Travelrific® Travel Journal
Picture postcards in prose.™ Check out the blogroll on the front page for official merchandise and other resources!Archive for slovenia
Capitals of Culture in 2025
By Linda Tancs
In keeping with tradition, we begin the New Year with an announcement on the European Capitals of Culture for 2025: Chemnitz in Germany and Nova Gorica in Slovenia. Chemnitz is the third-largest city in the German state of Saxony after Leipzig and Dresden. Over 100 projects and 1,000 events are planned for the year. One of their flagship features is the Purple Path art and sculpture trail, an exhibition featuring over 30 international contemporary art works in public spaces. Nova Gorica is a town in western Slovenia bordering Italy. The key word for their festivities is “borderless,” a commitment to being the European Capital of Borderless Culture in partnership with the Italian town of Gorizia. Highlights include the first permanent cross-border dance ensemble in the town’s history as well as the launch of Europe’s first cross-border bee trail, an area along the border with locations where bee-friendly plants have been planted. More than 30 restaurants and bars in Gorizia and Nova Gorica have put together a menu of dishes based on honey products.
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New Year, New Travels!
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A Cave Castle in Slovenia
By Linda Tancs
Listed by Guinness World Records as the world’s largest cave castle, Predjama looks like any other medieval castle, except for the fact that the cliffside fortress is built into the mouth of a cave complex. The interior, then, is a network of tunnels leading to the second-longest cave in the country, where a colony of bats resides. The castle is open year-round; you can visit the cave from June to August when the bats aren’t hibernating.
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Spelunking in Slovenia
By Linda Tancs
Slovenia’s Postojna Cave is heralded as the “Queen of the Underground World.” Carved by the Pivka River, the cave system is the second-longest in the country (at nearly 15 miles) and a top tourist draw. It sparkles like a diamond thanks to flowstone deposits from the stalagmites. It’s also inhabited by olms, the only exclusively cave-dwelling salamander species found in Europe. The locals like to think of them as baby dragons. The attraction also boasts the world’s first railway in an underground cave. Opened in 1872, the underground train is a 2-mile-long journey on the world’s only double-track cave railway.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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Jade Green in Slovenia
By Linda Tancs
All destinations benefit from great reviews that boost tourism. That was certainly the case for Slovenia’s Zelenci Nature Reserve, when British scientist Humphry Davy wrote, “There is nothing more beautiful in Europe than this.” Apparently, he was attracted to the area’s lakes and waterfalls. No doubt he found the reserve’s centerpiece enchanting, which is its jade-green lake sourcing the Sava River (the country’s longest). You can view the lake and the 36-acre reserve through a series of well-constructed walkways. Along the way you’ll likely see some of the rarest plants in the region, like cottongrass, pygmy willows and alder trees. The reserve is also home to species like the whiskered bat, sand lizard and scarlet grosbeak. The reserve is less than 2 miles from the alpine resort Kranjska Gora near the village of Podkoren.
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To limit the spread of COVID-19, attractions may be closed or have partial closures. Please keep those affected by the virus in your thoughts and be sure to follow the safety practices advocated by the Centers for Disease Control. Stay safe, and be well.
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From Tyrol to Italy
By Linda Tancs
From Austria’s highest peak (Grossglockner) to the Adriatic Sea, the Alpe-Adria Trail is a 466-mile trek winding its way through Austria, Slovenia and Italy. Signposted throughout, the trail is divided into a series of stages, each taking about six hours to walk. The hiking season begins in April and ends in October, the whole stretch taking up to six weeks. If you go now, you’ll likely see snow lingering on the high passes in Carinthia and Slovenia.
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A Farewell to Arms in Slovenia
By Linda Tancs
Kobarid is a town located in the Upper Soča Valley in western Slovenia along the border with Italy. Its pastoral character—punctuated with picturesque mountains and peaceful green valleys—belies a stark history as the site of a bloody campaign during World War I. This amiable little town is where the Italian offensive gave way to the Austro-Hungarian army after a series of battles along the Soča Front, a conflict that was documented by Ernest Hemingway in his novel A Farewell to Arms. The town’s monument and church up the hill, overlooking the valley and the Soča River, is where you’ll find the final resting place of over 7,000 Italian soldiers.
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The Oldest Vine in the World
By Linda Tancs
Do fine vines get better with age? You can bet the answer is a resounding ‘yes’ in Maribor, Slovenia, home of the Old Vine. Aged over 400 years, Old Vine is listed in Guinness World Records as the oldest vine in the world. The still-producing vine is located on the frontage of Old Vine House along the Drava embankment. Enjoy the exhibition and wine tasting room.
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The Diversity of Slovenia
By Linda Tancs
Boasting one of the most diverse landscapes in Europe, Slovenia is a treasure trove of uplands and lowlands, karst and castles, alpine lakes and majestic mountains. Learn about its natural and cultural highlights at Travelrific® Radio.
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Alpine River Rafting
By Linda Tancs
Water sports enthusiasts adore the Soča, an Alpine river that rumbles for eighty-six miles through western Slovenia and northeastern Italy. Its tropical hue of green/blue belies the exhilaration it offers adventure travelers like kayakers, who are greeted with signage at various entry points warning them not to underestimate the river’s wrath. Don’t overestimate your talents; take some lessons at one of the many kayak schools all along the river. Bovec is a popular point of entry where you can obtain a river permit. Enjoy the season through October.
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Island Charm
By Linda Tancs
Slovenia, the third most forested country in Europe, has but one island–Bled. Ringed by the Julian Alps, picturesque Bled reigns supreme in the middle of its Alpine lake, a sight to behold in winter when the lake freezes over. The average temperature is, after all, a chilled -2 degrees Celsius. Enjoy the winter views from Bled Castle, the country’s oldest, while munching on Bled vanilla cream cake, a local specialty.
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