Lake Bled, Slovenia (Blejsko jezero, Slovenija)
From Ljubljana, the drive to Lake Bled became incrementally more mountainous until we were inundated by the Julian Alps. The only hitch in our drive was a four car pile-up on the road in front of us. Luckily nobody was hurt, and with some stop-starting, we were able to make it past on the other side of the road while insurance matters were discussed.
The first stop once reaching the town of Bled was not, as one may expect, to see the lake. Instead, it was to find and eat the fabled local specialty kremna rezina, which was kind of like the inside of a pavlova mixed with a light custard, sandwiched by a thin layer of sugared pastry. To acquire this, we parked illegally with our hazard lights on and ran into the Slaščičarna Šmon bakery (this is customary practice in Italy and much of Eastern Europe, though to us it will forever be known as Den Bosch Style from the time when we pulled a similar manoeuvre in the Netherlands to acquire soft creamy chocolatey pastry balls).
As the town itself is very touristy to cater to those who come to see the lake, we again were unsuccessful in finding legitimate parking near the lakefront so we popped out to have a look. The scene was picturesque, with clear blue waters, sky and mountains, and a tiny white church on an island. Apart from checking out the view, we weren't interested in staying longer as although the area was nice, it was crowded and gimmicky.
The most endearing tourist activity I saw was a man with a pony. He had no signs for advertising - the pony, who grazed happily when at rest, did all that for him. Occasionally children would approach and they would be led around the park a few times.
The four kilometre drive to Vintgar Gorge, which we heard was stunning, delivered us into an overspill carpark. Not realising how popular the walk through the gorge would be, we were surprised to wait in the queue for entry tickets (€4) for ten minutes. From there, the crowds did not diminish and we were whisked along the tiny paths with an immovable cliff face on one side and a sheer drop onto the rocks and swirling waters below on the other.
Though I feared for my life on occasion during the 40 minute walk (not including time to stop and take photos), the views were worth it. The water was so clear that it was great fun to watch fish float around, and the jagged landscape held a certain rugged beauty.
At the end of the walk, an ice cream café had been set up and I wondered how they carted all that ice cream in. Do several strongmen carry backpack loads in each morning? Or is there another path than the walkway?
After resting our legs, we ventured on to the nearby lake at Bohinj.
A similar landscape to Bled, the lake was popular among swimmers and paddle boarders. It was this view that we enjoyed while eating our picnic lunch. Cookies from a Bohinj bakery were consumed with gusto, though as they were the size of small dinner plates we resignedly saved what we couldn't finish for later in the day. The ants that undertook expeditions to the vast land of our picnic mat were much larger than the ants we were used to, but instead of bothering us they carted off unwanted crumbs as any normal-sized ant would.
Wanting to peek into an interesting sounding church, we drove along but found that any carpark in the vicinity was crammed tight with tourists' cars as well as tour buses. Instead of waiting around for an inordinate amount of time for a space to free up, we gazed at the exterior from the car windows.
The Soča Valley region, Slovenia (Posočje, Slovenija)
Our drive from Bohinj to the valley was clustered with cute little villages and dynamic views of the impressive mountainscape. At one point some cows crossed the road, one stopping for a while and munching thoughtfully in our direction before wandering off, allowing us to continue.
It was already late enough in the day that we needed to find a campsite by the time we reached Kobarid at the northern end of the Soča Valley. With two options to choose from, we opted for the one that didn't smell strongly of poo.
The drive to that camping took us straight to one of the most popular views of the valley, in which white cliffs give way to crystalline blue waters deep below, and mountains towering around. The valley is famous for the WWI clash that took place here, with millions of soldiers fighting among the crags.
From the middle of the narrow bridge with cars rushing past is where you must take this iconic photo. It's difficult to believe that it's real until you're there, as the colours are so eye-popping!
For dinner, as restaurants in the town were expensive or seafoody or both, we bought burek from a small supermarket and picnicked back at the campsite. This is always a good option for a cheap meal in Slovenia, yet not so healthy (especially when followed by the remnants of giant cookies for dessert).
With an early start the next morning, we drove the length of Soča Valley. It was drizzly at times, and that weather coupled with the early morning mist made for some pretty river views.
A town that stood out from the rest was Kanal, where pink plastered houses stood proudly atop the valley cliffs. Though the roads around Lake Bled and the valley were windy and often narrow, the scenery that unfolded around each bend was a new delight.
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