A Short Stop in Slovenia

Our short two day stay in Ljubljana was an abbreviated version of the familiar chant April showers bring May flowers. It rained the entire first day we were there. Luckily for us it was only drizzling that afternoon when we (Lesley, Scott Northrup, and Russ) had to walk a short distance from the train station to the apartment we rented. As the day went on the rain increased its intensity, and we were recalling some of the dramatic flooding that had occurred in central Europe and the Balkans earlier in the summer. Our only adventure that evening was about 20 steps away: a quaint little Slovenian restaurant next door. The kind waitress there didn't speak any English at all, which was oddly refreshing to us but she was shy and apologetic about it. We enjoyed trying to meet her on her side of the language barrier with the Croatian we knew, and many giggles later we had a nice meal. When we left for the looong journey home we were stopped in our tracks by a massive puddle--several inch deep--that had suddenly developed between us and the entrance to our apartment. We tried to tiptoe, run, jump across the enormous puddle but we got soaked anyway. Ah, it was good to tuck in that evening in our cozy apartment. It was a good night's sleep and recuperation.

The next day turned out to be a marvelously sunny, crisp autumn day, perfect for discovering the elegant beauty of Ljubljana. Scott Northrup and Russ spent the afternoon together walking around the small town center while Lesley played Hausfrau and took advantage of the washing machine in our apartment. That evening all we all went on an informative and really fun guided tour of Ljubljana and its medieval castle. The highlight of the tour was the time we spent on top of the Ljubljana castle tower. The castle is located on top of one of the three prominent hills of Ljubljana. While on top of the tower, our guide Marty passionately told us stories about his city, country and culture as he pointed out points of history. He emphasized how lucky we were to see Ljubljana on such a clear night--probably the last of the season. We were able to see the highest peak in Slovenia which is rarely visible from the castle. Ours was the very last walking tour of the season for Marty. He was visibly moved by the beautiful night, and we felt lucky to be participating in it. We reflected on all of the serendipity and beauty we have experienced this summer.

The next day we got up at 5am and headed to the airport to fly to Istanbul. Since then we've been in Turkey for ten superlative days...stay tuned! We've also updated the smugmug site with pictures from Tuscany and Croatia (click on the Photos link in the sidebar on the right).

WB=80 (it's probably bigger but we've been sharing with many friends and we're losing track.)