Seeing the World

I’ve spent most of my adult life living in Oldham.  A town which proclaims a twinning arrangement with its Slovenian mate Kranj.  Given the bus trip to Lake Bled included a stop in Kranj I showed a vague interest from the comfort of my seat as we approached and halted in the place.

Nothing on the road signs to suggest any involvement with the UK, let alone Oldham.  A moment of irritation at my historic council tax payments being spent on slightly bigger road signs throughout the borough not being reciprocated here.  Sitting in the bus station also reminded me of the ridiculous number of different bus stations built in Oldham over the years!

The town of Kranj itself is nestled in a beautiful setting.  Forests and Alps overlook it in much the same way Pennines overlook Oldham – the hills being more beautiful than the town itself.  While a handful of big industrial complexes were evident close to Kranj, including Goodyear Tyres, most of the architecture I witnessed was pleasing on the eye interspersed with the occasional high rise block of flats.

I pondered twinning arrangements.  I don’t recall anything in Oldham through the schools, despite sending three kids to educational establishments in Oldham.  As a naive thirteen year old child myself I remember being kicked out of my bedroom to accommodate a tall, blonde, assertive fifteen year old girl from Heilbronn in Germany.  Stockport’s twin town.  I remained naive after that visit but suddenly more aware of what tall and blonde entailed!

So it raises the question.  Are twinning arrangements in 2017 dead in the water?  Do councillors no longer get the opportunity to claim expenses for flights to foreign lands?  Are our kids denied cultural exchanges that were available a generation or so ago?  And if I’d bothered to get off the bus in Kranj would anybody have even heard of the town’s supposed friendship with Oldham?

Lake Bled – Bloody Marvellous

It wasn’t even in plan at the start of the trip, but having completed the highlights of Ljubljana and decided I didn’t fancy five hours on a coach to and from Zagreb I got to the bus station and decided on a three hour round trip to Lake Bled.

Recomeneded by a friend of a friend.  In fairness England has bigger lakes.  Lakes with mountains overlooking them.  Castles near lakes.  Islands in lakes.  Indeed, I rather like our Lake District despite a climate perfect for filling lakes.

Lake Bled has it all though.  The beautiful backdrop of snow capped Alps.  Small enough to walk around in a morning.  Imposing and impressive castle overlooking it.  And the bizarre concept of a beautiful church on a small island – if you can overcome your desire to stay in bed on a Sunday you still have to catch a boat to get to church!

Most of the small business around the lake were closed today.  It’s out of season.  But with temperatures touching 20C and not a cloud in the sky this place was a little bit of heaven.  The place was quiet.  Cool breezes offset the warmth just enough.  The water was still.  The scenery stunning.

There isn’t much more to it than that.  I didn’t canoe across the lake.  I chose not to climb the path to the castle.  I didn’t catch a boat to the island church.  I just soaked up the tranquility of the place, enjoyed a beer and knocked back a beef and cheese toastie.

Sometimes that’s enough.

Slovenians Taking the Proverbial

I started the day with a hearty hotel breakfast.  Croissant, fresh bread, yoghurt, cereal and, somewhat oddly, a plateful of cooked to order scrambled egg.  No other hot food available.

More importantly, plentiful coffee and orange juice washed it down.  I left the table and commenced the twenty minute walk to the bus station.  A struggle as hips and feet decided to complain in unison.  But a success.  As I looked at destinations such as Munich, Strasbourg and Zagreb I decided Lake Bled was an easier option.  Handing over my €12.84 for a return ticket (cash only accepted) I set out to find bus number seven as instructed by the ticket agent.  And discovered that the buses don’t have numbers on them.

Walking past a coach driver I asked the question and he pointed upwards to a string of blue numbers hanging out of the sky.  I’d made it to bay 21 and he pointed me back towards the ticket and the already long passed bay 7.  I arrived just in time, the single decker with an attractive blonde driver exiting the depot moments after I took my seat.

An uneventful 80 minute drive got me to Lake Bled.  Minutes after heading off around the lake the impact of the earlier coffee and orange juice began to prey.  Not to worry, lots of little shops and cafes I thought.  Closed.  Out of season.  The canoe centre closed.  Getting a bit worried.

At last.  A welcome “WC” sign and an arrow that led me to a turnstile underneath a small stand for rowing spectators.  50c.  Miserable sods.  I reached into my pocket, assessed the funny money and found three coins that added up to the required amount.  As I pushed through the turnstile a ticket magically appeared and I thought to myself “they’d better have one of those posh Dyson hand dryers” for this money.

I pulled the door handle.  Locked.  I find myself trapped between turnstile and door with bladder in prep mode expecting quick action.  I look through the door window.  No sign of life inside, which is probably good.  I’m not sure what I might have seen!  Getting worried now, I pressed a button they’d placed there for disabled assistance.  Somewhere, who knows where, a phone rang.  I noticed the CCTV camera pointing down at me.  Eventually a curt foreign voice answered.  I asked if they could open the door, smiling (sort of) at the camera.  I waited a moment, then a crackling noise as the person on the other end of the line hung up.  Without opening the door.

I stared at the CCTV, pointing at my ticket, the door, and even doing a little dance to convince somebody of the urgency of the situation.  Nothing.  50c wasted.  And they’d even charged me 22% VAT in that and completely failed to deliver the service paid for.  And because they’re in the EU I’m not even able to reclaim the 9c when I leave the country.  The case for Brexit has never been stronger.

A couple of minutes later I found a few trees between lake and path that appeared to provide a little privacy.  No charge.  Just a strange look from a woman who I hadn’t spotted coming in the other direction.

All is good with the world again.  But I’ve had my first negative Slovenian experience.

Tuesday’s Lucky Dip

I’d originally planned to head to Zagreb in Croatia today.  But a combination of absolutely loving what I’ve seen of Slovenia so far, and a two and a half hour x two train journey has made me rethink.

So I’m going to fill up at breakfast, walk the twenty minutes to the bus station and decide where to go once I’ve worked out the best bus times.  It’s quite a random way of going about things but it also gives me a chance to seek out the airport bus departure point for Thursday morning’s final exit back to the airport.  Eye watering taxi fares are best avoided!

There are two locations I’m pondering for today, but I’m not averse to doing anywhere.  So I might turn up, spot a bus with a place name I recognise on it and simply head there.

More likely I’ll hang around for a Ljubljana to Lake Bled (pictured above) service and head to the Alps.  I could potentially get off in Kranj, Oldham’s twin town, spend a token hour there and then catch the next service onto Bled.

So the plan is get a bus anywhere.

And this makes me think that my four night trips could start involving two destinations, a train/bus trip and three airports.  Perhaps Leeds>Zagreb>Sofia>Leeds isn’t out of the question.  Skyscanner might get a hammering tonight …

Get Ljubljana on Your Must Do List

Today has been very simple.  Walking tour in the morning.  Castle in the afternoon.  Magnificent steak for tea.

And I have to say, combined with beautiful weather and an uncrowded town it’s made for a perfect day.

The free walking tour kicked off at 11am and lasted two hours.  I resisted the temptation to melt away at the end and dropped €10 into the tip box.  It was worth every penny.

Without wishing to replicate the whole tour it basically provided a potted history of Slovenia and the capital.  And while Ljubljana has been knocking around for over 5,000 years the nation state of Slovenia is only 26 years old.  Indeed, independence rather upset the Serbs who started a war.  It only lasted ten days before a peace accord freed things up for Slovenia to prosper and Serbs to have their own fun for a few years in Bosnia.  A pretty close call!

A poignant comment about people spending their whole life living in the same town being born Austrian, being educated Italian, working as a Yugoslav and retiring a Slovenian.  I think it’s a pretty extraordinary example of how this part of Europe has changed over the decades.

They like their dragon in Ljubljana.  I assumed St George had made an impact in these parts but my assumption was wrong.  Legend has it that Jason and the Argonauts wandered into these parts and killed the big bad dragon.  I shit you not!  They still have bears in the forests …

One area not visited by the tour was the castle.  I did this solo, resisting the temptation to pay €4 for the funicular railway and somehow staggering up the hill.  Suffice to say it was worth it for the views alone.  The Alps, the forests, the old town and the new laid out before me.  Highly recommended.

So you should come.  Planes fly in from Stanstead and Luton.  But you could easily get a train from Zagreb and do a day trip.  I might head out of town tomorrow hoping to see a bit more of what, so far, is proving to be a magnificent country.

The Very Real Risk of Spinal Compression

One of the very real risks of the bone damage done by my lung cancer is that of spinal compression.

While I’m anticipating some discomfort and pain when my life finally begins to fade, this impact could be just about the worst scenario. It’s a risk I’m reminded of every time I stand up or remain seated for extended periods. Basically my body struggles to get up. Or down.  I suppose I’ve never exactly been down with the kids!

Two hours is a relatively short flight.  It took me a minute or so to lift myself out of the chair after yesterday’s efficient Wizz Air hop  Doubtless frustrating the young lady in the window seat next to me.  The last scan showed bone regrowth which is positive and essential to living a half decent life before the drug stops working.  Hopefully when the cancer does return it can finish me off in a somewhat less dramatic and less painful manner.

From what I understand the weakened spine can effectively collapse like a row of falling dominoes causing immediate damage to bowel or bladder. Two medics have forewarned me of the possibility advising a 999 call if it happens as immediate surgery would be needed.  Less dramatic but doubtless painful crumbling is also possible and is what has already cost me a tiny bit of height.

I’m already three quarters of an inch shorter than I was. Further shrinkage won’t be appreciated. Hopefully that vertebroplasty surgery last October will prevent this particular side effect!

Slovenia and Ljubljana Are Fabulous.

Within moments of getting through passport control and customs I grabbed wifi access and checked my email.  The hotel were in touch offering a lift from the airport for €35.  So I took the bus, paying €4.10.  No need for chit chat and some wonderful forests, mountains and countyside in view from my seat.

As the bus entered the city I admired some of the oldy world housing that remained amid more modern buildings.  And as the bus terminated I walked the twenty minutes to my hotel.  Modern and uninteresting gave way to the truly magnificent.  Nothing of particular size.  Just lots of lovely old buildings and bridges hugging the narrow river.  Numerous bars.  Cobbled streets.  Old bridges and a castle overlooking it all.

Genuinely beautiful man made stuff.  I trudged past a souvenir shop pricing up fridge magnets for the kids.  They’re getting one from everywhere I visit whether they want them or not.  €2 each make this the cheapest so far, equal with Bratisrlava.

And then I found my hotel.  Newly opened but within one of the ancient buildings of the old town.  A welcome spirit (Blueberry) made me smile.  And a small single room up two flights of rickety old stairways.  Not the easiest to manage.  The room is a joy.  A wide single bed.  Tea making facilities with no milk (!!).  Wifi.  Huge in wall wardrobe, perfect for my tiny hand luggage bag.  Power shower and a beautifully placed TV.

I went out in search of milk.  And ended up paying €8 for a 45 minute boat trip on the river.  No commentary.  But peace and tranquility as the old buildings gave way to stylish hew ones.

I’m loving this place.  It’s highly unlikely I’ll get four days out if it.  But tomorrow should be a walking tour.  And maybe up the funicular railway to see the castle.  Tonight’s entertainment?  Watch Scotland play football on local telly.  Slovenia are their opponents!  Up the Slovs!

Lounging Around at Luton Airport

It’s pretty well known that I’m a loyalty tart.  Give me a discount, some points and a freebie and I enter some sort of erotic heaven.  Utilising this firm tends to give me standard price, big cashback via TopCashback and a free night for every ten nights I stay, without the need to be loyal to a specific hotel brand.

That’s not to say I won’t book elsewhere if the price and perks are better.  Utilising low value personal Holiday Inn Express bookings with work related stays last year direct with the IHG reward scheme and their “Accelerate” promotion has netted me a couple of free nights in Santiago, one in Milan and one in Helsinki later this year.  Retail value nearing £500 for not having used my preferred boys.

But I digress.  On the 18th March I received an email from Hotels.com telling me I now have their silver status.  The main perks seemed rather limited but a one off voucher code offering “double free night” accrual caught my eye.  With a seven night booking due to be made I joyously dived in and used the code provided, excitingly thinking about the extra 0.7 free nights I could spend elsewhere.

Then the red text appeared on the screen.  “Your voucher is out of date”.  I scrambled back to the happy email telling me how I’m going to receive spam earlier to discover an expiry date of 13th March on the relevant voucher.  That’s five days before they sent me their email.  Genius!

Never mind, I have exclusive silver status phone and email access.  So I completed the booking without the code and fired off an email explaining what they’d done and asking them to apply the extra free night credits accordingly.

A reply a few hours later simply stating that they couldn’t do this as I hadn’t booked via their USA web site.  Email number two was prepared.  Phrases like “up yours” and “bastards” were typed and deleted.  A more sedate sequence of events prose was constructed highlighting the difficulty a supposedly loyal customer has utilising out of date vouchers and querying why I would have to use a USA site when every previous booking had been via their UK presence.  I avoided mentioning Trump, being a bit late for the Second World War and didn’t explain that their version of football has got it so wrong.

A day passed and their reply arrived.  No mention of the USA v UK stuff but what seemed like a genuine apology and delivery of a new voucher code.  But to apply it to my completed booking I’d have to cancel and start again.  No availability at that destination!

I have my code.  I just don’t have anything to book with it just yet and it’s unlikely I’ll get 0.7 free nights earned.  A shorter stay probable for my next booking.

I won’t take it further.  Their vouchers often block TopCashback earning which I’ve achieved.  It’s just a good reminder to consider other options going forwards.  Especially as my fancy new American Express card has just given me higher levels of status when booking direct with three or four other hotel groups.

They’re no good for a more rustic independent bed and breakfast offering though.

Final Preparations For Ljubljana