Slovenia: An Unexpected Joy!

Spending seven days in Croatia was a wonderful introduction to European culture, food, and people. Albeit very minor, Croatia did feel like an absolute tourist destination with thousands of people swarming the streets to see some of its stunning architecture and natural landscape. Desiring to venture off the beaten path slightly, we opted to travel north to lesser-known Slovenia. Slovenia is honestly not entirely off the beaten path, just not as popular as countries and cities that are all nearby. But the beauty of Europe is that everything is so close, that it is not really out of the way to explore these lesser-known areas, and boy are we glad that we did. Slovenia offers something for everyone, a fun hip metropolitan city with Ljubljana, limestone peaks of the eastern Julian Alps, and even the largest cavern in Europe. We left Europe’s green capital feeling that it would be a sneaky dark horse for our favorite country not just in Europe but even in South America as well.

Ljubljana sits in the middle of Slovenia, pretty much an hour's drive from all northern, southern, eastern, and western borders. This makes it very easy to get in and out of it with train lines connecting it to Austria, Italy, and Croatia. Walking the city streets, you are captivated by the European architecture along the Ljubljanica River. Streets are lined with colorful Baroque-style buildings, uniquely painted churches, and socialist brutalism from the Yugoslavian era; every street has a different story to tell. The downtown center is full of restaurants and cafes that give a plethora of options that would satisfy any appetite. Outdoor farmers markets and food stands full of locals shopping in main squares were common sights. Beer culture in Slovenia was popular with numerous craft breweries and pubs with outdoor terraces. The center of the town had an undeniable charm that made me jealous that I did not live nearby to experience often. The most popular attraction was the Ljubljana Castle in the heart of the city on top of a hill. From the top of the 12th-century fortress, you could view the entire city unobstructed. Ljubljana has the nickname of “The City of Dragons” due to a legend that was told about a dragon living on the top of this hill where the castle sits today. There are numerous statues of dragons around the city due to this, and every souvenir shop sold dragon memorabilia to commemorate the legend.

Just about a thirty-minute drive north from Ljubljana sat the famous Lake Bled, a beautiful lake sitting within the Julian Alps acting as a gateway to world-class hiking and skiing in the winter. Many Slovenians were practicing cross-country skiing in the area during the summer. We did two separate hikes in this area, hiking to the top of Mt. Visvenek and hiking along the Vintgar Gorge. Both hikes were some of the most scenic hiking I have ever experienced. I could really only compare it to the landscapes of Yosemite with towering mountains and limestone rocks in every direction. It was magnificent. If you drove thirty minutes south, you would have arrived at the largest cavern network in Europe. The Postonja cave was a limestone cave network that included a train that drove through as if you were on Thunder Mountain in Disneyland. This cave had many halls where the ceilings were over 140 feet in the air, with towering stalagmites and stalactites. It was amazing seeing these landscapes all within thirty to forty minutes outside of where we were staying. The natural landscapes of Slovenia were incredible. When we booked our Airbnb stay, we originally thought that we would be staying for far too long, but left feeling like we wished we could spend more time there. Slovenia is an unexpectedly delightful country that should be on more people’s travel destination lists.

TrekBytes

Slovenia: An Unexpected Joy!