Slovenian Coast
Slovenia is famous for one export: Lippanzer horses. (They´re the breed used by the Spanish Ridiing school in Vienna.) Yesterday, I rented a car and headed out to the coastal regions of Slovenia - on the way I stopped in Lipizer to see the stud farm.
As an aside, I was given a mid-sized Opel by the rental company. Possibly the worst thing I´ve ever driven, including the Opel Corsa I had in Britain. Why can´t GM make a decent small or mid-sized car?
The farm is in the middle of nowhere - you have to drive off the motorway, down a secondary road, down a country road, then down a lane. All the time dodging big coaches full of German Tourists that insist on driving in the middle of the road. When I finally got there, I had missed the english language tour and would have to wait for hours for the next tour. So instead I just walked down the lane to the stud farm and could see as much as a tour would anyway (except the inside of the stables) - which was about a dozen mares were standing in a sawdust ring chewing hay.
After a few minutes I headed over to the gift shop where all sorts of tacky items are available. There was a fridge with ice-creams and vacuum packed meat - perhaps that´s what happens to the horses who don´t learn the tricks.
Afterwards I drove the remaining 50km to the Slovenian coast - which is about 40km long - and went to the fishing village of Piran. It was a beautiful warm day, about 25 degrees with a gentle cooling breeze blowing and not a cloud in the sky. The village was absolutely charming, a lot like Dubrovnik, but without thousands of tourists everywhere you go.
To get an excellent view of the town I climbed the 400 year old bell tower with rickety stairs. Right when I got to the top the bells rung - 12 times on the big bell and twice on the small bell - 12:30pm.
Afterwards, I went up the hills overlooking the town to the protective walls. Nowadays they overlook the village of Piran and a football field. From the top of the walls you could get a great view of the village, plus see Croatia and quite a way into Italy and Austria, including the Italian and Austrian Alps.
Dinner was a restaurant, right on the waterfront. Despite being a touristy town, pizza, a couple of beers (being a tourist is hard work) and a coffee came to just under $20.
Perhaps the only bad thing about Piran is the German Middle-aged sunbathers. (You don´t want to know any more.)
Definately on Michael´s recommended places to visit.
And Wellington Won! Yay!
As an aside, I was given a mid-sized Opel by the rental company. Possibly the worst thing I´ve ever driven, including the Opel Corsa I had in Britain. Why can´t GM make a decent small or mid-sized car?
The farm is in the middle of nowhere - you have to drive off the motorway, down a secondary road, down a country road, then down a lane. All the time dodging big coaches full of German Tourists that insist on driving in the middle of the road. When I finally got there, I had missed the english language tour and would have to wait for hours for the next tour. So instead I just walked down the lane to the stud farm and could see as much as a tour would anyway (except the inside of the stables) - which was about a dozen mares were standing in a sawdust ring chewing hay.
After a few minutes I headed over to the gift shop where all sorts of tacky items are available. There was a fridge with ice-creams and vacuum packed meat - perhaps that´s what happens to the horses who don´t learn the tricks.
Afterwards I drove the remaining 50km to the Slovenian coast - which is about 40km long - and went to the fishing village of Piran. It was a beautiful warm day, about 25 degrees with a gentle cooling breeze blowing and not a cloud in the sky. The village was absolutely charming, a lot like Dubrovnik, but without thousands of tourists everywhere you go.
To get an excellent view of the town I climbed the 400 year old bell tower with rickety stairs. Right when I got to the top the bells rung - 12 times on the big bell and twice on the small bell - 12:30pm.
Afterwards, I went up the hills overlooking the town to the protective walls. Nowadays they overlook the village of Piran and a football field. From the top of the walls you could get a great view of the village, plus see Croatia and quite a way into Italy and Austria, including the Italian and Austrian Alps.
Dinner was a restaurant, right on the waterfront. Despite being a touristy town, pizza, a couple of beers (being a tourist is hard work) and a coffee came to just under $20.
Perhaps the only bad thing about Piran is the German Middle-aged sunbathers. (You don´t want to know any more.)
Definately on Michael´s recommended places to visit.
And Wellington Won! Yay!
posted by Michael at
5:06 AM
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