Last night, after two very fast weeks, we returned from our whirl wind Eastern European vacation. Now typing away at 5am I think I have a little bit of that infamous jet-lag people always talk about:) I'm not sure how to start this. So much to say, so many pictures to share. Mr. R reminded me to choose wisely in my photographs.....no one really wants to see 500 photos of stone buildings?
I do want to share how we chose our destination....TV folks. That's right, the power of television influenced us. About 18 months ago on a lazy Sunday morning we turned on the ol' tube and started watching a
Rick Steves, Europe through the back door episode,
Croatia, on PBS. I remember hearing Croatia and Bosnia as a kid during their war-time but hadn't really thought it as a vacation destination. The show just planted a little seed and when we got engaged last summer I just threw out "lets honeymoon in Croatia!?!?" After Rick Steves we watched
Anthony Bourdain travel through the Croatian wine country and I was also told
The Bachelor found their way to the beautiful coast, although I didn't see it.
So Croatia is not in Russia. It is on the Adriatic. I think I had this conversation 100 times in the last few months. Croatia borders Slovenia, Italy, Austria, Hungary, Serbia, and Bosnia. It's biggest export is wine....
hello, we are the R's. We like wine and beaches, and history, and beautiful scenery! We wanted to be different and we are so happy we chose to spend our big honeymoon vacation in Eastern Europe.
Our only little hiccup was missing our connection in Toronto so we added a day in Canada....other than that the trip went incredibly smooth. Planes, buses, taxis, and ferry's were our transportation tools. Oh! And our feet! We walked and walked and walked. Mr. R said the only thing different from us and the 19 year old backpackers was our rolling suitcase....and a credit card.
I will not bore y'all with all the details. Both Slovenia and Croatia our beautiful countries and definitely deserve a few days on your next European vacation.
Llubljana, Slovenia
This country capital is surrounded by beatiful mountains with a gorgeous river that runs through the city. At night this place really shines. People were packed in tight to restaurants and bars watching the Euro Cup. Everyone in this city got around on bikes. Old and young cruised the streets while eating their ice cream cones. Very cute city!
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| Who needs a map when you have an iPhone! |
I am a Rick Steve's travel geek! We only stayed at hotels, sobes, and penzions he recommended in his travel book. Most of our restaurants were chosen that way also. This is my third international trip planned by his books. I love you Rick!
We snuck into a little pizza place and took down two pizzas and a bottle of wine. A perfect first night to our trip. We could people watch all day and night so sitting watching this city roll by was entertainment enough.
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| Quiet corner on the river. |
Lake Bled, Slovenia
Lake Bled, Slovenia is a cozy lake town on the edge of the Julian Alps. Gorgeous! The lake is crystal clear and in the center of the lake is a tiny island with a picturesque church. I think Lake Bled was my favorite spot. I keep going back and forth on this! It was so laid back. Not a lot of bustle, or tourists. We definitely like mixing with the locals. The food here was really hearty, lots of meat and potatoes! We had no bad meals on this trip! Very lucky!
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| Beautiful castle looks over the lake. |
There is a trail that goes all around the lake that is roughly 3.5 miles. We walked it but it seemed a lot further than that. We feel like we are pretty fit people. I mean, we work out quite a bit but this trip really pushed us! My legs are toned y'all!
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| Swimming with the locals on Lake Bled. |
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| Lake Bled Slovenia. |
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| Our attic room. |
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| Hiking to the castle. |
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| Island view from the castle. |
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| Boat ride! |
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| Standing at the top of 99 steps. Total action shot. Not sure what I am doing here:) |
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| On the island. |
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| Julian Alps in the background. |
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| Drinks with a view. |
So there is 2 cities of 7 folks! We are so happy to be home and don't really know what to do with ourselves. Hoping to see some family and friends and work on the house this week. I hope my energy lasts so I can get the other 5 cities posted before we leave for Colorado next week! More traveling!
So much love to all of our family and friends. We missed you!
Good stuff! I really like that photo of you on top of the stairs. Does your husband know how lucky he is you weren't wed at the island?
ReplyDeleteThat would actually mean he would have to carry you up all the 99 steps. :)