Another one of those days…

 4 May 2024

As I’ve gotten older and gained more travel experience, I have learned to truly appreciate in the moment those days that are just pretty special from start to finish. As in, I realize they’re special as they’re happening and savor them then and there, but also tuck them away as day-long memories to savor later.  Today was one of them.

The day started as those before it did, same breakfast, same morning routine, just a couple hours earlier.  I was to meet the To Do Slovenia van at 8:10 at the Napoleon monument just outside the hotel.  The van pulled up just as I walked up with two guys from New Hampshire (go figure!) already in it.  We had a misfire with an Asian couple who also got in the van with us, nodding and agreeing to everything the guide asked them, then the two women from Chicago on my Thursday tour arrived, and it turns out they were meant to be with us instead, so we swapped the most and off we went.  It was 5 of us from the US and Damiejn our guide.  He was a cutie and very chill.  

We drove first to Vintgar Gorge, another place I’d already “run” on my treadmill. I knew what to expect from the treadmill workout, but even that could not prepare me for how awesome this actually is.  It was by far one of my favorite things I’ve ever done.  As gorges go, water from upstream or up mountain has been flowing repetitively through this crack for thousands of years, forcing its way and carving up the landscape as it sees fit.  We tourists are allowed to walk along narrow footbridges suspended along the side wall of the gorge for the length of about a mile of the gorge, experiencing rushing rapids and waterfalls along the way.  The power of Mother Nature never ceases to amaze me, and this was no exception.  I was truly blown away.  It was over way too fast.  I’d go back and do it again and do it longer, if I had the choice.  It was truly beautiful and an overall very positive experience.

Next stop was Lake Bohinj.  I’d read it was much less visited due to its somewhat out of the way location.  We arrived just as I was starting to feel hungry and were given about an hour and 15 minutes there.  Which was great, except that other than taking in the view of the lake and the mountains and the overcast and threatening sky, there wasn’t much to do.  And I was hungry.  So the Chicago ladies and I hit the single very small restaurant and had Beyond Burgers and fries with an Aperol spritz right on the edge of the lake.  We were still enjoying the lake, just multitasking.  Due to excessive chatting we did run a bit late but Damiejn was fine with that.

Interestingly, yesterday’s rain finally stopped around 7:30 am and it got progressively clearer and sunnier and warmer as the day wore on.  Except at Bohinj, was seems to be permanently sacked in with clouds.  Other than that, I could not have asked for a more picture perfect day.

We back-tracked a bit to Lake Bled.  This is probably what people think of when they think of Slovenia (if anything…so many people still don’t know it well).  Lake Bled is the iconic lake with the island with the little church on it.  It also has a castle high up on a hill over the lake and a cute little lakeside church and a gorgeous mountain backdrop.  There’s also more restaurant, shops and hotels around the lake, meaning far more people.  Not crowded to the point of uncomfortable but also not nearly alone as we were at Lake Bohinj.

I was glad to have eaten already because that was not something I wanted to waste precious time doing at Lake Bled.  But, Bled is also home to the world famous cream cake and we just so happened to be standing in front of the restaurant that invented it, so Chicago ladies and I went into have a slice and a cappuccino to fuel our next efforts.  The cream cake was quite good and I’m glad I got a slice before setting out.

We had just over 3 hours here, and my options were: climb to the castle (where another iFit run on my treadmill had started), boat out to the little island, or walk the circumference of the lake (another iFit run).  Damiejn strongly suggested the boat out to the island, but it was 20 minutes each way, plus an hour on the very small island with a bunch of other people to do what? Entering the church was another 12E, on top of 18E to get on the boat.  Nah.  So off I went up to the castle.  The sign at the base said it is a 20 minute walk and I did in 8!  (Don’t forget, I’ve technically done it before a few times!). There were three plazas over the lake within the castle grounds but I had to pay entry fee into the castle itself, which was fine.  By now though, it was hot both from the climb and being in full sun at 3 pm.  I sucked it up though and just figured out how best to take photos on a blindingly sunny day.

I was snapping away when I heard a Slovene voice talking about me and I realized it was Luka, our guide from Thursday.  We chatted a bit and I told him how I’d love to come back and hike.  He showed me some photos of a climb he did of Triglav Mountain last fall.  It looked tough but also pretty special. He slept at the top and woke for sunrise where an antelope was waiting to watch the sunrise with him from the peak.  It was fun chatting with him.  He is a good guy.  As is Damiejn.

I had just over an hour left at this point so decided to walk around as much of the lake as I could.  Damiejn said it’s about 3 miles, which I can easily do in an hour, but a part of it is closed to pedestrians.  So I decided to walk a half hour or directly opposite where I started, whichever came first.  My goal was to get closer to the island for potentially better photos that weren’t shooting directly into the sun.  Turns out the other side of the lake was just over a mile away, so I walked there and back and still had a half hour to myself, so I sat in a lakeside cafe and had an Aperol spritz.  It is vacation after all.

It was about 45 minutes back to Ljubljana.  We said our goodbyes to Damiejn and as it was only 5:30 we decided to hit the wine bar and have some Slovenian wine and cheese before dinner.  That ended up being a 4 hour affair as we really enjoyed chatting and laughing and sharing travel stories and wine and cheese became wine and dinner (shrimp salad for me — vegetables here are wonderfully fresh).  It was a great time.  It was fun to laugh like that again.  As one has relatives near me, I’d love to see them again.

I will sleep well tonight, from fresh air, robust exercise and meeting good people.  Another one of those days, I recognize that.