one church, bell tower, and highest defensive wall.

The tiny town also hosts a popular film festival where you can schmooze and rub shoulders with B, C and D-list celebrities.  We noticed a banner for the annual truffle festival, which sadly we will be missing.  Once we had exhausted the town's sites we decided to eat lunch at a highly recommended restaurant, Konobo (Inn) Mondo.  The restaurant is run by a Croatian-Italian fusion family and serves Croatian-Italian fusion food.  We all ordered pasta, most of which included truffles.  Ron's pasta had a few white truffles liberally shaved over top.  Our waiter was very friendly, so we asked about truffles.  Here are some things we learned:

1.  White truflles are rarer and therefore far more valuable than black truffles.  The white truffles also have a more pungent aroma and have a much shorter hunting season (mid September - December as opposed to March - November).

2.  The largest white truffle discovered in the area weighed 3 pounds and helped put Motovun on the truffle map.

3.  In Istria, as opposed to France and Italy (where they use pigs), they use specially trained dogs to hunt out the truffles.  Truffles grow completely underground, at the bases of oak trees.  The dogs will pick up the smell and start digging, indicating to the human where the truffles are.  The hunting usually happens in the wee small hours of the morning, when the sense are heightened.

We paid the tab and headed back down the streets, when Kelly noticed a cute print that had a simple drawing of Motovun's skyline and said, "Ceci n'est pas Motovun".  Kelly remarked that it was an homage to Belgian painter Rene Magritte and decided to go in and look around the shop.  They found some cute postcards and while paying, the clerk said that she was only the second person of the season to make the connection to Magritte.  Feeling pretty proud of herself, we continued down to the car and left Motovun, also leaving there our taste for truffles.

We got back to Rovinj and decided that since it was our last night in Croatia and on the Adriatic, we should take a sunset sail.  The harbour in Rovinj is full of agencies eager to take your dollars for a sail, so we picked one out, got our tickets and decided to have a drink before departure.  The clerk who sold us our excursion told us it was the last sail on the last day of the season - what luck!  When it was time to go, we found the San Marino, climbed aboard the little boat and were on our way.

Warning: Lots of pictures of the sunset ahead.

The water was calm and the temperature perfect.  Although it wasn't a sailboat we were on, Judy still felt the exhilaration of being on the ocean, wind in your face and the sound of the sea spray in your ear.

We got all cozy at the bow of the boat when one of the sailors came by with a caddy.  "Water, juice or wine?" he offered.  Kelly and Ron had a white wine and Judy had a juice, all served in plastic cups.  

We went further and further out, past some islands, when pretty soon it was only us and the odd fisherman.  Or so we thought...

Turns out this Adriatic bay is home to many many dolphins!  Once we would spot some, the skipper would steer towards them slowly and then cut the motor, as not to frighten them.  We all ooo-ed and ahhh-ed like school children every time one would jump.

The sunset turned the sky red and we sat, trying to decide what was more magnificent - the sky or the sea.  The sailor who had originally served us started indulging in wine.  He said that he doesn't like to drink alone, so every time he poured himself a cup, he would top up Ron's.

After a good hour and a bit on the water, it was time to head back to the harbour.  The boat moored and we disembarked, all agreeing that this was the perfect way to end our time on the coast. 

We made a pit stop at an ice cream place called "Chocolat", which not only had a great selection of ice creams, but a fantastic selection of dark chocolate ice creams.  It was the best ice cream we've had on the trip, and we've eaten a lot of ice cream!  We got our cab and headed back to the apartment for the night, our last sleep on the coast.