By Lynn Strough
Welcome to this week’s chapter in the ongoing series by our world traveler, Lynn Strough. Here, Lynn takes us to Bled, Slovenia.
A fairytale town in a picture-perfect location, Bled, Slovenia comprises three jewels – Lake Bled, Bled Castle, and a tiny island with the beautiful church of St. Mary.
The walk around Lake Bled is a highlight. It is only 6.5 km (4 miles), and mostly flat, with scenic views the whole way, and plenty of places to stop for refreshments. (They are known for their cream cakes.)
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I was fortunate to spend six days here and walked around Lake Bled every day, twice on one day, as I never tired of the views, and they change with the light as the sun and clouds move.
The iconic scene is, of course, the island with the Church of St. Mary, but there are plenty of other sights along the way as well – the docked wooden boats, serene swans, and beaches for swimming if you get the urge. You might even see ducks all in a row.
Take one of the flat-bottomed wooden boats (called a Pletna) to the island, where you can climb the steps and ring the church bell for good luck. The ancient Slavs worshipped Ziva, the goddess of love and fertility here, then later pilgrims came to the Church of St. Mary. Be prepared for some exercise, as there are 99 steps on this tiny island.
You can also rent paddle boards, row boats, or a beautiful swan boat if you prefer to get to the island under your own paddle power.
And when you get hungry, if you haven’t packed a picnic, stop at one of the many restaurants with a view. Just keep in mind if you order the grilled cheese, it might not be what you’re expecting, but it’s literally what you ordered – cheese that’s been grilled.
Different, but delicious! And in case you’re a wine lover, you’re in your element here – wine is cheaper than water, at 1 euro per glass.
Many of my meals were eaten at my hostel, one of the advantages of staying in a place with a shared kitchen. It’s a great way to economize, as even though the prices in Slovenia are moderate compared to Western Europe and the US, it’s still a tourist town with tourist prices.
It’s not a problem in Bled if you only speak English – being a tourist area, most people speak at least some English. But it’s fun to try to read the signs – if they were playing scrabble they’d have it made, with all of the Z’s, J’s, and Y’s.
Bled Castle perches high up on a cliff overlooking the lake, and is the quintessential medieval castle. It’s worth the climb for the magnificent views, and if you follow the robed monk, you might find the most important room in the castle.
If you are extremely lucky, as I was, you might happen to be in Bled for their Medieval Days, which only happens once a year. I spent the day wandering amongst the artisan village set up outside the castle gate and saw weavers, printers and blacksmiths creating their wares.
The Radovna River cuts through steep tree-covered cliffs, its emerald green waters foaming white over several small waterfalls, with one big one at the end. (The water literally glows neon green.) I took my time walking the long boardwalk that perches along the river, crisscrossing over it in several places, then walked a different route back to my hostel through a deep green forest, emerging at the top of a hill near a small church with panoramic views of the valley below.
A bus ride away is the Triglav National Park, including Lake Bohinj, a much bigger body of water than Lake Bled, also very scenic. This park is full of opportunities for adventure – hiking, biking, paddle boarding, fly fishing, canoeing, white water rafting, horseback riding and more. I opted to rent a bike for a few hours and explored the mountains surrounding the lake, where trails wind through beautiful forests and fields, and you might even see some art in the local villages.
Many people make only a day or two stop in Bled, and you can certainly see it in a day if you rush. But there’s something beautiful and serene and relaxing about staying for a while, seeing the lake in her different moods — early in the morning or late in the evening when the day-trippers have gone — that’s delightful and makes you dream about the place long after you leave.
About Lynn Strough
Lynn is a 50-something-year-old woman whose incarnations in this life have included graphic designer, children’s book author and illustrator, public speaker, teacher, fine art painter, wine educator in the Napa Valley, and world traveler. Through current circumstances, she has found herself single, without a job or a home, and poised for a great adventure.
“You could consider me homeless and unemployed, but I prefer nomad and self-employed, as I pack up my skills and head off with my small backpack and even smaller savings to circumnavigate the globe (or at least go until the money runs out). Get ready to tag along for the ride…starting now!”
All images copyright Lynn Strough and Travelynn Tales
Reprinted with permission
Southern Region
Central Region
For the viewer, the exhibition is an experiment in fun, an opportunity to experience art through the lens of the familiar and popular act of drinking a finely crafted beer. For fans of Michigan art, the show allows viewers to see how artists solve the creative challenge of making an artwork that must, when viewed from a distance, communicate a single color. The show is, in the end, a reminder of the joy of creating, be it art or a microbrew.
Time to give the creek some love!
About Lynn Strough
Due to a serious motorcylce crash on 44th Street over US-131, the ramps and overpass will be barricaded off for crash reconstruction.
Coffee with The Candidates Phase II is Wednesday evening, July 27th from 5-8 pm.
Established in 1976, Tree City USA is a nationwide program that provides a framework for communities to manage and expand their public trees. There are currently more than 3,400 communities in the country that have made the commitment to becoming a Tree City USA, including 123 in Michigan. To become a Tree City USA, municipalities must have:
Muskegon has a great recurring event for wine lovers: The Art & a Glass event is your Thursday Happy Hour! Every Thursday from 4pm to 8pm, grab a glass and check out some of the great art pieces at the 
orange “General Lee” sped onto TV screens in the CBS hit Dukes of Hazzard.
The deluxe pizza came with mozzarella cheese, ham, sausage, pepperoni, green peppers, onions, and mushrooms, and they did not skimp at all on the toppings. The pizza was packed with toppings all the way to the crust line. I measure a pizzas quality on how well the cheese stays on the crust. There is nothing more frustrating that picking up a slice and having all of the cheese and toppings fall off and land in the box. Daniele’s passed with flying colors as the cheese stayed on the pizza. It’s the little things.
No pizza is complete without the cheesy bread to accompany it. First off, the cheesy bread is a generous size with 16 pieces of thick, fluffy bread. It is well seasoned and adds the perfect side complement to the pizza for an added five dollars.
Update –
Cintorino was in control the entire game and only saw two innings where he faced over three batters, the fourth and the seventh. Illinois got a single in the seventh with two outs from Chayka, but the potential rally was immediately stifled as right fielder Alanso Ocon grounded out. Once the final out was made, the celebration was on!
Blueberry-Maple Muffins
What do you do when you want to go to Venice, but the hotels are way out of your budget, and you’d really rather get to know the locals anyway, than stay in an anonymous hotel in a crazy tourist area?
I unofficially couch surfed at the beginning of my trip in 2014, staying with a woman in Australia that I’d never met, and then with several of her friends. But this was my first official couch surf using the 
She cooked her grandmother’s pasta recipe for me (I cooked for her as well, although it’s not my area of expertise, so I also gave her a watercolor that I’d painted, and took her out for lunch). She showed me around the city of Treviso, where we dined like the locals in a restaurant full of old phones, checked out the market, and she showed me the architecture as well as telling me a little about the city’s history –- Treviso is known as home of the famous Pinarello bikes.
The area is known for its famous prosecco, and we were told to go to a small, boutique winery known for the best. It’s the kind of place where the owner is also the winemaker and tasting room host in his home, with old family portraits on the walls. His mother and daughter came to say hello, and we were given several wines to taste. We were not only not charged, but when we tried to buy some wine to take with us, he insisted on giving it as a gift. There was even a small sculpture garden nearby that he and his daughter showed us on our way out.
One of the other local couch surfing hosts invited me to a dinner with even more couch surfing guests. We all pitched in to help with the cooking. Francesco taught us how to play cards, a game called Buracco, and we realized that out of the group of us, we were from six different countries, including Italy, France, Romania, Azerbaijan, Albania, and the U.S.
About Lynn Strough
