A tale of two cities

 We got up early on Wednesday and completed a 6km run along the river that we had planned the day before and it was nice and flat and not too bad. Once we had got back to the van and had some breakfast we got the bikes out and headed 5km up the road to a spa and wellness centre called Paradiso where there were a number of thermal pools and a sauna world. We paid for an all day pass and spent the first hour and a half in the thermal pools as the sauna section was not open yet. The feel of this side was similar to a leisure centre but a nice one. It had a range of different pools, some slides (one of which we had a go on) and beds and chairs to relax on. Once 12pm arrived the sauna section opened so we headed in there for a couple of hours. This was far more luxurious with very comfy beds and chairs, water beds to lie on and TV rooms. There was an outdoor observation deck and a lower garden to relax in as well as the 8 saunas (although not all of them were working), a couple of steam rooms, a thermal pool and a cold plunge pool. This side of the centre was naked so we had to loose the swimwear and took our time enjoying the saunas and stream rooms with breaks in-between. Eventually though we were getting hungry and didn’t fancy the options at the café so we showered and headed back to the van for a late lunch and a chilled out evening.

 

The next day we got up early and drove to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia as it was only around an hour away and a place we had never been to. We parked outside the city and as usual jumped on the bikes to the city centre. The outskirts were easy to ride in but the centre seemed to loose all bike lanes and with the increased traffic we decided to find somewhere for the bikes and leave them there. Our first stop was the central market (Dolac) where it was a hive of activity with many fruit sellers which we briefly walked around before heading to a café which bordered the market where we planned to have some breakfast, which was a stunning panko tofu sandwich and fruit juices. Feeling very full we decided to start walking and headed to the cathedral (closed for renovations), the main square and then to a meteorological column which was installed 130 years ago and still very accurate. We continued around some of the sights including the botanical gardens and the national theatre before heading to the upper town. To get there we could have walked up some stairs but we decided to take the short funicular as it was only 80c per person. We soon found out it is the shortest funicular in the world at 66 meters (and Zagreb’s first and oldest public transport). While up there we went and saw the impressive roof of the Church of St Mark which has both the Croatian flag/shield and the Zagreb three towers shield on it made out of colourful tiles but you couldn’t get close to this or the palace which was on the same square as they have close the square following a terror attack in 2020. We also poked our head into a stunning Greek catholic church before walking back down to the lower town and walking through the Gric Tunnel which was built, under much controversy, during the war and was reopened as a pedestrian tunnel. There used to be several art installations in it but sadly have appear to have been removed so it was quite a plan tunnel in the end. After a day of much walking we decided to head to a vegan place for a quick bite to eat before heading back to the van and driving back to Slovenia. Our stop for the night was just below Sevnica castle which we went up to see after dinner and admired the view over the valley and river below.

 

The next morning we again got up early and headed to a park and ride outside Ljubljana which is the capital of Slovenia. We headed straight out on the bikes to the city and soon stumbled across some sort of performance theatre that involved a poor man being laid on a table and being rubbed first by the performers before they got random strangers involved. They then suddenly took off and left it all happening behind them. We watched most of it but headed off just before they did (and before we could get roped in so who knows how long the people stayed like that! We then started the day in the old town having some breakfast (French toast, my favourite) at another vegan café. After that we headed into the main centre to have a look around and park up the bikes somewhere central. There is currently a food festival which goes on every Friday that took up much of the central area and was something we looked forward to trying later. We headed out of the main area to see another weird installation called cyanometer which is there to measure the air quality but also reflects the colour of the sky. We then went to see Dragon bridge (one of the many famous bridges in the city before heading up to see the castle via the central market which was heaving. We did consider the funicular but the queue was long and we thought we could walk up in the same amount of time so we did (making sure to stay in the shade because the sun was fully out and it was hot). Once at the top we spent some time walking around the different areas of the castle you can access without paying which included a tower, the dungeons, an art gallery and water cistern. We then headed back down into the town and went to see a couple of the different locations I have planned including locksmith street which had a weird piece of art that included a stream of water which flowed down a canal which had many different brass heads in it. We also saw the roman artifacts which remain in one of the many squares and the three bridges and the butchers bridge. Again after all that walking we decided to hit the food market and got a very nice vegan burger to share. After eating that we headed out to an art district called Metelkova Masto which has been taken over by artists who have added installations all over a small area. It’s a bit like a free town but just about art (although from the smell there is a lot of drugs used there too).  After that we decided to walk down the river one last time when we came upon a load of activity which turned out to be a water volley ball competition. The court was somehow suspended in the river, which runs through the city, and there were paddleboarders who were there to collect the balls as they flew off the court. We watched a couple of sets before deciding it was getting too hot so headed back to the food festival for another snack and a beer. Finally after a long day we headed back to the van for the evening, we could have stayed longer as we aren’t planning on moving tonight but its been a long day and after two capitals in two days we are exhausted.

 

The next morning we again got up and did a run around the area (managing not to get lost which was a miracle given the route we had) before heading back to the van for breakfast and a shower. We then drove north from the city to Lake Bled. The issue is parking around the lake so, you guessed it, we parked up a couple of kms away and cycled to the lake. As we were so far out we couldn’t take the paddleboard which is a shame but we cycled around the lake during the day with several stops to swim and sunbathe. The lake is very pretty but it is very crowded there is no place where there is space to just fully chill out. After a couple of hours in the different areas on the lake we headed back to the start of it and just before we headed back to the van we decided to head to a vegan restaurant to see if we could get a slice of the famous and local cream cake that I have seen everywhere. It’s a cross between a custard slide and a whipped cream slice and this is the first vegan place we have seen that sells it. When we managed to get the bikes up the ramps to the restaurant we found it was closed till 6pm but we popped our heads in and asked if they would do takeaway for the desserts. They said yes so we got some but then we asked if we could eat it outside so we ended up with it being served to us outside like they were open. We were very appreciative and it was great cake, I highly recommend it! We then jumped in the van and headed out of the area to sleep for the night. This area is very near several national parks and this makes it very difficult to find somewhere and you are potentially going to be fined if you are found outside one of the very expensive designated areas so we are following the rules (mostly – technically its illegal to sleep in your van anywhere in the country unless you are on a campsite)!

 

The next morning we got up and headed back into the national park and this time to a different lake called Jezero Jasna which was around 900 meters above sea level. This meant it cooler up here and it is less touristy. We parked up near the lake (as close as motorhomes are allowed to park) and went for a walk around the lake which was a bight blue/green and looked very inviting even though the temperatures were not that hot yet. We saw one person getting on a paddleboard and that’s all the encouragement needed for us to hightail it back to the van and get ours. We set it up and off we went over the lake. It was very cold water so we didn’t fancy trying to both stand up but we took it in turns to stand while we explored the lake and passed under the bridge to the other side of the lake and past the little bar/café which was already getting busy. After awhile we came back to shore to chill out in the sun while we both took turns on our own and then Rich went for a quick dip in the icy water which gets up to a maximum of 12 degrees in the summer. After warming up we packed the board up and took it back to the van before heading out on a hike following the river towards Krnici which was an 11km around trip with almost 300m of climb. Once back at the van we packed up and headed to a ski slope area where we could legally park for the night. There were many vans there and we parked up in the car park and headed out to have a look around at the 7 huge ski jumps and the indoor activity centre where they did some indoor sky diving, The place also had a huge zip line (which is the worlds steepest) which got up to 85km per hour which we decided not to have go on. We settled in for the night and after dinner headed out for a walk and spotted a fox sniffing around which stared at us when it heard us move before it ran off into the valley.

 

The next morning was supposed to be rainy (according to the Met office which we have realised is often wrong) but it was lovely and clear so after servicing the van we headed off to drive over the Vrsic pass which is a high alpine road which rises up from 900 meters to over 1500 meters and gives great views of the surrounding area and mountains. We drove up the 24 hairpin bends stopping many times to see the sights and the views before reaching the top and driving down the other side. There were cyclist also going up and coming back down and I did pity them as the incline for the road was difficult and the hairpins had cobbles just to make it that bit harder. Most were not on E-bikes but on road bikes or mountain bikes but all looked like they were struggling.

One of the sights we stopped at to see was the Russian church which was built as a memorial to 100 Russian prisoners of war who helped build the road but were killed when an avalanche hit. Once down the other side of the mountain pass we stopped for a look at the river Soca which is a stunning glacial blue river before heading into Bovec where we planned to spend a couple of days. We are planning a bit of a chilled day, with maybe a walk here but that’s it for today. We have booked canyoning tour for Wednesday and have plans for other high energy activities after that so we want to make sure we are well rested for them.

So there are tons of photos but I am having issues uploading them so I have added them to a separate post