Empire State of Mind: November 2012

Another leg of our journey that we thoroughly loved was our trip to northwestern Slovenia. Although it is a small country, Slovenia has a vast and diverse landscape. After our train arrived in Ljubljana, the capital city, we rented a car and drove through small cities and villages as we explored Slovenia by our own means of transportation. We stopped overnight in a small lakeside village, Bled. Bled includes famous Lake Bled, a stunning glacial lake by the Julian Alps in northwestern Slovenia.

Nearby Bled, a short five minute drive north, was Vintgar Gorge - where the Radovna river cuts its way through the surrounding rocks, flows over cascades and rapids, and peacefully settles in quiet areas before meeting more rapids. The gorge ends at the stunning Šum waterfall, the highest waterfall in Slovenia. We walked on a footpath through the mile and a half of winding, misty early evening air. The sounds, the air, the mossy, fresh scents. Simply gorgeous.

Twenty minutes south of Lake Bled, we stopped at Lake Bohinj. This lake is larger then Bled, and is at the foot of Mt. Triglav. It was so quiet and serene there. And the water was brilliantly clean and clear.

We had previously scouted out a high winding road that weaved its way through the Julian Alps. We pulled out the maps and loaded the GPS as we, for the next few hours, twisted and turned our car through bend after bend of the breathtaking Slovenian Vršič Pass. More often than not, we were the only car within miles, so we roamed and explored as we saw fit. The road was long, and steep, but we enjoyed every turn as we peered over the edge of the mountains.

Vintgar Gorge in Bled, Slovenia.

The stunningly clear Radovna River.

So stunning. We were practically the only group taking this path.

Each river we saw was a unique, different shade of blue.

No fires! No dogs! No bikes! No fun.
You may walk and look - that's it!

Lake Bled.

The picturesque cathedral on the island in the middle of Lake Bled.

Lake Bohinj by Mt. Triglav.

Not a real goat.
....or is it?!?

A view from the Vršič Pass, the highest pass in Slovenia, as well as the highest in the Eastern Julian Alps.

We are so tiny compared to the vast mountain ranges.

Our jagged GPS route.

One of the switchbacks.

Each bend was identified. Bend 30, bend 31, etc.

An explorer who first traversed a path through the mountains.

The emerald green water of the Soča River.

The view as we descended the Julian Alps.

From the foothills of the Alps to the coast of the Adriatic, Slovenia has more than 28,000 wineries in its small expanse, and produces extremely high class wine. With each sip during our stay (which was certainly not long enough), I felt like I was tasting the sun and pure happiness.

We stayed at a lovely winery in the Goriska Brda region of Slovenia - Kabaj Winery. It was harvesting time and although the wine makers and crews were active with the harvest, the surrounding landscape and chateau were quiet and tranquil. I wished that I could bottle up the bliss and relaxation I felt while staying there. We arrived and were greeted with a gorgeous tasting bottle of Zeleni Sauvignon. Pure beauty in a bottle. We purchased several more bottles of various magical wines from their winery during our stay and enjoyed them on the stunning terrace overlooking the acres of vineyards.

In addition to the lovely tasting wine from the Kabaj winery, we tasted quite a bit of wine from Movia Estates. We had read about this winery and that they offered interesting tours and wine tastings by reservation. Our plans had fallen through one rainy afternoon, and we spontaneously stopped by to see if we could tour their winery.

When we arrived on the winery grounds, no one was really around and it seemed closed. We entered the main building and found a busy looking Slovenian man talking on the phone. We asked him about getting a tour and tasting, but knew we didn't have a reservation so we didn't expect much. But the man said, "Well, I'm pretty busy and have a lot of work to do, [long pause] how about you men help me and I will give you a tour as we work in our winery together."

Ummmmmmm...okay...we agreed.

And that's how we ended up spending the afternoon moving wine barrels, drinking the best wine of our lives (including Puro, a crisp, organic sparkling wine which this winemaker makes from Chardonnay, Ribolla Gialla, and Pinot Noir - sooo delightful) and some other delicious wine (Veliko Bianca, Veliko Rosso, and Cabernet Sauvignan), and having intriguing conversations with the expressive, brilliant millionaire and winemaker Ales Kristancic, owner of Movia Estates.

It was a surreal experience, and a once in a lifetime opportunity. Pretty soon this extravagant, charismatic winemaker was passionately explaining the love and feeling he invests into his work and the operation of the family's winery of eight generations. Our afternoon overflowed with laughter, lots of learning, and jubilant story telling.

As we sipped glass after glass, we looked out over the lush low, rolling hills painted with rows of vines, and peeks of small hilltop towns of white buildings with terra-cotta shingles, and heard Slovenian music in the distance. Having Slovenian roots of my own, it was a perfect moment.

Thanks for the memories, Slovenia! Ljubim te!