Bled & Environs

May 6, 2005-Underwhelmed
(photos:Skofja Loka,
Local talent)

Some of you who got my emails from our around-the-world trip might remember that we saw the movie Ocean’s 11 on six or seven flights during the nine months we were gone. One of the movies on the plane coming here was Ocean’s 12.

The emails I’ve written so far seem uneventful…boring. Maybe it’s because we haven’t gotten lost or done any stupid American things yet. We did see one funny item on a menu. They served “octopussy in salad.” Judi Cope added excitement to the day. She took a walk this morning & came face to face with a military tank. She mentioned it to the man who gave the lecture about Slovenia yesterday & who claimed there wasn’t an army. He told her the tank was half of the remaining panzer division. Although they seem peace loving he told us not to be fooled. When Slovenians get behind the wheel of a car they’re ruthless. They’d just as soon mow down pedestrians as not. The only exception is tourists. We’ve noticed that they do stop for us to cross the street. We’ve become their bread & butter.

The hall outside our hotel room smells like pastry. It’s not bad & when we’re walking upstairs we know when we’re on the right floor. The kitchen must be under us.

More Old Buildings

We were reading about Jews in Slovenia. They were forced to leave several times during its history. The first expulsion was 1496 as part of the Inquisition. The ghetto in Ljubljana was built in 1480. I guess some returned. There are fewer then one hundred in the country now. Judaism doesn’t even rate a place on the list of religions represented.

The sun has come out & with it snow capped Trigolav Mt. has emerged. Trigolav means three heads & is a stunning presence looming over the town. We enjoyed the view as we bussed to Skofja Loka, a town founded in 973. The Sava River followed us as we entered what is now the oldest medieval town in the country. An earthquake destroyed it in 1511 so it was re-built. Most of the buildings are in the historic register. Local talent performed 15th & 16th century dances for us wearing costumes from that time. There’s a sameness to folk dances: form a circle, clap, kick your feet. We visited a 15th century house & adjourned to dinner in a former granary. Our dinner of turkey rolled around spinach, beef, strudel stuffed with cheese, & roast potatoes was delicious. I especially liked the rum soaked cake we had for dessert. Lunch wasn’t shabby either. David had fajitas (go figure). I had gnocchi with a salmon sauce. All breakfasts & nine dinners are provided so we have lots of opportunities to explore local haunts. That’s part of the fun for us.

We’re told that Grand Circle doesn’t go on shopping excursions where you’re stuck while someone is deciding what “tsotcka” to buy.

Tomorrow we go to Ljubljana, the capital..

Toby