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Showing posts from March, 2016

Goodbye Ljubljana, hello London

Well I'm back in London again - for ten days this time.  Lots of plans so yesterday was a kind of rest day if you can call shopping a rest.  I headed over to Wandsworth (not "the dodgy end" - fans of "Love Actually" will get that) to the shopping centre there.  Hit up the pound shop - I love that store.  So much better than our dollar stores in Canada -  better quality products although you are paying double the price of course.  But you get name brands whereas at the dollar stores it tends to be brands that aren't as well known.  Also visited Waterstones where I could not resist a new book...bookstores are like crack to me - wonderful but very hard to resist buying anything.  Then the bus to Putney Bridge where I took a few photos.... I walked along here last year when I was doing the Thames Path... Monday in Ljubljana was a "rest day" as it was a dull dreary day with rain on and off.   Eva and I had a long chat over a cuppa and she r

A day by the Adriatic Sea

I had heard about the beautiful Venetian-Gothic town of Piran through my friend Pat.  Once I got to Ljubljana everyone I spoke to said I must go and see it.  Piran is named for the Greek word Pyr which means fire.  This was inspired by the fire that was lit on the top of the peninsula to guide galleys into the port at nearby Aegida.  I journeyed here by bus which was a two and a half hour trip each way.  However the bus was comfortable, the ride smooth and the scenery outstanding.  Upon arrival my first port of call was a coffee shop (with a loo - yay!) right by the bus stop.  Now this was not your typical bus station coffee shop...I ordered my coffee and sat outside to enjoy the view... After I had my caffeine fix I walked towards town and when I saw the scene below I think my words were something totally not cool like "holy shit batman"!  I mean...WOW!!! I had been worried that being a Catholic country there might not have been many shops/restaurants open on Eas

Beautiful Lake Bled

When I decided to visit Ljubljana I knew that I would be visiting Lake Bled as the pictures I'd seen looked absolutely stunning.   My first morning in the city I visited the local tourist office and booked a five hour tour with Slovenia Explorer for the next day.  They travel in a van rather than a big bus which is what I prefer. Surprisingly they agreed to pick me up at my residence and were actually early.  There were 8 of us so the van was full - a family of 4 from Spain, a fellow from Colombia, a couple from Wales and me.  Our tour leader/driver Anya was great fun and knowledgeable. The Castle First stop was Lake Bled Castle, a medieval castle dating from the 11 century.  The castle overlooks the castle and makes a stunning sight from the lake.  I've got to walk up there???  Trust me it was steep.  Between being overweight, unfit and asthmatic I was huffing and puffing like a steam engine.  The small chapel in the castle was absolutely stunning.  The

Learning more about Ljubljana

After a light breakfast of a banana and yogurt I set off for the Old Town.  It takes me about 15 minutes to walk there from the flat.  Along the way I stopped for a coffee - I do have my priorities!  Eva has instant coffee but with the excellent coffee available here I want to enjoy it while I can. First stop was the tourist office where I booked a tour to Lake Bled for tomorrow.  I was toying with the Slovenia in a Day tour but there is an hour and a half walking tour inside a cave and that is not something I wanted to do. (let's not even go there okay...)  I think this tour will be fun and fingers crossed the weather holds - they are even going to pick me up here.  Today it was mostly sunny but windy and cold.  To tell the truth I haven't been warm since I got here - here as in over the pond.  Yeah yeah I come from Canada where it's colder but we actually have heat in our homes!  Central heating in the UK is a joke and the weather wasn't overly warm there either so