Ahh…the sweetness of our time in Slovenia.  As we entered the country, we found ourselves on a gentle downhill, with perfect temperatures, sunshine and a tailwind.    I quote Jim “I like Slovenia already!”  You might notice that all the EU signs look about the same (blue background, gold stars)  I promise that we didn’t simply photoshop in new country names!

But I get ahead of myself.  We had a lovely time in Budapest.  It is such a beautiful city.  Jim and I walked up to the citadel on the hill over the Danube where we saw photos of Budapest over the years.  The photos at the end of WWII were astonishing.  All of the bridges had been bombed and destroyed as had many of the old buildings.  As I understand it, the city languished during the Soviet era but the reconstruction at this point is quite astonishing.

Several of our riding friends from last year’s journey joined up with the group in Budapest as well.  We have really enjoyed spending time with them on this segment.

I think that we have enjoyed Slovenia more than any other country so far.  Very beautiful, clean, and good weather.  What else could we ask for?  It is full of lovely farms and gardens.  There are also picturesque vineyards in the foothills of the Alps.  Our route has primarily followed a valley that snakes through the center of the country so the climbs have been intermittent.  When we do climb though, we have been rewarded with spectacular scenery, swooping downhills, and pastries at the top.

 

It appears that small farms still thrive here.  The gardens are immaculate and full of ripening fruits and vegetables.  Walking through a farmer’s market yesterday I was able to buy a box of wild, handpicked strawberries…tiny, sweet and delicious.  We have enjoyed all sorts of fresh vegetables and fruit most of which are locally grown.  Our guides try to do most of the shopping for our meals from roadside vendors.

 

 

 

You may notice that I frequently talk about food and drink, a great pleasure & requirement of all of this exercise.  I have shown Jim drinking beer & wine, but I have not mentioned his eternal quest for milk.  At home, a refrigerator without milk requires an emergency trip to the grocery store.  On the road, keeping Jim in milk is more problematic.  Even when we find a store, Jim often does not know the word for milk in the local language (eg Russian, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Slovakian, Hungarian, Slovenian…whew!).  So he peruses the refrigerated case and makes his best guess.  I wish you could see the look on his face when he takes his first swig and it is..??..buttermilk (yuk!), liquid yogurt (yuk, yuk!), heavy cream (yuk, yuk, yuk!).  You just can’t imagine his disappointment.  But, Slovenia has the answer to all of his woes:

The MLEKOMAT!  Yes, there are roadside machines that sell fresh milk (and a bottle if you need one).  Joy!  You put in a eurocoin, select a bottle (glass or plastic), put a coin in a different slot, place your bottle beneath the spigot and out comes cold milk.

Luckily we are spending a rest day in Ljubljana, the capital, as it has been raining all day.  We have also reached the halfway point in our riding days, 31 of 62.  Hard to believe.  I will confess that we are both getting thighs of steel at this point.  Tomorrow we head off for our last day in Sweet Slovenia and then cross into Italy.  We spend two days in Lido/Venice.  See you then.  Ciao!