In Vino Veritas

In the northeast of Slovenia lies a magical region called Prlekija. A truly beautiful place, whose nickname the Tuscany of Slovenia actually doesn’t give it enough credit. A paradise indeed – there is even a town called Jeruzalem here! This is a supreme wine growing region, an undulating coutry with vineyards on the sunny side … Read more

Finding a Roman Camp

Upper Pivka Valley is an archaeological treasure trove, with numerous Iron Age hillforts and settlements, with Roman villae, tradeposts and military camps, with medieval castles and old villages. . So when we saw those strange circles in kite aerial photos from our first visit to castle Kalec, excitement about a possible Iron Age roundhouse settlement … Read more

Summer on the Moor

Iška Moor nature reserve, a specially protected part of Ljubljana Marshes landscape park, is one of the last remnants of vast moors that once covered the entire southern part of Ljubljana Basin. Different colours of vegetation in Iška Moor nature reserve. It is a unique ecosystem, one of the finest still extant example of damp … Read more

Mystery Lake in the Height of Summer

Yes, the intermittent Lake Cerknica with its regular cycles of drying out and filling up is a very attractive place, always showing a different face to an aspring photographer. We went there in spring, when the waters just started to recede, and then again in early summer, when the former bottom of the lake was … Read more

Only Kites and Horses

The village of Velike Bloke lies in the middle of a vast karst plateau Bloke, a remote and wild place in the heart of Slovenia. Lying above 700 m ASL Bloke plateau remains wild and untamed. There is almost no place for agriculture, and deep forests are home to huge beasts, inclunding brown bears, wolves … Read more

Unica River Revisited

So, in late February we visited Planina karst field and river Unica running through it – and we saw something strange in the bed of the river. Could this be something, we were asking ourselves, maybe an ancient boat? What is that? Luckily, we weren’t asking just ourselves, but some professionals too. They were interested, … Read more

A Rogue Kite and a Cool Discovery

(***UPDATE Aug 3*** – after the experts of the Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts looked into all this, there are some preliminary conclusions: the rings are (almost surely) mushroom-made fairy rings, and the pottery shards are Roman! Read more here.) Well, then … When we were forced to leave the … Read more

A Castle and a Storm

These are the ruins of the castle of Kalec (also Steinberg, Štemberk), near Zagorje in Upper Pivka valley, Slovenia. Built by the Stemberg family in 1622, it had two wings and a central round tower – the only thing that still stands. Castle Kalec – ‘Steinperg’, Štemberg – in all its former glory. A litograph … Read more