Slovenia: Delightful Lake and the Town of Bled of the Same Name– Part II

We slept a bit longer in the morning, since we have not to hurry this day. When we woke up we went to get some groceries. We bought Slovenian cheeses, salami, eggs, some fruits, vegetables and, of course, local bread. As always when we travel somewhere we tried to taste whatever possible of local products. Cheeses were really good. After our large breakfast we packed few things, we even didn’t forget a raincoat and water, since we planned to be out until evening, and the weather forecasts suggested it would rain.

Bled Castle
Since early morning there were low clouds and thus visibility was poor. However, we didn’t want to change our plans, so we walked slowly to Bled Castle. On the way we passed by a beautiful white church with a tiny infocenter nearby. We looked inside, as true tourists would do. At the moment they were showing an interesting presentation about wonders of nature around Bled. Since outside a fog was spreading we entered the church and sat down for a while. When we were leaving some lady gave us infomaps with marked points of interest. She also told us that the weather would get better in the afternoon and tomorrow the rain should be gone. I cheered us up, because the film inspired us to explore local nature. Anyway, our goal of the day was local castle. The weather outside was cloudy, but the rain stopped, for a while, so we continue to the lake. Very interesting stairs go from there to the caste and together with wooden columns connected by steel cables they look very impressive. A massive castle Bled is located on a 130 meters high rock. The castle is one of the oldest castles in Slovenia. When the weather is good it provides a very beautiful view of castle’s surroundings from the courtyard. Unfortunately, we were not that lucky, so we just enjoyed a view over the lake. When we were on the top we noticed a small natural pool close to the lake, right beneath the castle. The pool was, naturally, closed. Despite the fact that the castle is not one of the largest, there are many things it offers. During our visit there was some children show. First, gentlemen and ladies in historic costumes performed historic dances, and then we, together with the children, admired a fight of two men. After buying a ticket a visitor can freely move within the castle. However, if you were interested, you can have a guided tour. A museum of historic development and settlement of the town of Bled, historic press, interesting gallery of herbs, castle’s wine basement where you can cork up a wine of your choice, or castle’s restaurant. After an exploration of the castle we enjoyed a cup of coffee and a glass of local wine in a coffee bar at courtyard. From there we had clear view over the lake and its surroundings.

An impertinent shopping swan
On a hill at the other side of the lake we notice some kind of circuit. We immediately tried to find out what it is. It was a bobsled and we wanted to try it. The weather was getting better so we descended to the lake by another path. We stopped for a great lunch on a terrace of a small restaurant that was hidden between houses in lower castle. The price pleasantly surprised us, again. The thing is that we little bit worried because before we set out on our vacation, our friends told us that Slovenia is beautiful, yet bit expensive country. A menu that consisted of main course and a vegetable salad we paid less than 10 EUR, for both. The portion was generous; some ladies would be satisfied just with a vegetable salad there. Then we slowly marched to the bobsled that eventually appeared to be closed for some reason. What you can do… There would be no adrenaline today, so we just walked about. On our way we stopped in local market where except people “an impertinent swan” was shopping. She was really rude how she tried to reach souvenir stands. She bit one older lady in her bottom parts with her beak so hard the lady screamed with a surprise and jumped few centimeters in the air. We rather let her go in front of us. She didn’t buy anything because we didn’t see any purse hanging from her wing, and just examined some things. Anyway, be bought there a nice hand-painted magnet, had some hot chocolate in nearby coffee bar, and pleasantly tired we moved to “our” garden in front of the house we were accommodated in.

On the next day we would lke to visit an island in front of the lake, however, we still were not decided if we get there by our own or we rent a ferryman that transport tourists. He does it manually, since except for rescuer, no one is allowed to use a motorboat on the lake.

Text and photo: O. Maňáková