Day 15 – Lake Bled

Joseph Tito. Remember that guy? At least those of you old enough to have been around in the last century, or to have some knowledge of Yugoslav history?

Josip Broz Tito was the president/dictator of Yugoslavia from 1945 to 1980 when he died. He’s in my blog because for much of his time he had a summer residence in Lake Bled, our stop today. And that is not the only link to this blog. The hotel we are staying in – Villa Bled – was his summer residence. We’re staying in a former dictator’s mansion!

The drive from Piran to Lake Bled took us away from the Mediterranean and back into the Julian Alps, northwest of Ljubljana. About 6 km from Bled, just after getting off the highway, we ran into traffic, moving at a snails place all headed to Bled. Clearly, this was a popular spot. Being early for hotel check-in, we had planned to park somewhere near the lake, have a look around, and then go to check in. But with all the traffic we thought best bet would be to go straight to the hotel – which has free parking for guests – and check-in early, even if the room wasn’t ready.

We checked in, and the room was in fact ready, so we headed up to drop off our bags before visiting the lake and town. Taking the tiny elevator up to the second floor, we had a long walk down a corridor to a corner room. And what a room it was. Entering the “room” there is a hallway with a large 5 piece bathroom at end of it. A door off the hallway leads to the “reception” room, which a couch, lounge chairs, a desk and the TV. Off the reception room is the bedroom, which is about the size of our living and dining rooms at home – or bigger! And large double windows in each of the rooms (including the bathroom) look out over Lake Bled and Bled island. Wow. What a place. And compared to our very tiny room in Piran, we don’t know what to do with the space!

After check-in, we did a lake stroll. The guide says an “easy” walk around the lake, 6.5 km. Guess what, it was easy! No lying this time. Other than avoiding the large number of other walkers, and the constant stream of cyclists using the same path (Lisa not impressed), it was a nice, mostly flat and on paved path, stroll the full circle of Lake Bled. Saw the island church from all angles! A brief refreshment, then rest, then a nice leisurely dinner at the hotel restaurant on Tito’s terrace looking out over the lake, and that was our day in Bled. We may spend a bit more time tomorrow – perhaps a boat to to the island or visit to castle, as our next stop is only a short 30 minutes or less away, but we’ll see. Weather forecast is not looking promising. Pics, as usual, below.