MEDITERRANEAN SIGGY AND HEATHER TRIP AROUND THE MEDITERRANEAN THURSDAY, 11 APRIL 2013

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1 DA I LY N E WS L E T T E R MEDITERRANEAN SIGGY AND HEATHER TRIP AROUND THE MEDITERRANEAN THURSDAY, 11 APRIL 2013 Farewell to Austria We have finally made our way out of Austria. The geography of the place tied us up in knots for a while. Mountains seem to get in our way. After leaving our lovely site at Zell am See this morning, we made our way south on excellent roads through quiet country villages. The mountain backdrop was spectacular. The sun helped us enjoy our slow meander even more. We were excited to try our first experience of a auto-train. This was the only path open to us to get into Slovenia. It involved us driving the van onto a partially open rail carriage, seating ourselves in a passenger area and enjoying the short 8 km trip through the mountain tunnel. We struck up a conversation with some local retirees and let the train do all the work. The trip only cost us about A$18. View from our van in Zell am See After decanting from the train we continued our journey south. The sun was even brighter and warmer on this side of the mountain range. At one point we stopped to admire a particularly spectacular valley that opened up before us. We found a safe stopping place and wandered over to the nearby rise in Sound of Music style. Well not quite! But it was really quite special definitely one of our highlights. We traveled on, had lunch in yet another beautiful valley and eventually crossed the border without any fanfare. We soon arrived in Bled by mid morning, our first intended stop in Slovenia. continued on next page LET THE DOG CHOOSE Not sure which one is the vodka and which is the water but the dogs here are obviously clever enough to know the difference. READING MATERIAL The Bled caravan park had an extensive library of free reading books for travelers. Always keen to get any information on travel in Europe Heather grabbed the book with this cover - looked like one on camping places. We must be camping bogans. Page 47 BUMMER The caravan park at Zell am See has all the mod cons including paper place mats for bums. Heather would have also liked the seats to be warmed up as well.

2 HAPPY SNAPS slovenia THE ISLAND CHURCH ON LAKE BLED IS A EUROPEAN ICON The site of the island in the lake took our breath away. As the advertising literature says With an emerald-green lake, a picture-postcard church on a tiny island, a medieval castle clinging to a rocky cliff, and some of Slovenia s highest peaks as backdrops, Bled seems to have been designed by some god of tourism. We quickly set up the van and set out on a quick explore to make the most of the sun - no heavy coats this time but you never know what tomorrow might bring. L PLATE TRACTOR DRIVER We rode part way around the lake and up some steep hills to get some expanded views of what the area has to offer. Check out the photos. We intend to stay here a few nights and get in a bit of riding, walking and investigating. Time to slow down a bit and recharge our batteries. TOYOTA MINI Q1 NOT SEEN IN OZ Bled s iconic island church MAGIC TUNNEL DRIVE IN AUSTRIAN COME OUT SLOVENIAN CROOKED TRAIN Page 48

3 PHOTOS Auto Train - tight fit Page 49

4 DA I LY N E WS L E T T E R MEDITERRANEAN SIGGY AND HEATHER TRIP AROUND THE MEDITERRANEAN FRIDAY, 12 APRIL 2013 Bled on a Misty Day It was spitting when we woke up. We checked out the local weather report. It was going to rain all day. Martin, the van owner, had warned us about the rain - he has been here three times and each time it rained. We waited for a while and did some internet research on places of interest in Slovenia. Heather was getting restless so we both decided to get some exercise. We donned our coats and decided to walk into Bled along the lake shore. It was 7 kms all the way around. It was not cold and there were other people walking around the lake. In fact it was kind of pleasant with the magnificent backdrop of the church on the island. The water here is supposed to be quite warm 24 degrees. We passed the rowing club which trumpeted that their club members had figured in placings in the last 8 Olympics. Further on we came across a water park great for holiday makers in the summer. Slovenian geese seem be particularly nasty because two blocked my path and tried to bite my ankles. Heather shooed them with her umbrella. continued on next page STONE AND TURF ROOFS Interesting to see many roofs here with a layer of stones and then a layer of turf on top. Evidently these type of roofs are able to drain melted snow more quickly. Looks strange to traveling Australian s though. TO DIE FOR Judy and Kim told us not to miss this delicacy. Bled is the home of the original custard slice. We walked 7 kms to check it out and were not disappointed. Definitely not something you can share - you must have one all to yourself. Maybe even two. Unfortunately the hot chocolate to go with it was bloody awful. Page 50 A GREAT DRINK ON A RAINY DAY It is raining in Bled so there is no better way to relax than with a book and a nip of the local liqueur - 20% proof and very warming. One pissed tourist.

5 HAPPY SNAPS Bled may have lots of things to offer but we think they re probably best experienced in sunny weather. GEESE MUGGERS CREME DE LA CREME After this stressful experience we sat down and gorged ourselves on some some hot chocolate and cremas (a Bled delicacy - vanilla slice). There were very few shoppers around. Little wonder. The rain got heavier so we moved on. Despite this we decided to take the long walk back and view the island church and castle on the rock from different angles. We understand why Bled is such an icon but wonder what it would be like in peak season with hundreds of rowing boats on the lake and thousands of people sitting around drinking coffee in the lakeside cafes. Parking would also be a total nightmare. By the time we got back to the van we were quite hot and sweaty on the inside and rather wet on the outside. Time for a relax. We had a nanny and poppy nap while our clothes dried. Oh this is the life. It is supposed to be sunnier weather tomorrow so we plan to spend time riding our bikes to the various attractions. On Monday it will be on to Ljuljana and beyond. BLED CARAVAN PARK We have been very impressed with Bled Caravan Park. Its location (right on the lake shore with the church island clearly visible out the front), its facilities (multiple toilet and shower blocks), its very friendly staff (can speak all languages), its shop (almost a supermarket), its restaurant (great food and extensive menu at very reasonable prices) and the larger than normal size of each of its sites. The showers and toilets are also extremely clean (and warm). The park was even able to exchange our gas bottle because we were close to running out of gas. We would have given it a AAA rating (best of all the parks we have been to so far) but the temperature of the showers let it down - would have been perfect if only it was 2 degrees more. Bled Caravan Park is nevertheless a great place to stay. Now if only it would stop raining!! CASTLE ON THE HILL JUST ONE LAST PHOTO OF BLEDS BEAUTIFUL ISLAND (TILL TOMORROW) Page 51

6 DA I LY N E WS L E T T E R MEDITERRANEAN SIGGY AND HEATHER TRIP AROUND THE MEDITERRANEAN SATURDAY, 13 APRIL 2013 Glorious Day It s so great to be alive. The sun came out in Bled this morning and it turned out to be a beautifully pleasant day. When we got up in the morning we were amazed to see over a dozen workers raking up the dry leaves and twigs around our site. I think everyone is thinking that the warm weather is about to start and the welcome mat needs to be put out for we tourists. Everywhere we go there seems to be a rush of activity. Locals only get a small window of opportunity so they have to be ready to build and renovate when the time is right. Even the road to Bled Castle was being upgraded so we had to walk up the steep slope along with all the other tourists (but going down was going to be far easier). The view from the top of Bled Castle was to die for - we could not get enough of the eye candy. Extraordinary. Below us was an expansive view across to distant snowy mountains while down below was the mirror-like dark blue lake creased only with the wake of little boats taking people to the island church. The bells started clanging and the birds kept up their loud chirping. Spring definitely appears to have sprung and it makes everybody feel more alive. Inside the castle were the usual multimedia and static wall displays. We visited its iron working foundry and early printing works. Local Interpretation Its curious how what locals take for granted that we might find very strange. Sometimes we wonder what the hell something is about or what the interpretation should be. Some of this has got to do with not understanding the language but there are other things that are very different to how we do things in Australia. No outside taps to get water for our van, for example; strange mounds running around on the ground outside our van; similar birds to home yet they make different sounds. Careful not to use particular hand/finger gestures. Everything is considered a learning experience. Listen and watch. She ll will be right mate!! What animal did that? continued on next page HERETIC The Slovenians rose up against the Catholic church during the Reformation. One of the key reformers is shown here. Not sure if his off-sider was named Mr Bean. CLEVER MONK This monk was left in charge of the castle wines. He knew his stuff. He even knew that Canberra means meeting place. He certainly surprised these visiting Aussies. Page 52 COLOURED BEES? Found these bee hives buzzing with bees in a backyard. Wondered if the bees knew the difference between the multiple coloured hives. How clever are Slovenian bees?

7 HAPPY SNAPS As soon as you see Bled you know instinctively why this place is considered to be such a gem. LOOK AT ALL THE LITTLE SQUIGGLY BITS HEATHER HANKERING AFTER A HORSE RIDE MUST BE BIG FROGS HERE? Then it was back to that amazing view again. Bled castle is the oldest castle in Slovenia. It dates back to 1004AD. Bled island is Slovenia s only island. Except for a very small neck to the Adriatic Sea, the country is almost land locked. Bled s beautiful scenery has attracted people with wealth and power for hundreds of years. It is one of the most frequented places in Europe. Apparently even today the beautiful people of the world continue to come to visit this place. Luckily we came to see it now and not in peak season. RIDING AROUND AND ENJOYING LIFE JUST LIKE THE LOCAL POPULATION After the castle, it was time to ride on to our next attraction - the Vintgar Gorge. It is only a few kilometers away but the ride was all uphill and therefore reasonably demanding. The up side was that we had to travel slowly through some rather remote villages with interesting local houses and people going about their Saturday morning activities. Everyone seemed to be cleaning up - raking, cutting, stacking, pressure washing. A number of oldies were actually sitting on balconies enjoying the sun. We admired the variety of houses and noticed how they were constructed - big thick concrete block walls which are then plastered and painted. There were quite a number of unfinished houses - if you can t build it in three months when the weather is good then you can move in and finish it off next year. We finally arrived at the gorge but to our disappointment it was closed due to repairs to the walkway. The river was really roaring - the aqua snow melt water looked beautiful. We cursed and turned around. The ride back to the park was so much easier - all down hill. We arrived back at camp and spent some time just sitting on the water front taking in the view and the ambience. Everything seems to be in pairs here - the swans, the ducks, the couples - young and old. A lovely day. VIEW FROM THE CASTLE TOILET HOW MANY SHEETS NEED TO BE HUNG OUT TO DRY! Page 53

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