A Castle, A Lake and a Boat in Slovenia

We had spent a happy hour exploring Bled Castle in Slovenia, luxuriating in the cool breezes gusting across the terrace, utterly entranced by the exhilarating views of snow covered mountains, forested hills, and the turquoise waters of Lake Bled.

The mountains surrounding Lake Bled, Slovenia

My friend Ben perched far above Lake Bled.

Although we could've stayed up there for hours, we reminded ourselves that we still had much to see before driving to Ljubljana that night. So we took one last look at the amazing vista then headed out through the castle doors and hiked down the winding cobbled path to the lake.

The lake was even more beautiful up close, the water clear and cool, the banks bordered with trees and wonderful old homes. 

Research beforehand warned us that the only way to the island in the middle of the lake was by rowboat, so we secured ourselves a sturdy craft and a burly oarsman, and began our peaceful journey across Lake Bled.

Our strapping oarsman.

In an age when everything seems to be motorized and streamlined for optimum speed, there was something surreal about bobbing slowly across the lake, the only sounds the splash of the oars and our occasional bursts of amazed laughter at this grand adventure we were having.

Next time I will take you to explore the island and inside an ancient church.:-)