ZAGREB (CROATIA) to LJUBLJANA & SKOFJA LOKA (SLOVENIA)

We enjoyed our three days in Dubrovnik, visiting the Old Town and swimming, trying to keep cool in the heatwave that occurred.  This was the start of about a week of temps well above the norm, reaching the mid-30s and, with the humidity, feeling like the high-30s by the time we were in Zagreb.  Keeping cool became our main priority and conserving energy!  At one point the temperature was 18 degrees F above the norm.  We saved walking the walls in Dub. until late in the afternoon. 

One of the reasons we went with light packs on this trip was the restrictions on Croatia Air.  I'm happy to report we came in well under the maximum weight, at about 11 kg each.  Still, the packs are full, so we couldn't have squeezed in much more!  I have all my stuff tidily-arranged in separate bags, but when it comes time to close my pack, I usually have to get Jim to do it, so I'm not sure the "tidyness" is worth it! 

We have stayed in three Airbnbs (www.airbnb.com) now:  thanks to the Hoopers and Thomsons for recommending these, as they've been great.  In Zagreb we stayed near the center in a ground-floor apartment on a courtyard.  The old building was solid and kept the heat and noise out.  Our host, Tomislav, met us at the door and gave us very good advice on where to eat nearby on either Kaptol or Tkalčićeva streets.  The sites we visited were all nearby too. We loved the Museum of Naïve Art, which we followed by a wonderful ethnic lunch on the patio at Konoba Didov San (Grandfather’s Dream) where we shared appetizers:  soparnik (spinach, herbs, oil in pastry), kobasice (home-made sausage with olives and pickles), and a wonderful Greek salad called salata sopska.  After this we went to Ivan Meštrović atelier, Croatia's answer to Rodin, who was his friend.  In the evening we strolled to the square, a hive of activity and entertainment, to get our daily dose of sladoled, the delicious gelato-style ice cream.  How are we going to break this habit, I wonder. 

Grandfather's Dream lunch     

Ivan Mestrovic sculpture

We arrived in Ljubljana in an oven of afternoon heat, but managed to haul our bags to “Apartment Ljubljana Center terrace”.  Sarah wheeled up on her bike at the appointed hour and led us up the 80 steps to the 5^th floor (6^th in Canada) miniscule apt.  It is about the size of our second bedroom.  Everything is in its place.  The toilet and shower share a closet.  There was no A/C so we didn’t spend much time there.  It was not misrepresented but I should not have booked it…too small…too many stairs…and the “terrace with (peekaboo) view of the castle” was extremely hot.  We found a lovely place for a drink on the river by the “Ugly Duckling” bridge, followed by dinner on Mestni trg at Julija and wandered into the park across the river to listen to a free concert.

 "It was so good I had another one."

Ljubljana is a fun place:  lots of street entertainment, the bridges crossing the river, boats going up and down; reminds me a little of Amsterdam.  For us the highlight was the Castle and it's Gostilna na Gradu or Castle Restaurant.  It was excellent value and served delicious Slovenian specialties.

This brings us to Škofja Loka, about 22 km. north of Ljub., where we are now.  We're staying in our first hotel, Garni Paleta (http://hotel-skofjaloka.si/en/), which Jim booked based on the ratings on Trip Advisor (Travelers' Award for 2013.)  The hotel room was a godsend in the heat:  spacious, cool, comfortable.  And Igor is the dream host, serving a wonderful breakfast with snacks for later, giving travel advice, maps, brochures, and local history.  I am a little bit in love!  I quickly suggested to Jim we should extend our three days here to five and make day trips now we have the car, so that's what we're doing.

     Garni Paleta Hotel, Skofja Loka

                                                               

 

On Saturday there was a Medieval fair in town.  Sunday we went to Lakes Bled and Bohinj, coming back through narrow, twisty roads over a mountain pass and into the verdant Selška Valley.  Yesterday we woke to thunder, a heavy downpour and a dramatic drop in temperature.  Igor suggested a trip to one or both of the caves in the Karst region, an arid limestone plateau in southwestern Slovenia.  We chose Škocjan, near Italy.  The tour lasted about 1 ½ hours, first through the “dry caves”, then the caves with the river flowing deep below.  On the drive back we viewed Predjama Castle, built into a cave.

 

Today we hiked about 5 hours through hamlets, between fields, and up, up, up through a black forest where we picked wild blueberries.  We were rewarded with views of the valleys below and mountains above, when we stopped for lunch at another gostilna at Krizna Gora. 

 

So now we are winding down.  We leave here tomorrow with two days through the Julian Alps and then our final two in Piran on the coast.