Slovenia

Today I’m finishing up a three-day stint in Slovenia from which my base of operations has been its capital, Ljubljana (LYOOB lyana). As I’ve moved further northeast I’m starting to see more of the Europe that I recognize as western. But Slovenia is still undiscovered and the bars and restaurants are filled with more locals than tourists and Americans continue to be scarce. But I have met four of them in this country, which is four more than I met in Bulgaria and Serbia combined.

The hostel here is truly remarkable. It was converted from an abandoned jail and its cells were modified to suit guests of the more voluntary sort. Slovenian interior designers were invited to compete against each other to provide the nicest room on a hostel-sized budget. And the project was such a success that daily tours are offered to show the results. In addition to these remarkable rooms, this hostel sports a bar, multiple group meeting/eating areas, several nargiles, and an art exhibit. It is truly amazing.

After writing that last blog topic I realized how crazy my couple of weeks have been. I made a conscious decision to take it easy for a day or so. Ljubljana and the quiet city of Bled should have suited this self-imposed exile well. And they did. For about 36 hours.

Bled is a small town in a tiny country. Situated at the base of the Julian alps, its mountain-top castle is over 1,000 years old and has served as the home of religious and secular heads-of-state. From its precarious position, one can see the aquamarine lake that surrounds a tiny island that hosts and ancient church. I walked around the lake (less than two miles) and to the top of the mountain (hella high) and snapped a hundred pictures before enjoying a glass of wine with a Father Andre, who was peddling his country’s “finest quality” wine.

Back in Ljubljana I met the three people that were sharing my apartment-style room at the hostel. All girls, and all ready for a drink, we rolled on down to the hostel bar and got to work. Two more girls folded into the group and I can tell you that I was feeling like quite the pimp. But that was brief, as none of us hit it off in that way.

I spent today exploring the city and another hilltop castle with one of those girls, a San Franciscan named Lisa. Miles of walking, beautiful architecture, stunning weather, and fantastic gelati made it a hell of a day. Tomorrow I’m heading off to Budapest. At this point I’m actually a little ahead of schedule. That is, I’ll easily be able to see all of the eastern Europe things I wanted to see before I seen Brian in Prague and Rich in Paris. Looks like I should have gone to Croatia, after all.