global nomad family

The most spectacular country you have never heard of!

My friend Heidi told me that Lake Bled, Slovenia was one of her favorite places in Europe. Slovenia is the northern tip of the old Yugoslavia, and borders Italy, Austria, Hungary, and Croatia. See the map here:

http://search.yahoo.com/search?ei=utf-8&fr=aaplw&p=slovenia+map+images

So we decided to go there last October, during our one week midterm break.  It is now one of my top three favorite countries in Europe!  It is a hidden gem. We rented a car and drove there from Prague, through the Austrian Alps during the peak fall season–wow!!

It was an eight hour drive through gorgeous landscapes!

Ljubljana

We stayed a week in Ljubljana, the capital. Ljubljana is so picturesque!

The view from the castle!

In the Old Town area.

Check out the blue October sky!

It was heavenly to enjoy a meal at an outdoor cafe along the river in the third week of October!

Food is always better when eaten outside!

Each day we did a day trip to the following places: Piran, Lake Bled, the Julian Alps, the Postojna Cave, and Predjama Castle.  Each day our mouths dropped at the incredible beauty of this tiny country, slightly smaller than New Jersey.  Let the photos speak for themselves!

Piran is a beatiful town on the coast of the northern Adriatic which has been compared to the famous southern  Adriatic jewel Dubrovnik.

Breathtaking!

Ok, maybe not warm enough for swimming:)

We stumbled upon this little church.

We wandered through the winding streets.

The architecture is similar to what you find in Venice.

Boats everywhere!

Lake Bled’s stunning landscape in the Julian Alps is breath-taking. A translucent lake,  a wooded island with a baroque church at the top; a cliff-top castle overlooking the lake, all with the dramatic Julian Alps as a backdrop.

View from the castle walls.

We splurged and had lunch here…can you blame us??!!

The island in the lake with a baroque church.

So hard to choose just five photos of this place!

The views were epic!

The Julian Alps are tucked between Italy and Austria. We drove through the stunning mountain scenery at the peak of the fall colors. We stopped at a deserted, pristine Alpine lake.

We even had it to ourselves!

There were 48 hair pin turns to go through the Vrsic Pass.  Scary, but the scenery was amazing!

It was a glorious day!

Perfect picnic spot, all to ourselves…ok, it was in October:)

After you reach the summit of Vrsic Pass, you descend into the Soca Valley. The Soca River is a beautiful turquoise blue. I was surprised to learn that this area was the location of brutal fighting between the Austrians and Italians during World War  I.  Besides loss of life in battle, at least 60,000 soldiers died in avalanches.

I was so glad Andy did the driving!

Did you know that Hemingway’s A Farewell to Arms begins in the Alps around the frontier between Italy and present-day Slovenia? At that time Italy was allied with Britain, France and Russia against Germany and the Austro-Hungarian empire. The novel’s main character is Lieutenant Frederic Henry, an American who volunteered for the Italian army because the United States hadn’t yet entered the war.

The Battle of Caporetto  took place from late October to mid November of 1917, near the town of  Kobarid.  The battle was named after the Italian name of the town of Kobarid.

The town of Kobarid, the setting for Hemingway’s Farewell to Arms.

The Postojna Cave system is the longest cave system in Slovenia (network of 20 kilometers).  Postojna Cave is the longest publicly-accessible depth of any cave system in the world. Its Grand Hall often serves as a concert venue for up to 10,000 people! The caverns and stalactite formations were astounding!

The entrance to the cave.

We took a little mining train deep into the cave,  and then hiked through the 5 kilometer-long trail.

Nate’s favorite part of the day:)

It is about 12 miles long!

It was first discovered in the 17th century, and became a tourist attraction in 1819.

Predjama Castle was built in the middle of a vertical 123-metre high cliff  more than 700 years ago.

It’s a very “Lord of the Rings-ish” sort of place!

The  most famous of all of the castle inhabitants was the knight Erazem of Predjama, who rebelled against the Holy Roman Emperor in the 15th century. He retreated to Predjama Castle, which was besieged by the emperor.

We were the last visitors of the day.

The legend says that Erazem was able to withstand the siege because he had access to the outside world through underground caves beneath the castle.  However, he met a sad fate:  he was betrayed by a servant and was unceremoniously killed by a cannonball while sitting on the toilet!

Not far from the famed toilet with a view!

The boys went exploring!

The view to the village.

So, do not delay…plan your trip to Slovenia. Experience it for yourself first hand!  We are looking forward to going back next year. Any recommendations for other places to see from those who have been there?