Sylvan Slovenia
The Republic of Slovenia, located between Italy and Croatia and south of Austria, became the westernmost country of former Yugoslavia after balkanisation in 1991 led to its independence. It has been a member of the European Union since 2004 and today over 2 million people live here. It is small, yet incredibly diverse and the first colour that comes to mind when thinking about Slovenia is green. More than 50% of the land is covered by forest and I was amazed by the different hues of the colour not only in the forested mountains but also in the lakes, rivers and even the cities including its capital Ljubljana.
My visit to Slovenia was purely serendipitous as I found myself in Athens from where I had to go to Paris after three weeks. I found a low-cost flight to Rome, spent 10 days in Italy and took a bus from the northeastern city of Trieste to the coastal town of Koper. After a couple of days in this region, I made my way to the capital.
The green capital
Ljubljana is a small city of nearly 300,000 people situated in the centre of Slovenia. It is the country’s largest city and most of the interesting places are conveniently located in the city centre thus making them easy to visit on foot. I began exploring this city by first walking along the Ljubljanica River in the centre to arrive at Prešeren Square dominated by a beautiful pink Franciscan Church. From here I crossed the Tromostovje or the Triple Bridge designed by architect Jože Plečnik, which starts off as a single bridge on one bank, and splits into three separate bridges on the other side.
A green path leads up to Ljubljana castle and its well-kept and modern museum with abundant information about the country and its history.
After the visit, I climbed to one of the castle’s viewpoints for a panoramic 360 degree vista of this green city. From this hill, you realise how many parks and trees Ljubljana has and it is amazing to look at the orange-tiled rooftops of the colourful buildings of the city centre. I walked back down the hill, through a lovely little market brimming with fresh produce and across the Dragon Bridge adorned with statues of this mythical creature. Slovenia is all about mountains, lakes, caves and forests so Ljubljana was just a brief stop on my itinerary before making my way to Bled. I was lucky to meet Florjan, a student in an association run by university students who decided to take me there by car.
Bled
Bled is located about 45 kilometres north of Slovenia’s capital Ljubljana and Lake Bled is the star of this tourist town. Despite the numerous lakes that are on offer in Slovenia, Bled is the first choice of most visitors thanks to the Assumption of Mary Pilgrimage church sitting on a tiny island right in the middle of it. There are plenty of boats to take you to the church. It is said that ringing the bell in this church brings good luck. The setting is idyllic and despite drawing most of the tourists who visit Slovenia, there are plenty of ways to get away from the crowds here.
The lake itself is situated in the middle of the beautiful Julian Alps and these mountains just add to its splendour.
A walk around this emerald water body is the most obvious thing to do — one side is more commercialised, lined with hotels and other buildings while the rest of it is green and hilly. Dramatically perched on one such hill is Bled castle. A climb up to the castle offers great views of the countryside around and of the lake itself lying right below of course. Most of the fortifications date back to the Middle Ages. The castle has a wine cellar with tasting sessions, a restaurant, a museum and a terrace where I witnessed a group of actors dressed in medieval costumes giving the visitors a surprise performance. Although I enjoyed the climb to the castle, I wouldn’t rate it as the most interesting activity in Bled, and if you like hiking, the Julian Alps all around allow for unforgettable treks.
I chose once such trek up the 685-metre Mount Osojnica located right by the lake across from the church. After hiking up for an hour or so, a picture postcard unveiled itself before my eyes — a magnificent view of the entire lake with the island floating in the middle of it and the castle poised on a cliff. The sight is simply spectacular! In the background, framing this unbelievable image are the snow-capped peaks of the Alps. I was here at sunset so the snow on the peaks had turned orange reflecting the light from the setting sun. I rushed back down through the forest hoping to reach Bled before it got dark.
Vintgar gorge
Another unique visit in the region would be to Vintgar gorge. After a scenic three kilometre walk from Bled, through the charming countryside and a little hamlet, I heard the sound of gushing water. The Vintgar gorge is just 1.6 metres long and is formed by the Radovna River. Erosion by the river has created a canyon with walls up to 100 metres high.
The water is incredibly transparent and everything in it is clearly visible.
I saw fish swimming and ducks floating on the surface with their webbed feet tucked in the water underneath them. The place is well maintained with wooden walkways built along the waterway jutting out of the rocky walls. Walking the one-and-a-half kilometres is extremely soothing to the eyes and ears with the constant sound of the rapids, the views of the still, cyan pools and the calming effect of the vibrant green nature all around. I ended my walk at the Šum Falls (or noisy falls) and one can watch the water flow down from above. This was the perfect end to an extremely scenic visit.
Getting there
Slovenia is part of the Schengen zone and can be combined with a trip to Croatia or Italy accessible by bus from the eastern city of Trieste. The international airport located between Ljubljana and Kranj can be reached from European cities like Paris by low cost carriers like Easyjet.
Getting around
Buses and trains connect most of the country although getting to certain areas in the mountains would be easiest by car.
Hi, I am Prajwal Madhav. I hope you enjoy my posts.
