NaBloPoMo Day 11--Slovenia

I don't remember why we decided to go to Slovenia. My friend and I were planning a post-medical school graduation trip to visit my mom in Austria. I imagine we looked at a map of where my mom lived, picked the country we knew least about and decided to go there. And such a good decision it was.

A few fun facts about Slovenia:
-- It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria on the north, Croatia on the south and Hungary to the east
-- They declared independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991
-- Slovenia became a member of the EU in 2004 and introduced the Euro in 2007
-- There is one inch of sea coast for every inhabitant (I don't think you actually get to own your one inch of sea coast though)

I encourage anyone planning a trip to that part of the world to spend a few days in Slovenia (a few days is all you need). And to make your trip even easier, I shall provide you with 10 things to do when you visit Slovenia:
1. Visit Bled, a beautiful lake resort town.

2. Eat kremna rezina (cream cake). A Slovenia speciality and so yummy.

3. Walk to the Vintgar Gorge. It's about an hour long walk, but through beautiful countryside.

4. Rent a car. It's really the only way to see all there is to see in Slovenia as the trains are not going to get you to many places. And the roads are great.
5. Drive through the Julian Alps. This is where Hemingway's "A Farewell to Arms" was based.

6. Stay on a farm and make some Slovenian friends, like these guys who shared their beer and prosciutto with us.

7. Visit the Predjama castle, near Postonja. You can visit the torture chamber and re-create scenes where you put your friends on the stretcher.

8. The caves! The most amazing place I have ever been. Think Goonies, but without the pirate ship. There are two big cave systems: the Postonja caves, which repordedly have moving sidewalks and trams, and the Skocjan caves, which are a UNESCO world heritage site, and the ones we went to.

9. Eat seafood in Piran

10. Spend a day in Ljubljana, the capital. But skip the castle. Worst castle in all of Slovenia.