Slovenia

The views out of the window were stunning en route to Bled. The mountains of Austria are just stunning and seeing all the cute little buildings on the tops was the cherry on top. We hadn't time for a coffee at Vienna station so me and Emma thought we'd go check out the snack bar on the train. We walked through the carriage up to the bike carriage where a lady was set up between hanging bicycles, tyres to the left of her face and saddles to the right. I asked if she did latte and she gave me a menu. It didn't look like they did but they had cappuccino so I thought that would do. Emma spotted a caramel coffee and asked for one of those. The lady said to her, "you do know that these contain alcohol is that ok?" Emma nodded and I changed my order! They were like little hot espresso martinis! What a win!

We noticed that we were a couple of minutes behind schedule which isn't too much of an issue usually, but today we only had SEVEN minutes to change trains and mine and Emma's arses were twitchy. If we missed our train, the next one was in two hours time!! We hatched a plan to get bagged up and wait in the vestibule ready to race to the other platform. We knew which one it was on as OBB (Austria's rail operator) had emailed us telling us so! We'd chugged into the station before ours 4 minutes late. This now meant three minutes and we had no idea how big Villach station was. As we neared our stop, the train stopped. I am presuming this was to wait for a clear platform because after another train went by, we set off. Now we would arrive exactly 7 mins late. I had confidence we wouldn't be the only ones catching this next train and they could possibly wait for us especially if they saw us pacing across the station. We agreed I would run ahead - you know the member of the group who's a marathoner ;) and hold the doors up basically. When I darted to the subway I noticed lots of other large rucksacks rushing past me! I was right - we were not the only ones. It was like the airport scene from Home Alone. 

I reached the top of platform 1D-E's stairs and the train was still there, doors open. Obviously I couldn't board it yet and looked around to see if my team mates were coming. I couldn't see them but a sea of people were still flooding onto the platform and so I knew we were relatively safe. 

At last I spotted them puffing up the steps and so we all jumped on the nearest carriage. We had no idea if this was where our seats were but we didn't care. We were on and didn't have two hours to wait for the next train! We walked through the carriage until we heard some English voices and asked if they knew which carriage it was. Apparently there were no seat reservations in place and we could sit anywhere.

This train was airy and air-conned with WiFi. I liked it! The views were stunning as we passed through the south Austrian countryside. It wasn't long before we stopped at Faak am See. Obviously this was one for the photo album. I already knew we'd pass here as I'd seen it on a map before we came. What I didn't know is just how turquoise the water would be. As we left the station the Lake was to our left. As the train passed it, literally everyone in our carriage went wow and jaws dropped to the floor. I have been on many trains around the world but I have never had a view outside the window so beautiful. It was as blue as the co-op logo. Laurie asked how it got so blue, what they put in it. How many chemicals? I was like it's natural kid. Greater depth in geography my arse!! 

We arrived at Lesce-Bled and popped in the map to the hotel. I knew it was about 0.8 miles which isn't too bad. But in the heat, with a bag it can be testing! The view up to the hotel was amazing though. The mountains, the chalets with flowers on the balcony, the birds of prey hovering over the nearby fields. About halfway along the walk, Emma spotted a red roof and was like, "isn't that it over there?" And it was! It was still about 0.4 miles away but you could def see it - just like the image from booking.com.

We passed a Lidl and an Aldi (Hofer here in Slovenia and Austria - interesting story maybe I ll tell you another time!). There was also a McDonalds and so Laurence reminded us we needed to go check it out!  It's not us being waaaaay Brits abroad, not sampling local delicacies. It's us being total collectomaniacs wanting to visit a golden arch in every country we go to! The thing is as well, different places have different menus and it's cool to see what they have. For example, in Amsterdam they do stroopwaffle McFlurries, in Japan teriyaki burgers, in Austria mineral drinks disguised as beer! Plus it's easy to order. Plus it's cheap. 

When we crossed over the large road we entered a little village called Hraše. There were lots of little chalet style houses with flowers on the balcony. Authentic alpine. We were absolutely here for it. We walked up to the doors of our digs and checked in.

We wanted to go check out the actual lake as soon as we could. We've been absolutely citied out and just want some views in our life. So we showered and decided how to get down to the lake. Now you know me. I am a planner. Before I go away I check out all the little things we need to go. What's the deal with public transport, what's the custom of paying for food etc etc. I'd researched public transport from our hotel to the lake and noticed there wasn't any. Not unless we got a train back the way we came, changed and had a half hour walk. I'd seen taxis were €10 or there abouts and thought that might have to do. 

We asked the lady at reception to call us a cab and so along it came and off to the lake we went. It was a female driver and she was full of info about where to go and what to see. It was like having your auntie pick you up from the station. She did warn us that the drive time to the Lake could be up to 45 mins at this time of day due to traffic. That meter was soon clocking up and I thought - this is not gonna cost us a tenner!

By the time we got lakeside it had reached €23 which I suppose wasn't terrible but there's no way we could pay that twice a day for three days. Apple Maps still said no buses but I'd asked her en route if there was a bus from the station to the lake and she said there was! I took a chance on Google maps and that had bus info! Perfect. We'd bus it back. Yes we've spent €23 but at least we'd got our bearings. We'd figure it all out on the way back.

The views on the side of the lake were just stunning. I love lakes and mountains and I have seen some pretty awesome ones in my time. Lake Garda was special and of course the Lake District in the UK. The best of course I've seen are in Scotland - my favourite place in the world! I am desperate to go to the Rockies in Canada and visit Banff and Lake Louise. This place is up there though - and me and Emma agreed it was probably the prettiest place either of us had been to. 

We were taking pics and selfies at all angles and filming little videos to bore everyone with back home. Of course our standard procedure for arriving in a new place is to go and have a beer so we did exactly that. We also had a toastie and at 4 euros 50 we didn't think that was too bad! 

Next to the restaurant was a little souvenir shop. I thought I'd go in and see if they had a tree ornament for our collection. They did and it was only €3 too! They also had bracelets with names on so I thought I'd get one each for us. Obviously they didn't have our actual names but they were close enough. Karin, Ema and Lorenz. Funny because I often call him Lorenz (short for Lorenzo). He's never ever had holiday tat with his name on so I am buzzing I found these! They do have it with my name on - but not the cool stuff anymore. It's the boomer tat like a shopping list holder, trolley key chains and stuff like "Karen's garden".

After our snack we headed around the lake a little and found a spot where we could dip our feet in. It wasn't really that cold but it was so refreshing! The water was clear and we could see little fishes swimming by. 

We got up and walked around a bit further and saw some swimming pools and one of those inflatable water activity things. I've been on one before in Doncaster. This one had a nicer view. We thought we'd come back here tomorrow and make a day of it. It's not too expensive to get in so we could have a swim and a bit of a play too. Plus it's cheaper if you go after 3 so we thought we'd plan our day around it.

We thought we'd head back, pop into that Aldi and get some munchies to have on our balcony. I doubled checked the bus times and it looked like there was one coming. In the queue I asked some Brits the deal about paying etc and apparently it was €1.50 cash! ONE EURO and FIFTY CENTS! I can't believe we didn't do this earlier!!! When we boarded the guy charged me €3. Emma and I assumed Laurie was free.  There was air con on the bus and free wi-fi. Perfect.

We got a right haul in Aldi/Hofer. Meats, cheeses, crisps, wine and sweets. Plus some Coke for Loz. We walked back looking forward to a chill on the balcony. Laurie decided he'd stay in the room and Emma and I headed out. We were conscious it was like 8:30/9pm at this point so we whispered as we spoke outside. I know we can be noisy and mildly annoying at times. But we know when to rein it in - like at Auschwitz! 

Anyway, Emma asked me if I knew which exact parts Labia were on a vagina and I laughed at said there were two sets. Honestly the laugh wasn't that loud but around the corner of our balcony popped a head. An old man with a tash. He held his finger to his lips and did the loudest most passive aggressive SHHHHHHHHHH either of us had ever heard. We were slightly shell shocked to begin as we'd actually been quiet and it wasn't even that late. Of course then we got the giggles even more so. We felt like kids being told off by a teacher on a school trip. It was all fun and games yesterday when the Viennese viper sniped at the Chinese tourists. Today we were fuming. 

It wasn't long after we headed into our room. We were fed up of all the bugs. When we went into our room they'd all followed us in there. I was running around chasing moths with cupped hands miserably failing at catching them and humanly relocating them outside. I caught one and then Emma spotted another above her bed. I knocked it with a leaflet and it fell onto her pillow. She let out a loud scream and you just know Hank the Wank stain next door was shaking his head disappointingly. 

Shhhhhhhhhhh we both yelled out. We will

never get over this.

Like any night this trip, as soon as our head hit the pillow we were all out like a light. Sleeping well ready to give Hank some shit! 

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Hank wasn't at breakfast. I did think this would be the case as he seemed an early riser. Our whispering at 9:30 disturbed his early night. If Hank was in Benidorm, he'd be reserving sun beds at dawn.

Breakfast was typically European. Usual fare of cheese, meats, yoghurts and salad. The coffee was really nice and I had two cups. It's such a cute little hotel though and I am enjoying the fact we're here several days and getting a breakfast thrown in too.

We decided today we'd see all the main sights around the lake. Now we'd sussed the bus we walked down to the station and hopped aboard. Again, Laurie was free which was a win! We started off by heading to the little boat jetty to row over to the island where the church is. I asked how much the fare was - €20 for adults and €10 for children 10 and under. You can all work out how old Laurie was today! My mum dined out on free train fares until I was at least 8. I was very short for my age and not one of those gobby shits who when told "Don't tell the man how old you are. Remember you're 4" proudly announces to the conductor and the entire train their real age. Nah, I understood the assignment and kept schtum. 

The little boat ride is a staple of the Lake Bled Instagram influencer reels. We'd seen it a few times and knew we wanted some of it! The trip over was so peaceful. One of the best boat rides I've ever been on. As we neared the island, we could hear the church bells ringing. They're called the wishing bells and if you ring them you can make a wish. Again, influencers have documented this in their content. When we reached the island we realised you had to paid €12 each just to go inside the church. We decided there was nothing we wished for that much to part with our cash! Laurie and I got an ice cream - which wasn't too pricy at €3 a scoop. We ate ours over looking the view.

You only got 45 mins on the island before retuning back to shore so we hopped on ours ready for the return trip! We'd seen the toboggan ride on social media before we came too and it was pencilled onto our maybe list. We went right past the slope on our little boat ride and Emma and Laurie decided they'd go get a toastie instead. They were happy for me to sod off and leave them to it.

I dropped them off at the Devil's bar where we had a toastie yesterday and set off for the slope. I knew they had made the right decision for them, it was a bit of a climb up to the activity centre and the temp was really beginning to rise.

It was only €13 for a chairlift ride to the summit and to come back down again on the toboggan. A euro more than a quick mooch around a church! I bought my ticket and waited in line. It probably took just over an hour to get to the front and wait for my turn on the chairlift. I messaged the crew to see how they were doing and they didn't miss Me. They were quite happy chilling in the bar.

The chairlift didn't stop you had to get on whilst it was still moving and I feel most Europeans have experience of going on these. I do not. So was a little apprehensive about getting on it. I had to stand still in place and when it crept up behind me I had to lean back into it and the attendant would bring the bar down and secure me in place.

I say secure - it wasn't overly. I could have easily slipped and fell to my death. Naturally during this time I decided the best thing was to take my phone out my bag and take some selfies. I thought I'd get a shot of my legs lifted up with the view infront. Little did I know that my feet being on the bottom

Bar, kept the safety bar in place so I wobbled a bit. I ditched that idea and got some other shots instead. The views were absolutely amazing and I pinched myself that I was really sat there taking it all in. Mountains and lakes are my favourite views in the world and this place has some of the best.

At the top, there's no attendant to help you. I couldn't watch the people before me to work out what to do (my usual trick) because they'd already got off the time I noticed so I just had to go for it. I lifted my feet, raised the bar and hobbled off before getting knocked down by the very chair I was sat on.

I then joined yet another albeit shorter queue for the ride. It all seemed easy enough. Push the lever forward to go fast and bring it back to slow down. I'd read that these can reach speeds of 40km per hour so I was going to go full pelt no messing. In my ascent to the top, I didn't hear one person scream but I can tell you I made up for it!!! I pushed the lever fully forward pretty much even around the tight turns which had a "brake now" sign next to them! What an adrenaline rush! I've always wanted a go on one of these in the mountains. The ones in Switzerland look amazing - I ll defo hunt one down when we do our holiday out there!

I'd almost forgotten to go check out my photo from the ride so turned around and went and had a gander! The pic was quite funny actually and I didn't have any pics of me on the ride so I bought one. It was only €5 after all!

Once I'd picked the kids up from Devil's bar we all decided it was time to go dip in the lake. There aren't many public swimming spots around but there was a lido just under the castle with an inflatable total wipeout style course. After 3pm it was a bit cheaper so we hung around until then. It was really well set up. There were little pools of all varying depths for kids and non-confident swimmers and then more of an open access to the main lake. We found a spot on the grass, put our towels down and jumped in! Emma and Laurie chilled in one of the pools and I got some pics of them. The water was such a lovely temperature - warm enough to enjoy it but still refreshing all the same.

There was a water slide down the other end me and Laurie checked out too although it was a bit slow so only went on once. I decided I wanted to go jump into the open part which was more like swimming in the natural lake. My feet didn't touch the ground I had no idea how deep it was - but I wasn't too bothered. I love wild swimming and this was one of the best places I've done it! Looking out at the little church we visited earlier in the day and the backdrop of the mountains - plus the clearness of the water. It's one of the highlights of the whole

Trip so far! 

Laurie and I decided we'd go do our session on the total wipeout course, Emma our photographer. We put on our life jackets and listened to the safety brief. 

I'd forgotten just how much bloody hard work these inflatable courses were. Even just lifting yourself up from the water to the flat floating platform is difficult enough but then scaling up to the tall slides can really zap the energy out of you.

There was one inflatable shaped a bit like a UFO I wanted to climb on. It was really hard to get up. I swam over and tried and just didn't have the strength in me to pull myself up. I was a bit gutted. I like to do all things. I don't like missing out. If I put my mind to something and it doesn't happen I get frustrated. We only a 20 min session so I thought I'd go check out all the other bits and maybe come back after.  There were a couple of slides and other things to climb on. I wasn't sure if we were allowed to jump off as no one else was and the lifeguard told us in the briefing no jumping off the big slide. I didn't risk it. 

After I bet I headed back over to the UFO. Laurie was with me and he tried to get me up. I was pulling on the handles and trying to lift my legs but it wasn't happening. I fell in the water again.  Some other boys had made it up and helped Laurie get on. It was so lovely how the little group were working as a team to help each other. The boys came and stood on the side we were climbing on to give us more chance. A mum came up behind me to assist. This was my only chance now. The UFO was leaning onto my side, I had a hand on each handle and my legs pushing against part of the inflatable. She was pushing my arse as hard as she could and eventually I was on!! I screamed so loudly with excitement - excelling fridge in wardrobe levels!!!! I'd made it! 

I jumped in off the top and had a go on one more slide before our time was up! Aching, I hobbled back over to Emma to laugh at the photos and videos she took! Of course after all that hard work there was only one thing we could do and that was have a beer! Two pints and one Coke came to €12 which I didn't think was too bad for somewhere like that.

We soon decided it was time to go get some tea and where else other than the Golden Arches! Slovenian Maccy dees offers shrimp on its menu so that's a new one for the list!! 

We were all exhausted and knew we needed a bit of a chiller this evening. Back at the hotel Laurie watched some shit on YouTube and Emma and I headed down to the hotel bar for a beer. I was in my PJs and didn't care at this point! It was getting slightly bug happy again out there. We're covered in bites. We've got some repellant and after bite and still our skin resembles a dot to dot puzzle right now.

We didn't stop down long. We had a quick scoot around the front to see if we could see the perseids meteor shower - we couldn't see anything so gave up and came up to bed.

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Day 3 of Bled started a bit like Day 2 of Bled. We went down for breakfast. Had sausage, cheese and nice coffee. We weren't entirely sure what we would do today. We thought maybe the castle and try some Bled cream cake but unsure after.

I looked up how much the entrance to the castle was - €15 or so. We decided we weren't that bothered about it! I had seen this beautiful gorge on Instagram influencer videos and thought maybe we could go check that out. We researched the logistics. We would get our trusted arriva bus down to the lake side and a shuttle bus would collect us from there. Off we walked down to the station again. The walk was getting familiar but still as tiring. Just under a mile.

As we approached the area where Aldi is we just walked under a tunnel and approached a really tall lamppost. Thank holy god I was alert and keeping an eye on my surroundings as a massive spider - we're talking palm size was dangling around mid air from it, at my head height. It was one of those garden ones with fat bodies and gangly legs. The ones I hate the most. I screamed to let the others know to avoid. Emma ran out into the road narrowing missing get run over and Laurie froze in horror wondering what on earth was going on. SPIIIIIIIDER I shouted. Can you imagine that getting lost in your hair. Absolutely not.

Shaken, we walked the rest of the way. Keeping our eyes wide open checking for more 8-legged friends. Thankfully there were none.

There was a bus waiting for us at the station so we hot stepped it, and checked it was going our way. It was. The traffic into Bled was as bad as ever, taking about half hour.

We got off at the main bus station and went to find out how to get a ticket to the gorge.

We bought one but our slot wasn't for another couple of hours so we decided to go find somewhere to buy the famous cake by the lake. This was a new side of the area we hadn't checked out yet. We found a cute little cafe bar that had a balcony overlooking the lake. Emma and I ordered a slab each and Laurence had waffles.

I am not a massive fan of cream cakes to be fair. I find them all a bit too sickly. Emma's pretty much the same so what possessed us to get one each rather than share I don't know. I did enjoy it and Emma too. But we were full and felt sick. I really do love the whole trying out different food where you go element of the trip. We're heading to Italy now and I am soooo excited for the scran there! 

We had another mooch down by the lake. I paddled and Emma and Laurie chilled on a bench. They were a bit anxious of the trees by the lake, thinking Terry the tarantula's pals might be hovering about.

We went up to see the deal with the bus and didn't have to wait too long for it to arrive. It's only a ten minute drive away. Thank god. It was that packed Laurence had to sit on my lap!

The gorge was lovely! I love a nice walk in a scenic place and this was perfect! It reminded me a little of the hermitage in Scotland - which is situated just outside Perth! Lovely walks, nice trees and waterfalls. We had to wear helmets just incase rocks fell on our head or we bumped into the rocks above. The scenery provided some good opportunities for selfies. At the very end was my fav view of the trip so far. There was a lovely waterfall where some people were swimming and then out towards the mountains. It was that nice my selfie has made my FB profile pic. 

Of course we walked out about 45 mins from the coach so we had to walk back to it too! We couldn't walk back the way we came. It was one way. We followed signs but it involved a lot of steps and Laurie had already had enough along the gorge.  After about 20 mins we saw a sign for ice creams and thought it was the end. It wasn't. But there was a bar.

Me: Emma, do you fancy a beer?

Emma: yeah mate. Why not?

So off we went for a beer. It was a cute little establishment, the decor reminded me a bit of the inside of those tents you have a Christmas markets that sell overpriced beer and mulled wine. Sheep skin rugs on seats etc. The beer was home brewed and delicious. We had Two.

We didn't think we were far from

The coach but we were wrong. It was another 20 mins walk or so back to the main car park with sheer drops down into ravines. We were also feeling slightly tipsy from the two beers too! Oops. The only solace was that we were walking under trees so at least it was shaded.

We were so happy when we saw the end! It was like completing the three peaks or something! We didn't have long to wait for a bus and we were soon back in Bled. We popped to our fav bar for some toasties and drinks one last time.  We've really enjoyed our time in Slovenia. Bled is a perfect holiday destination and you could easily spend a week here. There's activities to do, lush views to photo and great food to eat! If you're not as crazy as me maybe fly into Ljubljana and get a train up!

We waited at the bus stop for ages but the bus didn't come. We made pals with a guy from the Netherlands who was asking me advice on how to book the trip to the gorge. It doesn't take long for me to fit in like a local and help tourists find their way. When the bus did eventually arrive we helped our new Dutch pal with getting a ticket!

We just chilled back at the hotel last night. I repacked all my bags as they'd all become muddled. I had a system of one bag for tops, one for bottoms, one for underwear, toiletries etc to make everything easy to find but with washing clothes, rushing places and the like everything was in a different bag and this was grating me greatly so I wanted a reset.  I reiterated the point that I'd brought too much again. It's so hard to get right. You don't want to run out of clothes but you don't want to carry too much either.

It was really hard to motivate ourselves as we were all absolutely knackered. That walk had taken it out of us - plus all the excitement of the previous couple of days. Bled was meant to be our relaxing part of the trip but there was just too much fun stuff to do!

We're having an absolute blast on the train to Italy now. We've made pals with a German family so I am going to go back to chatting to them and drinking my beer! Will see you in Italia!