Ribe: Nightwatchmen and Witches and Vikings, Oh My!

Today I am in the small historic town of Ribe, Denmark. I suppose I added this city to my itinerary because it is known as the oldest town in Denmark. On the water it was inhabited as early as 8th century. It was important in trade and said to have produced some early coins here. An early king of Denmark settled here and afterwards the community grew. Apparently Vikings and Christians lived here in peace for a while. I learn later that at some point the stench got so bad in the town in the Middle Ages from refuse and cow manure. I swear I still smell the cow manure throughout the town to this day.

I start my visit with a check-in to my historic hotel Dagmar Hotel. Said to be the oldest hotel in Ribe it is located in the courtyard with the large cathedral. I was warned in advance that I need to make dinner reservations at the hotel restaurant ahead of time and I did not for whatever reason. I ask if they have availability for tomorrow and they do for a special outdoor BBQ event.

I drop my bags and start visiting some museums. All the museums seem to close early here so my only chance to see all the ones I want is to start right away. I start at Hex! Museum of Witch Hunt. I had this museum bookmarked but I wasn’t sure what to expect. I am pleasantly surprised at the thorough and interactive exhibit about witches and witch trials in Ribe and throughout Denmark. There are exhibits that talk about witches in recent pop culture and a very heartbreaking exhibit on how perceived witches are treated in other countries today. One witch falsely accused names a group of other witches that are part of nobility; as a result the persecution of witches greatly reduces. The audio guide is a must especially if you are an English only speaker. I spend over two hours here barely leaving time for the attached museum.

The museum nearby is the childhood home of Jacob A. Riis, a name I have heard before in NYC but had no idea who he was. Apparently the namesake of the beach in Queens New York I would visit is a famous former citizen of this town. He became famous for his writings and photographs of the working class and poor of NYC. I learned so much about his work from this museum.

I have an early dinner then meet up with the town night watchman, a tour. The night watchman is a historical figure in the town of Ribe. The watchmen were tasked with securing the town in the evenings. The tour is given in both Danish and English (if necessary) and sometimes singing is involved. Just to warn you that at least one of the stories does not really translate to English. The watchman gives us a city tour and takes about the architecture and history of the city. The tour is free and lasts about 45 minutes.

The next morning I walk over to the wooden bridges and admire the ducks with the royal blue coloring. Most are sleeping though.

Afterwards I head over to the Viking Museum which is more like a history museum of the area. Vikings are discussed a bit but only as a group that inhabited the area during early times. Most importantly is the location was beneficial for trade for many surrounding countries.

The rest of the day I explore town and get a snack. I have a large dinner planned this early evening so I don’t to eat too much today.

Groups of high school students use horse drawn carriages to carry them around from party to party. Loud music is blasting randomly from different courtyards.

Dinner at the BBQ event is better than I expected with all the grilled meats juicier than normal. The do it yourself salad bar is a nice touch, especially when it is very challenging to get a sufficient amount of vegetables daily. There is live music while I eat.

I travel to Copenhagen tomorrow so I attempt to go to bed at a decent hour but music gets louder outside my hotel and my ear plugs are rendered useless. I wish I am just out celebrating as well. Hopefully I am able to nap on the train to Copenhagen.

Vršič Pass and Piran

I am still in northern Slovenia. Today I pack up and drive out to the Vršič pass. Located in the northwest corner of Slovenia the pass is a switchback road through the Julian alps and Triglav National Park. It is only open for driving part of the year when the weather allows. Besides the beautiful views of the mountains I also get to enjoy an introduction to the Soča Valley. It takes about fifty hairpin turns to complete the pass.

I take the route beginning at Kranjska Gora first stopping at a rock bed along a stream that provided great views of the mountains.

As I am driving up the pass I discover how popular this pass is for cyclists. I pass by many struggling to get uphill, even some walking their bikes up the tough parts when they lose momentum. I know some people really like this but I would be miserably uncomfortable and unable to enjoy the scenery if I chose this method of traveling. I am happy biking on flat paths but give me a car for all the hard stuff.

One of the most popular stops on the pass is the Russian Chapel, a chapel dedicated to the Russians who were prisoners of WWI by the Austrians and were used build the roads. Many were killed by an avalanche while working.

I stop at a meadow with lovely views of bright green trees and the snow capped mountains in the background. This stop, Prisank mountain viewpoint, provides great views of the mountains.

I get a little closer to the mountain range and see things like the Heathen Maiden or the face in the mountain (Ajdovska Deklica).

There is livestock around to stop and look at.

I get to the top at the Vršič Pass high point or the Postman’s Lodge.

I drive down into the Soča valley blasting Sonic Youth’s Dirty Boots on the speakers inside the car.

I had wanted to stop at a dairy store near Bovec at the end of the pass – Soca Valley Dairy and Cheese Museum – but it is still closed another week or so until season starts. I pick up a bar of chocolate from the grocery store across the street instead.

Since my next stop is a couple hours away I decide to head back on the road south toward the city of Piran. Piran exists in a little slither of Slovenia that exists on the coast in a region called Istria. South of Slovenian Istria is Croatia and north of the area is Italy. The area is know for its warm temperatures, wine, and truffles.

Because I told the rental car place that I would not be crossing borders I end up taking the very long route to Piran to avoid entering into Italy. It turns out to be a nice drive where I drive through small vineyards with picturesque churches in the background….why didn’t I stop more for pictures? I also drive by the largest stone arch railroad bridge in the world. Unfortunately there is no where I can safely stop for pictures; I glance at it for a moment while I drive by.

Still many more back roads and I finally get to the town of Piran. I am told I can bring my car into the city center to drop my bags and my hotel will give me a card for a nearby parking garage. I can’t find somewhere to safely park the car except far away. I park in paid lot and carry my bag ten minutes to the hotel. If this is close parking I can’t wait to see where the satellite parking is.

I get my key card and map to the garage. I thought the hotel owner mentioned the garage I saw driving in but turns out its another garage. I eventually find the garage and I zig zag my car down four or five very narrow floors eyeing the narrow spots I pass on the way down. This is where the car is going to get banged up. I sure hope my credit card insurance is legit because I am about to test it. I find a spot where I can get close to a pole to lesson the chance of a door nick. I’ll have fun trying to get out of this tight space tomorrow. I get a few feet away from when I am not sure if I actually locked the car. Hopefully its one of those cars that auto lock because I am not going back down there right now. Google says its a 12 minute walk but it takes me more like 20 and that’s all downhill. I need to schedule 30 minutes for this walk to the car tomorrow when I leave for my outing.

I check into my room and settle a bit before exploring town. More on that later.

Lake Bled

I am leaving Ljubljana today and because I like to save money I decide to walk twenty minutes to the bus station to take the four euro bus to the airport instead of taking a taxi that would cost me almost fifty euros. One could call me cheap but I will blow one hundreds and fifty euros on a Michelin restaurant on occasion – in fact I will be visiting a Michelin restaurant when I return to Ljubljana in a week or so.

From the airport I pick up my rental car for the driving portion of Slovenia. I am leased a brand new car with no scratches or dents. I am not thrilled at the thought of having to be extra careful with this rental; so different from Split where we definitely rented someone’s personal car. Luckily the roads in Slovenia are pretty straight forward.

It takes me about fifty minutes or less to get to Lake Bled. Lake Bled is a beautiful area popular for weekend vacations about an hour from Ljubljana. People enjoy trails, water sports and relaxing in the surrounding town. I am too early to check in so I drive a bit to where my wine tasting will be later just to see how far it will be to walk. I stop briefly in a parking lot to google some things and I realize I don’t know how to turn my car off. The car is one of those fancy self starting type cars. After some YouTube videos and trial and error I finally figure it out.

There is no one to check me in yet so I walk to town to eat. Finally my room is ready when I return. I don’t have much time to rest before I need to go to a wine tasting in a couple hours. I am tired and don’t feel like going but since I’ve paid already I’ll force myself to attend. The wine tasting is at a hotel a thirty minute walk away from where I am currently staying.

I am glad I make it to the wine tasting. All of the wines are quite good (forgot to take picture of the bottles). We (other guests from Australia, UK and I) enjoy making fun of USA politics while trying new wines in a wine cellar.

After being successfully filled with wine and very good local cheeses I walk 30 minutes back to the B&B where I enjoy some of the wine I have leftover from my Ljubljana stash and take in the sounds of the birds and the cool air. It is a longer walk than I like into town but I am really enjoying the quiet and peacefulness of the area. I really like my porch views.

My energy levels are quite low lately so instead of driving to another lake in the morning I decide to enjoy things in town locally. I’m going to be closer to my pension and can bail out of the day at any moment if I feel like it.

I start the day with Bled castle on top of the iconic hill seen from around the lake. Hopefully a morning visit will let me avoid larger crowds. It is possible to drive up and park towards the top but everything I read says spots are limited and I don’t want to move my car and have to possibly deal with tight parking (brand new car, ugh). I walk thirty-five minutes to the top following a path behind a building. Approximately twenty minutes of the walk is uphill. The hike up isn’t too bad – I am sweating of course but on a hotter day I would probably be cursing the gods.

Bled castle is nice but it is far from being the most impressive castle I have seen during my travels. But what is really nice are the views that you get of Lake Bled below. It is peaceful up here looking down. I visit the museum and walk the walls a bit. Tour groups start arriving as I am leaving. Looks like I timed things correctly.

There is a small history museum inside the castle.

I ride a traditional pletna boat to Bled Island: Pletna boats are traditional wooden boats that are unique to Lake Bled. They take visitors to Bled Island, where you can visit the Church of the Assumption and ring the church bell for good luck.

I head down to the lake side to catch a boat to the island in the middle of Lake Bled (the island in the famous pictures). I see Tito’s former residence now hotel along with other hotels and homes along the water while a guy paddles us slowly out the island. Seems like a real strenuous job.

We only get 40 minutes on the island, I guess it is enough if you are too cheap to pay to visit the church and museum on the island. I get some gelato and walk around and enjoy the views. Nothing life changing here but a nice place to visit for 40 minutes.

After we paddle back I have my eyes on this restaurant for a late lunch but it closes at three so walk swiftly in that direction while admiring the lake from the shore.

I once more order a very rich and heavy truffle pasta. The pasta good but that with the olive oil and bread accompanying has me very full. I feel like I could sleep at this table or at least grab some grass by the water and pass out.

No matter which direction I go I am still at least forty-five minutes from my pension by foot. I make the decision to continue walking the rest of the six kilometer trail around the lake, ignoring my fullness and ignoring my tiredness. I am glad I do because there are so many more nice scenic views around the lake. I now understand how important rowing is to this town (and this country for that matter). There is a large rowing center set up at one point in the lake where competitive rowers come to row. I notice on the schedule there will be rowing here early evenings this week. Perhaps I can come back and watch another day. I did row one year in high school but I have a feeling this rowing is at a completely different level.

I complete the loop around the lake and on the way out of town I finally peek into the large church in town. It has an interesting chandelier and even more interesting artwork on the walls. One of the paintings that is supposed to represent a famous verse looks like a lion giving a guy cpr.

I have a timed reservation tomorrow for the nearby gorge. More on that later.

Montenegro day trip

After my day of work and leisure I meet my tour group at 7 am the next day. We are to explore sights in North Montenegro. Our driver explains the buoys and boxes in the water are for fishing and mussel farming. I have tried some delicious sea bass but mussels are next on my list. We first stop to see the two islands outside of Perast. We do not boat over to them though. I am regretting my day off yesterday since that would have been my only chance to see both the town of Perast and the two islands.

We start an ascent up hill. It is curvy but I am not concerned because I happen to be in the front of the bus. There are beautiful views of the bay of Kotor from above.

I loom at the gorgeous views and then look to the side, a girl from our bus is puking her guts out into the bushes. At first I offer my seat to her but after realizing how far back her seat is I decide to just share the row with her. I share my motion sickness pills with her and the girl on the other side of me who is suffering too. I learned my lesson in Thailand so I always have the pills on me for road trips.

We stop briefly for breakfast and coffee.

Our next stop is a lake called Black lake. It is located in Durmitor National Park. We don’t have time to walk around the complete lake because the levels are high and it would take too long. I admire the views of the mountains and hike some of the shorter trails. It is pretty but nothing more impressive than what I have already seen. This is where my extensive traveling backfires on me as it gets harder to impress me these days. It is still chilly out and there is still some snow on the ground.

From the park we travel to a very large bridge over the Tara River. Some in the group are dropped off ahead of the bridge stop. They plan to zip line across the very deep canyon. The rest of us take the walk across the bridge on a very narrow walkway, making sure the constant traffic doesn’t accidently hit us when we stray off path. Despite the scary walk it is a beautiful view. The river below is a color that almost seems made up on a computer. The view is lovely.

For our final stop we stop at the Ostrog Monastery, a very popular Serbian Orthodox Church built into a hill. Many make the pilgrimage barefoot up the steep switchbacks to pray to the body of Vasilije, the founder of the church. There is also some lore about a grape vine growing in the wall of the church in a place that is not conducive to growth. There are some very old frescos inside. Unfortunately I didn’t take any pictures inside because it is forbidden and for some reason I am a strict rule follower lately (even though most are not).

We get back late but I still need to eat. I attempt my first of many disappointing servings of mussels. One would think that since they are farmed nearby that they would be fresh and flavorful, but that is not the case. The mussel meat is very small of the ones that are actually opened and the taste is probably the worst I’ve ever had of mussels. I can only guess maybe they are not in season yet. The dessert is good though.

Tomorrow I am switching countries again and head to Croatia where I’ll meet my friend soon. I probably could have spent more time in Montenegro so I’ll just have to come back some day.

Kotor, Montenegro

My driver drops me off outside the old city gates. We have driven through beautiful fjord looking mountains surrounding a bay. As we get closer to Kotor the traffic gets worse and I see a large cruise ship ahead.

I grab my bags and go in the old city to meet the owner of the apartment I am renting. I am starting to second guess my visit to this town. Crowds are thick with groups doing day tours of the town. I’ve been communicating with the apartment owner by WhatsApp who tells me to wait in front of a church. A boy appears with an older photo of me on his phone “Is this you?” Yes and so I follow him. I am following a little boy to my apartment apparently. I meet his mom. She says he is 7 and she is teaching him English and often sends him on task; a point that is reinforced when he comes to collect my payment later.

I settle in and decide to eat and walk the city walls. The lady at the apartment tells me I am visiting on a holiday time. Many businesses will be closed the next two days, including grocery stores. She tells me that most of the restaurants in the old city are rip offs and not really good but then tells me most things outside the old city will be closed so I really have no choice, do I?

I eat at a lackluster place and then wander around. I start to notice all the cats. I think I read about the cats in my research but perhaps I forgot? Anyway this town is a holiday getaway for many including cruisers, people from nearby Balkan countries and until lately Russians. Despite the slow down it is still pretty busy here, luckily it does ease up a bit during the week.

This town is almost at the coast, actually a bay. The country once was part of Yugoslavia. It held onto the membership more than some but is now independent like all the other former Yugoslavia nations. It is facing some of the same problems politics wise as its neighbor, Bosnia and Herzgovina.

I end up going a wine tasting at a little bar. I had wanted to buy a bottle to take back to my apartment but all the wine shops are closed for the next couple days. Luckily I get a discount on a local bottle of wine. I sip this bottle for the next couple days. I also try a chardonnay that I can handle since it usually is not my favorite. I am also introduced to grapes I know nothing about.

The next morning I let myself sleep in so its too late to start and ascent up to the fort up the mountain. The heat gets unbearable to do the climb if you attempt it too late. I decide to take the day off today because tomorrow I have a very long day tour scheduled. I do go out to eat meals and walk along the city walls late in the morning but I am not doing any planned sightseeing today. In fact I use this time to pay bills and follow up on future travel arrangements. I forgot to schedule days off to do these things so days off have to be forced.