June 15 – Vienna to Lake Bled, Slovena. Today we are boarding the bus for a trip to Lake Bled, Slovenia. It's in the Alpine section of the country and is supposed to be a beautiful place. Guess we'll soon see.
After leaving Vienna the scenery quickly became hilly, then mountainous. Once we left the highway the road climbed and descended many mountain ranges, each higher than the one before until we got to Slovenia. At that point the hills became steeper and the road ascended by using switchbacks. We finally crossed the ridge of the Julian Alps and looked down on Lake Bled. It's not a huge lake but it's very pretty. It has one island, Bled Island, that's the only natural island in Slovenia and a small one at that.
It's got several features that make it very picturesque. First there's Bled Castle, it looms over the lake atop a shear granite cliff. Then there's Bled Island. It's mostly taken up with the Church of the Assumption of Mary. The lake is surrounded by cliffs and forest leaving no doubt about how it has become a popular vacation spot. No power boats are allowed on the lake. In fact there's a rowing competition going on today.
We are staying at the Lake Bled Hotel situated on the shore of the lake directly across from Bled Castle. After dropping off our luggage and checking into the hotel we drove to a little dock area where our pletna was waiting for us. The pletna is a traditional Slovakian craft. It's a small boat that is rowed from a platform at the stern. It has oar locks much like a Venetian gondola but there's two of them. The oarsman stands on the back deck facing forward and rows with the power stroke as his hands move away from his chest. The also use an open stance and their whole body moves forward as they row, almost the exact opposite movement used by oarsmen on a racing shell. The little craft hold about 14 passengers, six along each side and two facing the rear on a seat at the bow. The owners make them out of larch wood and they last about 7 years. It takes about 5 off seasons to make one so they get a two winter break before they have to start on the current craft's replacement. They could use a sturdier, more water resistant wood to make them last longer but larch is light and the others would make the craft too heavy to be useful.
We are headed out to Bled Island to check out the Church of the Assumption of Mary. From the pletna dock there are 99 stairs leading up to the church. This is a very popular place for weddings and the groom is supposed to carry his bride up the 99 stairs to the church. No wedding was on for the day but one energetic young man carried his girlfriend up the stairs with a crowd on appreciative tourists urging him on and giving him a rousing round of applause when he succeeded.
The Church of the Assumption of Mary is mostly Baroque now but from the look of it there was probably an earlier façade that has been replaced. Inside it pretty pure Baroque. The altar piece and reredos are a gold and silver masterpiece. The church is not large but it's extremely well done especially when you consider that this is not a very populous area. It has a separate bell tower as was common in the 1400s. The current Baroque structure is probably from the 1600s.
It's thought that if you make a wish and then ring the church's bell it will come true. I really don't believe in these kinds of things but I had to take a turn ringing the bell anyway. When I was a kid we used to sneak into the East Jerusalem Lutheran/Reformed Church and ring the bell so this was very nostalgic.
The small church had the stations-of-the-cross all across the front of the church flanking the altar. They are in the form of large oil paintings and quite attractive.
After another pletna ride back to the lakeshore we drove around the lake to the entrance of Bled Castle. This castle is the oldest castle in Slovenia and one of the most visited tourist attractions. The first legal mention is from a deed registered in 1011 when Emperor Henry II gave it to the Bishops of Brixen. It passed into the hands of the Habsburgs in 1278. The oldest part of the castle is the Romanesque Tower, as the fortifications were improved more towers were added. Most of the interior buildings are in the Renaissance style. It has two courtyards on different levels connected by a stairway. The upper courtyard has a very nice small chapel that was built in the 1500s. The murals are faded but still easy to make out. There's a carved wooden altarpiece dedicated to Saint Peter that needs restoration but is in fair shape.
From the castle's courtyards we had a great view of the boat races on the lake. They were running 4-man shells while we were there. Some of the teams were very smooth and also very fast.
It's been a long day of travel and touring and after dinner it was time to write a little and then hit the bed as we have a busy day tomorrow.
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