Slovenia

I have some major catching up to do! I haven't done a good job of posting since.... well, really all year! Here is my attempt to catch up from June.
My last day of school was a teacher work day on June 15. The students had a half day on the 14th and then were gone for the summer. That gave me the rest of the day on the 14th to pack out my room. Not only did I have to clear all of my personal items out, I had to organize what was left, and move it all to another room. One of the reading teachers wanted my room, so we flip flopped all of our things. Thankfully we had some soldiers to help out with the moving part! By Friday morning, I was pretty much done! I didn't want to go in Friday, knowing that I had to say goodbye to a job that I loved. My principal walked in to clear me and sign me out. Both of us were fighting back tears. After clearing, we said our good-byes, gave our hugs, shed a couple of tears, and out the door I walked. Jay came to pick me up, and we were on our way.

Jay was on our four-day weekend and I was done with school, so we hit the road to Slovenia! This was one of those trips that we were just winging it! We didn't know where we were going or what we wanted to see. We drove to the capital city of Ljubljana and found a hotel to stay at. It was a fancy hotel where many famous people had stayed. Some how we got a steal of a deal on it, paying about a fourth of the listed price! See, sometimes it pays to not plan ahead!! The best part about the place was this it was close to down town, allowing for an easy walk.

On Saturday, we spent the day walking around the town. The first thing we came across was a concert of local dancers. There were people of all ages dressed up in their country's attire, up on stage, dancing to ethnic music. We stood around for about an hour watching the different groups.

We also spent time in the market area, where many fresh fruits, vegetables, flowers, and homemade goods were being sold.

For the rest of the day, we followed our tour book's advice and did the number one activity to do in Ljubljana.... people watch! The town had such a relaxing feel to it. It was great just to sit around and watch the small crowds stroll by.

On Sunday, we drove to the town of Bled, which was the home of Lake Bled. It was a beautiful area with the crystal clear water and powering mountains.

We decided to have some fun and went rodelbahning down the mountain. This is the summer version of bobsledding. The first time was a little nerve racking, hoping that we won't go flying out of the cart. We picked up some speed the second time down.

We also took a lovely walk around the lake, getting a good view of the island in the middle, with a church centered on it. A climb up a mountain to reach the castle topped off the day.

We got back from this trip, did laundry and got ready for the next!