Stormy Slovenia...but stlll stunning.

After leaving wet and stormy Bled we headed south towards the caves region of Slovenia. We had a pleasant night's stay at a small town on the way, with the storms subsiding long enough for a walk and for the kids to enjoy the onsite playground. The electrical show that evening was pretty cool, with lightening illuminating the Kombi and thunder crashing around us.

We left early the next morning headed for Skocjan Caves, we figured that even if the storms kept up we would be dry underground. These UNESCO protected caves are huge with the Reka River flowing through them. We were guided through many caves and passages, where we marvelled at the huge stalactites and stalagmites, many millions of years old. It was so interesting to see the old, and very dangerous tracks and bridges, taken by archeologists in the past. At the end of the tour through the caves, and the only place you could take pictures, Jackson decided he desperately needed the toilet. After tracking down a guide we were taken to the only toilet, a primitive toilet in case of emergencies. Jackson thought it was a real novelty to stand on the footprints on the typical 'squat' toilet that was located in its own little cave and he ran out saying 'Milly, I just got to wee in the cave'! 

It had been hailing whilst we were underground and the kids spent the short walk back eating as much hail as they could collect. Jackson can't remember ever seeing hail so it was a real highlight for him.

The afternoon was still predicted to be cold and stormy so we headed to a nearby military museum that also had camping (you could camp for free if you went to the museum). We spent several hours looking at the military equipment, mostly from the old Yugoslavian Army, and learnt all about Slovenia gaining independence in 1991. We ended our day in a submarine, learning about the intelligence and sky missions undertaken by these smaller types of submarines and the difficult living conditions on board. It was a cold and stormy night so we were rugged up in Dugme before dark, ready for an early start the next day to cross the border into Croatia.

Driving through a small village looking for a campsite.

Looking put from Scokjan Caves

Cave selfie....a bit blurry though.

Stalactites on the cave roof.

On the walk out of the caves.

The view from above the caves, the mountains of Slovenia are beautiful.

Being a soldier at the entrance to the Military Museum.

In the museum.

The old tanks interested Jackson.

Going dowm into the submarine.

Inside the submarine. On some missions 10 men sat in the tiny soace for up to 7 days.

Driving the sub.

The Yugoslavian Army submarine, used for intelligence and spying.

Jackson with a replica of what occured during the fight for independance, he couldn't believe tanks drive over cars.

A tank made out of rocks, wood and hedge.

Leaving Slovenia in the early morning.

5 days of bad luck ...... but we made the best of it.

Our 5 days of bad luck went like this:

Day 1, Monday - we left Steph and Mark's at 1pm headed for the airport for our 4.50pm flight to Ljubljana to collect our Kombi. There was a crash on the M25 on the way to Gatwick airport so we were stuck. Instead of sitting in the gridlocked traffic we decided to take our chances with a country route. We had to go so far to even get off the motorway then we weaved our way back to Gatwick. At least we felt like we were trying, we had sat in the traffic jam for an hour and hadn't moved more than a few hundred metres. We found out later that the M25 was closed due to a fatality so most people missed their flights that afternoon. 

We arrived at Gatwick airport with 10 minutes before bag check in closed. Daniel dropped the kids and I at the entrance and raced to return the hire car. We ran inside and were confronted with absolute chaos, there were people running everywhere and insane queues. My desperation must have been visible as I managed to get some help from the EasyJet staff who got me to the bag check-in straight away. We got Daniel's bag checked in then as I put mine up to get weighed, and Daniel's got whisked away, the check in closed automatically. No matter what the assistant did there was nothing that could be done. We had missed our flight by seconds. Now for the fun part. We had to get Daniel's bag off the flight and organise another fight. We are very grateful that they waived the £80 per person fee and got us on a flight for early Wednesday morning. We decided the easiest thing was to stay at the airport, which turned out to be the right decision as Daniel did not get his bag back until 9pm, once the chaos had settled.

Day 2, Tuesday - a day of filling in time and keeping the kids entertained! We had a very long breakfast at the hotel, watched hours of cartoons, looked in every airport shop and even caught the shuttle between terminals to keep us entertained. The kids enjoyed their day but we were just upset at having to waste a day of our trip. We got over our annoyance knowing tomorrow we would be in the Kombi enjoying the Slovenian countryside.

Day 3, Wednesday, Daniel's birthday - Up early to catch our flight, it didn't start well when we were delayed by huge queues in security and had to nearly run to our flight. We boarded but sat in the terminal for another half hour. Arrived in Slovenia and had superb coffee whilst we awaited the arrival of our vehicle, and home, for the next 4 weeks. Unfortunately the guy delivering it got held up so we spent 2 hours at the airport, by this time we were really getting sick of airports! We finally got Dugme at about 12.30 and after an hour of explanations we were on the road! Hooray! We knew where we were headed and had expected to spend the evening celebrating Daniel's birthday beside one of the picturesque lakes in Northern Slovenia. Less than 10 minutes down the road we stopped at a supermarket for supplies. What was meant to be a quick stop turned into 4 hours after the gearbox decided to give up. Thankfully the staff let us use their toilet and we entertained the kids with endless walks around the Aldi style supermarket to keep cool (it was over 30 deg so very hot in the carpark). Certainly not a nice way for Daniel to spend his birthday. We tried to make it better with ice cream, though even the best ice cream doesn't taste as nice when you're sitting in a carpark. We ended up with a replacement van, with a promise that Dugme would be repaired and delivered to us asap. We left at 6pm headed to the lake. All was going well and we stopped for a delicious dinner on the way. We got to the camp area in the dark but in good spirits. Alas it was not to last. The campground was full! We ended up staying in the carpark as it as already 9pm and the thought of trying to find somewhere else was too much to bear. It certainly was not the overseas birthday celebration I had wanted for Daniel.

Day 4, Thursday - we left our illegal carpark campsite early and had breakfast and coffee on the side of the misty lake, enjoying the serenity. We explored the nearby town of Rivcev Laz and endured some photos and laughs from English speaking tourists when they saw our bright red and blue van, emblazoned with work 'Cockta' in yellow. Apparently it is a drink in Slovenia but it was still a bit embarrassing. Anyway we headed back to the campsite to get a spot for the night. Everyone was checking-out so there were heaps to choose from. As Daniel went to move the van from the carpark we both looked at each other in disbelief as the van didn't start. The battery had chosen today to die. After emails back and forth a new battery was driven up to us and installed....after another 2 hours in a carpark! At least we had the lake nearby for a swim. By the time we got the van started the camp area was quite full so we moved to another camp area further down the river. It was just as beautiful and we enjoyed a late afternoon swim.

Day 5, Friday - we awoke to rain and some serious storm clouds. We drove to the town of Bled, where we were to swap our van and get Dugme back. While we waited we hoped to visit a nearby gorge. Alas the weather had other plans and the storms got worse. We wandered around town trying to stay dry whilst finding wifi. I finally got wifi only to find Dugme had been dropped off already! We very happily moved our belongings over to Dugme and headed south, away from Bled and the stormy weather, positive our luck had just changed.

A nice view out our hotel window at Gatwick airport!

Getting Dugme.....we were all so excited.

Not long after, stuck in a carpark (eating ice cream to stay cool).

Our first destination in Slovenia! At least the mountains provided a promise of what was to come.

Daniel finally enjoying a meal for his birthday.

Looking over Lake Bohinj and the surrounding mountains.

Admiring the stunning Slovenian landscape.

While we waited for a replacement battery the kids made the most of a homemade raft they found.

Our temporary van...with the amusing name.

Enjoying a nudie swim in front of our campsite.

Our lovely camp on the river....but the storm clouds were rolling in.

After finally getting Dugme back the kids made themselves comfortable and we properly began our adventure.

Our 'magic' time with Steph, Mark, Kieran and Fraser.

Within half and hour of arriving at Steph and Mark's house the kids had got over their shyness thanks to Kieran and Fraser's enthusiasm. Kieran did an hilarious magic show (he is a born performer) which got everyone laughing. Then a whole performance was organised and the kids spent the next few hours trying on costumes and perfecting their play! After a relaxed evening catching up we spent the next few days exploring some great sights and enjoying the English countryside. 

On Friday we went to Hampton Court Palace, the home of the famous Henry VIII. The kids learnt about his many wives and his other indulgences, food and wine. They got to roast beef on a massive spit in the old kitchen, wander through the huge wine cellar and learn about life in the Tudor times thanks to an interactive play. The kids listened intently as they learnt about how to become a knight. The funniest part was when they learnt about hunting. They had to hunt a deer and guess who got picked to play the part of the deer? Daniel did a great job wearing a huge deer head and running from a horde of excited children. We all did the maze and the kids were super excited to beat us adults to the middle. A recent addition to the grounds is the superb Magic Garden, a huge play area with towers, a dragon and heaps of water play.

The next day was Mark and Steph's walking tour of London. After catching the train into central London we walked over 10kms around the streets of London and saw the London Eye, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, Green Park and Hyde Park before catching a big red bus (kids were super excited to get the front seat up the top) down Oxford and Regent streets to Trafalgar Square. The kids clambered on the lion statues and posed for pictures with Nelson's Column in the background. Then we went underground to catch the tube, another London experience for everyone. After getting back into daylight we wandered around the edge of the Tower of London before walking over the impressive Tower Bridge. By this stage we had tired and hungry kids (and adults) so we found a pub on the south side of the river and enjoyed some food and pint of local beer. We returned home exhausted but very pleased we fitted so much into our one day in London.

Sunday was a drive through some small Surrey villages, lunch in English pub, netting small fish in a stream and eating ice cream beside another stream in a gorgeous old village. It was all incredible, particularly the old mill converted into a pub where we enjoyed a suburb lunch. 

On Monday morning, before we left, we walked along the Thames, admiring some of the fancy house boats. We had a wonderful time with Steph, Mark, Kieran and Fraser. A huge thanks to all of you for opening up your home to us and to the boys for sharing your toys and bedrooms and ensuring Jackson and Emilia had a super time. We had a great time!

As we left their house little were we to know the spate of bad luck that was about to begin

Waiting for Hampton Court Palace to open.

Playing in the incredible Magic Garden, a wonderland for the children.

The kids celebrating beating the adults to the centre of the maze.

The first courtyard of the palace.

Helping to cook the roast beef for the King.

The Palace viewed from the beautiful Privy Gardens.

Daniel the deer being 'hunted' by these knights in training.

The actress dressed as a traditional Tudor lady.

On arrival in London, the London Eye.

Jackson was very excited to see Big Ben.

Westminster Cathedral.

Out the front of Buckingham Palace.

With Steph looking down the Golden Mile.

Buckingham Palace selfie.

The gates of Green Park.

Up the top of a big red bus riding towards Trafalgar Square.

Nelson's Column and the lions of Trafalgar Square.

Riding on the 'Tube' underground.

Tower Bridge.

Walking over Tower Bridge.

Enjoying a cold beer after our big day walking around London....Jackson wanted to taste the froth.

Enjoying the sunshine and bubbles at a traditional Surrey pub.

The kids enjoyed the hedge.

Out the front of the pub, which was an old mill.

Trying to catch fish in a little stream (they all managed to net a few little ones).

One of the quaint English villages we visited.

Ice cream by the river.

Jackson enjoying the view.

The lovely Thames in the morning.

Enjoying the playground on the Thames.