We took advantage of a break in the rain this morning and drove to Lake Bled. The mountain tops in the distance are snow covered contributing to a nice drive. It's about an hour from Ljubljana and well worth the trip. When we arrived our first stop was a cafe. We ordered coffee, Jack got a croissant and I ordered the cream cake that Bled is famous for. It was worth the drive just for the cake and they deserve the fame! It was a little much for breakfast but I felt obligated to try it.
There is a small island in the lake and boats to take you there. There is also a castle. We opted for walking around the lake and skipped the boat ride and the walk to the castle. It took about 2 hours to walk around the lake and it was beautiful the whole walk. We kept stopping to take pictures. I will try to edit it down to a reasonable amount for the blog. The Slovenia Olympic rowing team practices on this lake so we did add a couple of pictures from there since it reminded us of Andrew. You would have enjoyed rowing here Andrew!
From Bled we drove to Lake Bohinj. We had originally thought of taking a boat ride and cable car ride here but the weather was not right for that type of adventure. We settled for a brief walk and lunch. The drive gave us an opportunity to see a little more of the Slovenian countryside and enjoy the beautiful lake.
When we returned to Ljubljana we made the mistake of walking up to the castle. When we asked for directions a very nice gentleman suggested we walk to the castle instead of taking the funicular (cable car). He said it would take us 10 minutes and save us 10 euros. He neglected to mention that the walk was pretty much vertical. We made it with a few stops along the way and comments about being stupid for walking. We were breathing so hard when we reached the castle that we had to wait until our breathing returned to normal before entering. Our first stop was at the wine bar we we sat in a lovely stone covered room and had a glass of wine. From there we visited the chapel and penitentiary. We wanted to explore more but were told the castle was closing. This made us a little cranky since they didn't mention closing time when we bought the tickets at 5. It closed at 6. Needless to say, we took the funicular down to the city rather than walk back.
It's been a busy day so we opted for take out and returned to our apartment and enjoyed some dumplings and ramen. Not very Slovenian but tasty. We are off to Italy tomorrow by way of Austria. It feels like we have been gone forever but I also can't believe we are traveling to Italy tomorrow. I can't wait to see the Dolomites.
Lake Bled-Island church, castle and snow covered mountains
cream cake
Today's wildlife shots
Ljubljana at night
Mountain shots are incredible! Thought the snow looked like clouds descending over mountains in Tipperary. Looks like you guys are losing weight despite the delicious desserts!
ReplyDeleteThe Lake Bled views definitely have a leg up on the Harlem and Schuylkill River scenery! Looks really amazing.
ReplyDeleteI'd have a hard time choosing between the cream cake and the apple strudel from the other other day.
Lake Bled is beautiful, Lake Braies is even more beautiful. Being surrounded by the Dolomites is a bonus.
DeleteIt's great that you guys are taking advantage of every opportunity. You are seeing so much and it's all so beautiful.
ReplyDeleteWow--that first picture, in particular, is worthy of hanging on a wall!!
ReplyDeletePictures are amazing. Deserts are wonderful and you guys are not afraid to try anything. You both look amazing. Lots of walking. (Helen)
ReplyDelete