After a night in the hostel we awoke to find the weather had improved. We decided to make our way to the campsite on the edge of town. This involved a "quick" bus ride but first we had to figure out the bus system.
As we were beginning to learn with painful regularity, the Lonely Planet guide-book proved worse than useless as it gave incorrect information. Disregarding the advice that we could pay on the bus (we couldn't) we studied a vending machine located at the bus stop and using our extensive knowledge of Slovenian surmised that this must be somehow related to getting a bus ticket. We asked around. The first lady's English was very poor so Robin left Jess to her specialist subject - mime with a foreign language speaker - while he went to ask the not-so-friendly kiosk vendor.
"Do you speak English?" This elicited a grunt and a shrug.
"How do I buy a ticket for the bus?"
"Card!" he barked helpfully holding up a card.
Jess had independently verified by means of mime that the vending machine did indeed issue "card!" We bought two cards and having just missed our bus while struggling with the machine, waited for the next bus. After half an hour the next bus arrived and we boarded only to be told our cards had no credit. What was the two euro that the cards cost us for? We gracelessly reversed our considerable backpack-carrying bulk off the bus and went to charge our cards as our long-awaited bus pulled away. We charged our cards for the minimum 10 euro in total knowing full well that 75% of these fares would go un-used as we were tourists staying for only a couple of days. Jess got full value from her card regardless, by accidentally swiping her card multiple times as she boarded the bus at our third attempt.
The campsite or laguna resort as they call themselves was very good and included amongst many sporting facilities a swimming pool that we never got a chance to use. We were happy to just set our tent up under the shade of some trees in the quietest spot we could find.
Exhausted after the morning ordeal, we decided to de-stress by soaking in this romantic city (or what Frommers claims it to be) and what better way to do that than a city hike? After a quick bus ride, we were in the heart of the city. Surrounded by Venetian styled architecture, we strolled on the cobble-stoned streets along the river, and like true tourists, we ventured into every interesting alley we could find and admired the intricate items in each display window as we passed by the quaint shops. The city centre was another world, with its limestone buildings and copper statues, it was a city lost in time. It was built on both sides of the river with most restaurants, gelato cafes and bars on either side.
We stopped by the tourist office and decided to book ourselves into a guided tour of the Skocjan caves and explore Lake Bled with our "trusty" guidebook. At the end of our our fruitful morning, we rewarded ourselves with some nice lunch and sampled ice-cold Slovenian beer while watching the city go by.
As the afternoon subsided, we hiked up a short but steep hill to the Ljubjana Castle. The castle was not as impressive as the surrounding forests. The air was crisp and fresh and we admired the city views from above.
The city was packed with tourists, mostly Italians and Austrians and we all had the same thing in mind, to enjoy the sights without incurring too much costs. We decided to escape the crowds by taking a longer route back to the city through the forests. Unfortunately, nature calls for Jess and we soon discovered that there was a serious absence of toilets while we needed it most. After a desperate search along the river, we found ourselves in a gelato cafe (was really an excuse to enjoy some gelato on a hot day) borrowing the toilet under the pretense of enjoying 2 massive scoops of raspberry and vanilla gelato. It was pure heaven.
After we satisfied ourselves, we headed into the city park which was a disappointment compared to the rest of the city. It was clearly neglected and disfigured by vandalism. Jess made the most of it in the kiddies' swing until we were driven away by a noisy Slovenian family with 2 toddlers. Heading back to the city, we ended our afternoon hike with a leisurely stroll along the bank of
the river and resting our feet in a quiet corner.
Night falls and Robin decided on a cosy Slovenian restaurant with a friendly waiter. We sighed in contentment as we enjoyed the simple fresh food and wine.
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