Slovenia isn’t a big country. From just about anywhere in Slovenia, you can reach all the sights within a two hours drive. That means you could basically stay in one spot your whole holiday. We decided not to, though. Since we were traveling with our 5 year old, a two hours drive one way is …
Magical, mystical, mosaical: the episcopal complex in Poreč.
Cast away by Slovenian storms in the first week of our summer trip, we found refuge in the sunny but touristy peninsula of Croatian Istria. We were lucky in finding a suitable campsite on our second attempt already. We set up tent under some pine trees near Rovinj, still our favourite spot in the area. …
The very best of beautiful Bohinj…
…according to our experiences, that is. Only 30 km away from its more touristy neighbour, Lake Bled, Lake Bohinj is much more than only a swim-inviting waterbody surrounded by picturesque Alpine mountains. It’s a popular spot with locals, whether they come for a refreshing swim or a (probably exhausting) climb up the slopes of the …
To honour the Roman deceased in Šempeter… and go for and afternoon swim in Laško.
Slovenia is a popular destination for travellers from all over the world, and for several reasons. First of all, it’s a small country, so you don’t have to travel far from your holiday home to reach the many natural treasures the country has on offer. Secondly, it is blessed with some astonishing and pristine nature. …
Digging for liquid metal: heritage of mercury.
As a chemistry teacher, I have a profound interest in the chemical elements that build our planet. As a geology enthousiast, looking for minerals is also a natural reflex for me. So if there is a world heritage site dedicated to the mining and exploitation of such a rare and peculiar element as mercury, I …
Essen Zollverein: industry – history – beauty?
When pursuing a quest to check out as much UNESCO world heritage sites as possible, one occasionally comes across some unexpected scenery. For example: a 19th-20th century coal mining site, such as the one in Essen (Germany). I must admit we were a bit prepossessed towards an industrial site, as we are nature-lovers with a …
Where Lipizzaners come from…
When the Austrian Archduke Charles, son of Ferdinand I, established a stud farm in (then) Lipizza to breed horses for the Spanish Riding School in Vienna, this was the start of a breeding process that finally resulted in the development of an elegant, white breed known as the Lipizzaner. It is a cross between Spanish …
The Finland roadtrip: the final blogpost
On this sunny Sunday afternoon, it’s time to write my last blogpost of the Finland roadtrip. On the last days of this trip, we headed down south. First, we made a stop in picturesque Porvoo, which is the second oldest town in Finland. I really loved the red houses alongside the waterfront and the cobbled …
Lake district
Ok, first of all: the name “lake district” still sounds odd to me, because if you travel to Finland, you cannot avoid lakes. Wherever you go in the country, you’re bound to come accross a dozen of them. But still, we made our way down into the area that is known as the lake district. …
Kuusamo
After being attacked by 1 000 0000 mosquitos at Lake Inari, we decided to head a little more back down. As our next destination we chose Kuusamo. This was by far my favourite part of the trip… 🙂 The nature in this area is so lovely, you just have to go yourself to check it …