Što raditi a što NE RADITI kada putujete Slovenijom! [What to do and what NOT TO DO when you're traveling through Slovenia]

Da se malo odmaknemo od tema prošlih putovanja, ovaj post ću posvetiti jednom skorašnjem putovanju. Do sada sam, u ovo vrijeme Božića i raznih blagdana, svake godine sa srednjom školom odlazila na izlete u popularne adventske gradove. Od Salzburga, preko Budimpešte do Beča. Svatko tko me poznaje zna da sam veliki obožavatelj Božića i ugođaja blagdana te da sam kao malo dijete kada se nađem na okičenim ulicama i trgovima koji mirišu po kuhanom vinu i blistaju od raznih kuglica za bor i ostalih sitnica. Upravo zbog toga sam odlučila sama sa svojim dragim organizirati jednu malu adventsku pustolovinu. Još prije nego što mi je ideja adventskog putovanja pala na pamet htjela sam posjetiti Bled u Sloveniji na kojeg sam naletjela pretražujući slike o različitim lokacijama u blizini Hrvatske i dodavajući ih na ''Mjesta za posjetiti'' listu. Pa, ako ne znate što je i gdje je Bled ili čak Slovenija, nastavite čitati i saznat ćete.
[ENG] To get away from passed journeys a little, I dedicate this post to the latest one. Until now, during this time of Christmas holidays , I went on advent trips with my highschool to popular advent cities. From Salzburg and Budapest, to Vienna. Everyone that knows me, know that I am a huge fan of Christmas and the holiday spirit and that I'm like a child when it comes to sparkly streets and squares that smell of mulled wine and sparkle from all the ornaments and other little dangly things. That's the exact reason that I decided to organize a little advent adventure with my love, since I'm in college and there are no such trips. Even before this decision, I wanted to visit Bled in Slovenia ever since I ran into it searching pictures about various locations outside of Croatia and adding them to the ''Place to go'' list. Well, if you don't know what Bled is and even where Slovenia is. keep on reading and you'll find out.

Slovenija je država koja graniči sa Hrvatskom na njenom sjeverozapadu. Ima svega 2 000 000 stanovnika i prostire se na površini malo više od 20 000 kvadratnih kilometara. Najviše je poznata po Postojnskoj jami te NP Triglavu. Osobno nikad prije nisam posjetila Sloveniju, te sam bila spremna na novo upoznavanje. No, jesam li zaista BILA spremna?
Za put smo se probudili dosta kasno, oko pola 8 ujutro, što je bila prva naša pogreška. Naravno, morali smo uzeti nešto za popiti i pojesti (ništa pretjerano; naresci, kruh i radenska) te otići do mijenjačnice promijeniti svoju valutu tj. hrvatske kune (KN/HRK) u eure (€). Razmijenili smo si koliko smo smatrali da će nam biti dovoljno za sitnice koje bi mogle zatrebati usput ili pak pokoji suvenir koji bi mogli odnijeti doma, a sve ostalo utočili u auto. S obzirom da naš auto ide na plin, natočili smo jako malo za tako velik put. To je još jedna od prednosti naših samostalnih putovanja; ukoliko imate auto za koji znate da će vas služiti dosta dugo, a ujedno ste i gorljivi putnik – ugradite plin. Vjerujte, isplati se.
[ENG] Slovenia is a country that borders with Croatia on it's northeast. It has a population of 2 000 000 and covers more than 20 000 square kilometers. It is most known for it's Postojna cave and the Triglav National Park. I myself have never been to Slovenia
and I was ready to meet it and explore it. But, was I really?
We woke up kind of late, it was around 7.30 , which was our first mistake. Ofcourse, we had to get something to drink and eat and go to the exchange office to exchange our currency i.e. the croatian kunas (KN/HRK) to euros (€). We exchanged as much money as we thought we'll need for things that we will maybe need along the way or for a couple of souvenirs, and we put the rest of the money in our car. Considering our car runs on gas too we didn't have to pay much. That's one more advantage of our travels; if you have a car that you know will last you long and you are a passionate traveller - build in the gas. Trust us, it's worth it.
Dok smo mi to sve obavili bilo je već pola 9, a iz Karlovca još ni mrdnuli nismo. Izračunali smo da će nam do Bleda trebati otprilike 3 sata i mislili smo da čak ni nismo krenuli tako kasno te da ćemo uspjeti vidjeti sve što smo planirali. Naime, namjena puta je bila posjet Bledu, no već kad smo tamo odlučili smo posjetiti i Bohinjsko jezero, za koje smo čuli da je predivno, te na povratku stati u Ljubljani i posjetiti njihov advent taman kad se spusti noć. Jedva sam čekala da malo probazam kroz ulične štandove i kupim si onaj poseban suvenir.
[ENG] While we were done with our last-minute errands it was already 8.30 and we still haven't left Karlovac. We concluded that it will take us 3 hours to get to Bled and we thought we were already late and will not make it to see what else we planned to see. The climax of our trip was Bled but we wanted to see the Bohinj lake, of which we heard was beautiful, and stop in Ljubljana on our was back to visit their advent. I couldn't wait to stroll through alleys of little advent booths and buy myself that special souvenir.


Ulaskom u Sloveniju odmah smo primijetili da nam je nešto čudno. Ti Slovenci su očito zamijenili punu crtu za isprekidanu jer je moguće pretjecati u stvarno nepreklednim zavojima, a pune crte gotovo i nema. Andrei i ja smo se samo pogledavali i nismo mogli doći k sebi od tog laganog apsurda. No, ispalo je da je to tek početak. S obzirom da je Andrei čovjek s najboljim mogućim smislom za orijentaciju kojeg sam upoznala, njemu sam povjerila plan puta kuda moramo ići i time se više nisam zamarala. Druga greška koju smo napravili – odlaženje na put sa starom kartom države u koju idete. Naime, čini mi se da Slovenija ne želi baš na lijep način dočekati svoje turiste već im podvalit kako god mogu. Znate onu izrećicu ''Sve ceste vode u Rim.'' ? Pa, u Sloveniji je izrećica da ''Sve ceste vode na autoput''. Ovu izrećicu shvatite ozbiljno i nemojte misliti da se šalim. Pokušat će vas na onaj ili ovaj način odvesti na autocestu, i u tome će uspijeti ukoliko ne budete dovoljno pripremljeni. Što nas dovodi do SAVJETA br.1 – na put u Sloveniju idite sa što novijom kartom i do najmanjeg detalja isplanirajte put. Nas je to koštalo dobrih 5 sati vrzlanja po slovenskim cestama. Kako su Slovenci zamijenili punu crtu sa isprekidanom, tako su izgleda i daltonisti. Ono što oni rade, i što je bitna lekcija koju možete izvući iz naših iskustava, je da vas varaju znakovima. Opće tj. svjetski je poznato da ukoliko je znak žute boje cesta je obična državna cesta, a ukoliko je znak zelene boje to znači da ste na putu za autoput. No, ne u Sloveniji. Oni će vam prvo staviti žuti znak, a kada skrenete u tom pravcu naići ćete na zeleni znak bez ikakve mogućnosti za okretanjem i vračanjem natrag. Tako ćete se naći na njihovom autoputu htjeli to vi ili ne. Nas su uspjeli prevariti i odvesti na autoput no na sreću odmah smo našli silazak sa njega. Možda ima još nekih koji se pitaju zašto dižem toliku frku oko toga. Pa, upravo zbog toga jer u Sloveniji postoji jedna stvar koja se zove vinjeta. Vinjeta je sredstvo plačanja autoputa koja dolazi u obliku naljepnice za vjetrobransko staklo. No, poanta je u tome što, bez obzira na koliko kratku relaciju želiš prijeći autoputom, moraš platiti sedmodnevnu vinjetu koja će te koštati 15€. Sve to nas dovodi do SAVJETA br.2 – ne vjerujte slovenskim znakovima već slijedite onu ''uzdaj se u se i u svoje kljuse''. Ukoliko među vama ima onih koji ne gledaju na svaku kunu, vama neće biti problem platiti tih 15€ i na taj način si uštedjeti podosta vremena. No, sigurno ima i vas koji, poput nas, žele uštedjeti novac koji će kasnije potrošiti na neke druge, važnije stvari. Kad smo se vratili, guglali smo kaznu za vožnju bez vinjete te smo saznali da je kazna od 300-800€ koju morate platiti na mjestu. Ukoliko nemate za platiti na mjestu, oduzimaju vam vozačku, isprave od auta te vašu osobnu. Stoga je najbolje učiti iz naših iskustava i do detalja isplanirati put kroz Sloveniju. Ukoliko se izgubite, a 99% sam sigurna da hoćete, tu vam je moj SAVJET br.3 – ne bojte se pitati za smjer, svi ljudi koje smo mi pitali bili su sasvim ljubazni i puno nam pomogli. Također naglasite da tražite staru cestu i da NE ŽELITE ići autoputom.
[ENG] Entering Slovenia, we immediately noticed something was off to us. Those Slovenians obviously mixed their solid line with the broken one because it is allowed to cross the line in the most vast turnings, and there is almost no solid line. Andrei and I kept looking at each other and couldn't believer this little apsurdity. But, it turned out it was just the beginning. Considering Andrei is the man with the best sense of orientation that I've met I let him plan the trip. The second mistake we made - going on a trip with an old map of the state you are visiting. It seems that Slovenia doesn't want to greet their tourist in a good way but to set them up every way possible. You know that saying ''All roads lead to Rome.'' ? Well, in Slovenia it is ''All roads lead to highway.'' Take this seriously and don't think I'm joking. They will try to take you to the highway any wy they can, and they will succeed unless you're not prepared enough. Which leads us to the TIP nr.1 - go to Slovenia with the most recent map possible and a trip planned to the littlest detail. It cost us 5 hours of getting lost on their roads. Since Slovenians mixed the solid line with the broken one, they may as well also be daltonists. You see, what they do, and from what you can get out a valuable lesson, is that they cheat with road sings. It is well-known that a yellow sign means a simple state road and a green sign means highway. But, not in Slovenia. They will first put up a yellow sign and after you take a turn and follow it for a good couple of kilometers they will surprise you with a sudden green sign without the chance of turning back. You will find yourself on their higway whether you want it or not. They succeeded in tricking us and we were on a highway in no-time. Luckly, we found an exit soon and weren't stopped by the police. Maybe there are some of you that wonder why I make a big fuss about a simple highway. Well, exactly bacuse in Slovenia there is this thing called a ''vinjeta''. It is a highway paying agency that comes in a shape of a sticker for your windshield. But, the point is that no matter how short of a distance you want to cross by highway you have to buy a 7-day vinjeta that costs 15€. Which leads us to the TIP nr.2 - don't believe the Slovenian road signs. If among you are the ones that can afford the vinjeta, you will save a bunch of time. But, I'm sure there are those of you that want to use those 15€ way better then on some stupid sticker. When we got back from our trip, we googled the fine for driving without one and came to know that it is a 300-800€ fine that you have to pay on the spot, and if you don't they take away your driving licence, identity card and the car's documents. So, it is better to learn from our experiences and follow our tips to plan to the littlest details. If you get lost, and I'm 99% sure you will, there is my TIP nr.3 - don't be afraid to ask for directions, all the people we asked were kind and helped us a lot. Also stress out that you're looking for the old road and that you DON't WANT to use the highway.

Da bi došli do Bleda morali smo proći kroz Ljubljanu, do koje smo također jedva došli zbog loše prometne signalizacije, što je apsurdno jer im je to glavni grad, pobogu. No, pravi izazov nas je tek čekao. Izlaskom iz Ljubljane postali smo malo nervozni; jedva smo našli put do glavnog grada, kako ćemo sada naći put do malog mjesta poput Bleda. Jedino čime smo se tješili bile su reklame za advent na Bledu. Nakon što smo se na putu od Ljubljane do Bleda izgubili više puta nego što možemo izbrojiti, napokon smo našli dobru cestu za Bled, preko Višnje Gore pa kroz selo Naklo. Naravno, što se tiče prirode, nepogrešivo je reći da je predivna. Svo vrijeme smo se osijećali da smo došli u nekakvo alpsko selo upravo zbog toga jer su gradovi bili smješteni ispod predivnih planina, koje su nam malo uljepšale doživljaj Slovenije.
[ENG] To come to Bled we had to go through Ljubljana, to which we also hardly came because of bad road signs, which is absurd because it's their capital, for God's sake. But, the real challenge was still waiting for us. Exiting Ljubljana we became a little nervous; we barely found the way to the capital, how will we now find the way to the little place as Bled. The only thing we were holding onto were advertises of the advent on Bled. After we got lost more times than we can count on ur way from Ljubljana to Bled, we finally found the right road to it, over Višnja Gora and through the Naklo village. But, the nature is really beautiful. The whole time we were there we felt like we were in an alp village because the towns were situated just under their mountains which made our experience of Slovenia a little bit better.

Usput smo primijetili također da Slovenci očito ne vole reklamirati svoje atrakcije. Naravno da nije bilo nikakvih reklama za Bled niti natpisa sve dok nismo došli par kilometara od samog mjesta. S obzirom na sve što nas je zaprepastilo do tada, ni ovo nas nije ostavilo ravnodušnima, iako je trebalo. No, bez obzira na to, odahnuli smo shvativši da smo napokon došli na odredište i da sljedećih par sati ne moramo ulaziti u auto i u nedogled se gubiti po slovenskim cestama. Napravili smo krug oko jezera i jedva jedvice našli parking koji nas je koštao apsurdnih 5€. No, rekla sam da nisam došla ovdje da bi me parking od 5€ zaustavio. Platili smo parking i krenuli u razgledavanje. Bled nas je pridobio isti trenutak te smo se malo i oraspoložili. Ovdje počinje dobar dio ovog posta.
[ENG] We also noticed that Slovenians don't like to advertise their atractions. Ofcourse there were none advertises for nor signs until we got a couple of kilometers away from the town. But, regardless of it, we were relieved by realizing we finally got to our destination and by the fact that we are out of the car for the next few hours. We made a circle around the lake and barely found a parking lot that cost us absurd 5€. But, we didn't come all this way to get stopped by a 5€ parking ticket.We payed those 5€ and headed of to explore. Bled had us at first sight and cheered us up a little bit. This is where the good part of this post beginns.

Bled je grad koji se nalazi na istoimenom Bledskom jezeru, a u podnožju predivnih Julijskih Alpi. Najpoznatiji je po Bledskom otoku koji se nalazi u sredini jezera i koji je jedini pravi slovenski otok. Na njemu se nalazi crkva Marijina Uznesenja, koja je također jedna od bledskih znamenitosti. Ukoliko želite doći do otoka, to vam je omogućeno malim brodićima za koje platite ulaz 10€. Naravno, preporučujemo da to napravite za vrijeme toplijih dana, jedino ukoliko imate visok nivo tolerancije na hladnoću. Uz jezero se nalazi i veslački klub te su na njegovom podu uklesane godine svih olimpijskih igara održanih do sada.
[ENG] Bled is a town that lays on the same-named Bled lake, and in the base of the Julian Alps. It is most known for the Bled island that is standing right in the middle of the lake and which is the only real slovenian island. On the island is a chruch which is one of the notability of Bled. If you want to go visit the island, you can access it by boats that charge 10€ for a ride. Ofcourse, we recommend to do it during much warmer days, unless you have a high tolerance to cold. There is a boat club by the lake too and it has all the olimpic games that took place till now carved into it's ground.



Poznat je i po tisućljetnom Bledskom gradu koji nadgleda jezero sa svojih 130 metara. S obzirom da tamo stoji još od početka 11.stoljeća, najstariji je slovenski dvorac. Naravno da smo se mi popeli gore i možemo vam reći – nije baš da je lako. Stepenica do gore nema već je penjanje na vrh pravo malo planinarsko iskustvo. No, sva ta muka se isplati jedno kada ste se dovukli do gore jer je pogled na Bled i okolicu predivan. Ukoliko imate strah od visine preporučujemo da se pripremite ili bolje razmislite o odlasku na vrh s obzirom da je poprilično strmo. Nije ništa strašno, niti je toliko visoko, no Andrea je malo počeo hvatati strah kada bi se približio rubu. No, i ja malo imam fobiju od visine pa me nije toliko hvatalo koliko njega. Zato kažem, nije toliko strmo no ukoliko imate jače izražen strah od visine, razmislite prije odlaska skroz do vrha. Mi smo bili samo na jednoj strani grada, no može ga se obići sa svih strana. Ukoliko želite ući i razgledati dvorac iznutra ulaznica za odrasle je 9€, za studente 7€, a za djecu od 4-14 godina 4,50€.
[ENG] Bled is also known for a millennial Bled castle which overlooks the lake from it's 130 meters. Considering it stands there from the beginning of the 11th century, it is the oldest slovenian castle. Ofcourse we went up there and we can say - it is not that easy. There is no stairways or paths but it is a little hiking adventure. But, all that is payed off once you get to the top because the view on Bled and the lake is just breathtaking. The hight is not that scary but if you are easily afraid of hights, we recommend rethinking before you go up there. I have a fear of hights too and it's wasn't that scary but be prepared. We didn't get around the castle, which you can do,but we stayed on one side of it. If you want to explore the castle inside the ticket for grown-ups is 9€, for students 7€ and for children 4-14 is 4,50€.




Već je bilo 16h kada smo se spustili sa dvorca i sunce je polako počelo zalaziti. Požurili smo prema autu kako bismo se što prije po danu mogli vratiti doma s obzirom da smo se toliko puta gubili i tražili put. Baš kako smo se vračali, sunce ja bacilo predivne naranđasto-roze boje na planine, a izašao je i predivan okrugli mjesec. Ovakav prizor zaokružio nam je cijeli dan i s njima na umu
napustili smo Sloveniju.
[ENG] It was already 4 o'clock when we climbed down from the castle and the sun started to slowly set. We hurried towards the car so we could go home while there's still daylight outside. Just as we were going to our car, the setting sun shined down on the mountains in beautiful orange and pink colours, and a beautiful round moon also peeked out. With this sight we ended our day and , with it on our minds, we left Slovenia.



Put nam nije ispao kako smo planirali, a doma smo se vratili potpuno razočarani Slovenijom i njezinim cestama. No, najviše smo razočarani jer upravo zbog takvih gluposti nismo imali prilike vidjeti Ljubljanu i Bohinjsko jezero te se malo dulje diviti slovenskim ljepotama, koje su jedva popravile naš dojam o Sloveniji. No, ako ne putujes neces nista nauciti. Losa iskustva iza nas, jedna lokacija manje na listi, a sljedece pitanje je - WHERE DO WE GO NEXT?
[ENG] The trip didn't turn our as we planned, and we came back home totally disappointed by Slovenia and it's roads. But, we were most disappointed by the fact that because of that stupid nonsense we didn't have time to visit Ljubljana and see the Bohinj lake, and also admire the beauties of Slovenia a little bit more because they are the ones that fixed our impression of Slovenia.
But, if you don't travel, you won't learn a thing. Bad experiences behing us, one more location less on the list, and the next question is - WHERE DO WE GO NEXT?

Oznake: Bled; Slovenija; Stari grad; Bledski otok, Advent