I'm afraid that I've been dropping the ball lately in keeping people up to date as to where I am and what I've been doing. There's a few excuses for this - expensive internet fees being one, and a lack of exciting stories to tell being the other. So, instead of a "literary" piece, I'm going to give you a quick-and dirty rundown of Slovenia, with Croatia soon to follow.
Slovenia - who knew? I was expecting some poor, back-water place with donkey carts in the streets, but no...
It's gorgeous - a perfect blend of Italy and Europe. (Not that Italy isn't Europe, but you get my gist.) The only downside is that it's as expensive as either. My first stop there was Koper - nice, but unremarkable.
Next was the capital (Can you guess? I bet not.) of Ljubljana (sounds like Loobleeahna). It is a gorgeous city, with plenty of old neo-classic architecture, including cobblestone streets, and even a picturesque castle on a hill. My favorite, though, is the dragon bridge, with the four coolest dragon sculptures I've ever seen sitting on the corners.
From there I took a day trip to Postanja (The j's are pronounced as a y.) where there is an old castle (Are there any other kind, really?) tucked away in a cave. There's a interesting story attached to it, as well. The one-time owner of the castle, a knight by the name of Erasmus, was under siege for months(?), and liked to taunt his attackers by showing that he was quite well provisioned and could hold out a long time. In what seems to me an unwise display, he went so far as to eat fresh cherries where they could see him. Now, you would think the invaders would get the hint, and realize he was using the cave to go out some back entrance for supplies, then try to find it, but instead they used a more direct approach. They bribed a servant, who lit a candle when he the went to the john, and blew it up with a with a cannon while he was on it. Not such a romantic ending for our hero, Erasmus, is it?
That night back in Ljubljana I met a guy who asked me if I knew whether Jean Claude Van Damme's son was OK. Figured I might know him. He was curious because he (himself, not Van Damme) once kicked Mike Tyson's ass. (Not the boxer, but the mixed martial arts guy.)
Why do I always attract the crazy people?
The following day I lost the hat I had made in India to replace my precious ratty hat. Good thing I made two, I guess.
On a side note - Did you know this part of Europe still has wolves? They never were without them, apparently. They also don't have deer jumping through windshield so often as back home. I wonder if there is a connection?
I then went to Bled - a very cool little town with another picturesque castle on a hill, and an equally quaint church in the middle of a turquoise-colored lake. Being filled with fish, I had to try my luck. Using my Indian fishing rig (line with a hook, wrapped around a small plastic bottle) and a little brown bread as bait, I caught a huge 14" trout within about three minutes. Not sure about the legality of my catch (though I saw plenty of other people fishing) I stuffed the still-wiggling fish into my satchel and tried to look casual as I walked back to my place to fry him up for dinner. Later I found out the reason why there are so many fish - a one day permit costs about 100 Euro. ($140!) Yes, I poached a fish in Slovenia. Sorry. (But it was SO tasty!)
The next day I went for a paddle around the lake in the only boat that wasn't already rented - a wooden, swan shaped one usually used by couples. (The owner told me he's had guys rent them together, and they always make a point of saying they are not gay.) That evening I visited the castle, and listed to a local play country music on the terrace of the attached restaurant. Country Roads, Take me Home, sounds a little funny in Slovenian, but not so bad.
There's a pretty and somewhat dramatic gorge nearby as well, also perfect for fishing, but I only caught one. I threw it back. (Actually, it slipped back in as I tried to do the humanitarian thing and step on it's head to put it out of it's misery before going into the satchel. In my haste to keep from being caught, I only accomplished breaking the line. I then got caught in a violent rain/ hail storm on the way back. That's karma for you.)
Next was the Skocjanske (No idea how you say this.) caves where, allegedly, Dante Alighieri, of Dante's Inferno fame (I still don't understand why it's not Alighieri's Inferno, but whatever.) got the idea for his different levels of Hell. I was disappointed a bit to discover, half-way through the tour, he never actually went in - he only saw the mouth of the cave. If only he had ventured into it's depths - then, what a vision of Hell would he have had! The weird, fantastic, massive formations were quite impressive, but I believe I've seen their equals, or better, in the States. Though the main cavern, the largest accessible one in Europe, is pretty spectacular and has few rivals anywhere in the world, I imagine.
Piran is nice - an old town on the coast, though I think most people go for the beaches. Some are clothing-optional. (Oh, you have to love European sensibilities.) I tried to even out my tan a bit, but was unsuccessful. (Lucky I didn't burn my butt, or worse...) That night was neat, though, as I went for a swim as saw for the first time the famous glowing plankton. I was expecting that they actually glowed for a while after being disturbed by motion, but they don't. They just flash briefly, so the effect is more of a sparkle as you move through the water. Isn't nature grand?
I'd been doing a little hitch-hiking since Bled, and, remarkably, caught a ride with the same old gentleman who got me to the Dante cave. Svato was great - he let me stay at his place, we drank home made wine, talked politics, and he showed me how to make a proper goulash. The next day he dropped me off so I could catch a ride to Croatia, which I will tell you about shortly.
Slovenia - who knew? I was expecting some poor, back-water place with donkey carts in the streets, but no...
It's gorgeous - a perfect blend of Italy and Europe. (Not that Italy isn't Europe, but you get my gist.) The only downside is that it's as expensive as either. My first stop there was Koper - nice, but unremarkable.
Next was the capital (Can you guess? I bet not.) of Ljubljana (sounds like Loobleeahna). It is a gorgeous city, with plenty of old neo-classic architecture, including cobblestone streets, and even a picturesque castle on a hill. My favorite, though, is the dragon bridge, with the four coolest dragon sculptures I've ever seen sitting on the corners.
From there I took a day trip to Postanja (The j's are pronounced as a y.) where there is an old castle (Are there any other kind, really?) tucked away in a cave. There's a interesting story attached to it, as well. The one-time owner of the castle, a knight by the name of Erasmus, was under siege for months(?), and liked to taunt his attackers by showing that he was quite well provisioned and could hold out a long time. In what seems to me an unwise display, he went so far as to eat fresh cherries where they could see him. Now, you would think the invaders would get the hint, and realize he was using the cave to go out some back entrance for supplies, then try to find it, but instead they used a more direct approach. They bribed a servant, who lit a candle when he the went to the john, and blew it up with a with a cannon while he was on it. Not such a romantic ending for our hero, Erasmus, is it?
That night back in Ljubljana I met a guy who asked me if I knew whether Jean Claude Van Damme's son was OK. Figured I might know him. He was curious because he (himself, not Van Damme) once kicked Mike Tyson's ass. (Not the boxer, but the mixed martial arts guy.)
Why do I always attract the crazy people?
The following day I lost the hat I had made in India to replace my precious ratty hat. Good thing I made two, I guess.
On a side note - Did you know this part of Europe still has wolves? They never were without them, apparently. They also don't have deer jumping through windshield so often as back home. I wonder if there is a connection?
I then went to Bled - a very cool little town with another picturesque castle on a hill, and an equally quaint church in the middle of a turquoise-colored lake. Being filled with fish, I had to try my luck. Using my Indian fishing rig (line with a hook, wrapped around a small plastic bottle) and a little brown bread as bait, I caught a huge 14" trout within about three minutes. Not sure about the legality of my catch (though I saw plenty of other people fishing) I stuffed the still-wiggling fish into my satchel and tried to look casual as I walked back to my place to fry him up for dinner. Later I found out the reason why there are so many fish - a one day permit costs about 100 Euro. ($140!) Yes, I poached a fish in Slovenia. Sorry. (But it was SO tasty!)
The next day I went for a paddle around the lake in the only boat that wasn't already rented - a wooden, swan shaped one usually used by couples. (The owner told me he's had guys rent them together, and they always make a point of saying they are not gay.) That evening I visited the castle, and listed to a local play country music on the terrace of the attached restaurant. Country Roads, Take me Home, sounds a little funny in Slovenian, but not so bad.
There's a pretty and somewhat dramatic gorge nearby as well, also perfect for fishing, but I only caught one. I threw it back. (Actually, it slipped back in as I tried to do the humanitarian thing and step on it's head to put it out of it's misery before going into the satchel. In my haste to keep from being caught, I only accomplished breaking the line. I then got caught in a violent rain/ hail storm on the way back. That's karma for you.)
Next was the Skocjanske (No idea how you say this.) caves where, allegedly, Dante Alighieri, of Dante's Inferno fame (I still don't understand why it's not Alighieri's Inferno, but whatever.) got the idea for his different levels of Hell. I was disappointed a bit to discover, half-way through the tour, he never actually went in - he only saw the mouth of the cave. If only he had ventured into it's depths - then, what a vision of Hell would he have had! The weird, fantastic, massive formations were quite impressive, but I believe I've seen their equals, or better, in the States. Though the main cavern, the largest accessible one in Europe, is pretty spectacular and has few rivals anywhere in the world, I imagine.
Piran is nice - an old town on the coast, though I think most people go for the beaches. Some are clothing-optional. (Oh, you have to love European sensibilities.) I tried to even out my tan a bit, but was unsuccessful. (Lucky I didn't burn my butt, or worse...) That night was neat, though, as I went for a swim as saw for the first time the famous glowing plankton. I was expecting that they actually glowed for a while after being disturbed by motion, but they don't. They just flash briefly, so the effect is more of a sparkle as you move through the water. Isn't nature grand?
I'd been doing a little hitch-hiking since Bled, and, remarkably, caught a ride with the same old gentleman who got me to the Dante cave. Svato was great - he let me stay at his place, we drank home made wine, talked politics, and he showed me how to make a proper goulash. The next day he dropped me off so I could catch a ride to Croatia, which I will tell you about shortly.
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