Rufus and Rotc's Slovene Odyssey: June 2010

Friday, June 4, 2010

Frustration at Brussels

We had to report at lots of security points and became very frustrated because the plane was loaded and we thought we missed it. Greg decided to wear his ticket to cut down on time.

Ljubljana Airport

Our flight left at 6:45 AM on Monday morning. Weary eyed and bushy tailed Greg returned the van and we headed home.

Dinner in Ljubljana

We were very happy Ron and Cheryl were well enough to join us for dinner. Great celebration.

Cirila's grandchildren

The children were a joy and it was fun to play with them. Ana, Ema. Anja, and Jan, the little boy. We loved Anja because she was our translator for the day.

The Andolšek Family

Cirila has three children. Branka, Mom Cirila, Romana, and Adam. Great hosts and very little English between them. Of Course we didn't speak any Slovene but still enjoyed meeting them.

Novak Homestead

Adam Andolšečk and his Mom Cirila own this home. It was built around 1720 by Adam Novak. Amazing it is still standing. The barn is where Greg stood to take this picture

I posted this photo to show an old farm house Slovene kitchen. Marija, Jorgi, and AnaMarija are standing around the kitchen stove. It's source of heat is from wood. The housewife needs to regulate the heat to bake the famous Poticia and Strudel. Which we enjoyed at every home. Sunday May 30, 2010

Talented Artist

Franka is a very talented artist. She burned the flower design so the cousins will have a memory of our visit. Thank You very much.

Blacksmith shop

Anton Novak's brother, Franc, was a blacksmith. This is the walls of his home and shop. He was killed by a bull in 1936. Franc was Jorgi's great grandfather and Ivan's grandfather

Cemetery

We visited lots of cemeteries to find the ancestors. The plots were well taken care of with beautiful flowers and burning candles. Family members were buried in their family plot. The wife could be placed separate from the husband.

Wood burning heat

This fancy wood burning heater was in the castle. A couple of the old homes we visited had the same kind of heat. You burn the wood in one place and the heat distributes it to the room with the huge heater. In the farm houses the heater takes up a quarter of the room but it is fun to lay on it for warmth.

Snežnik Castle

Our host took us to see this beautiful castle. It was furnished as it was when the royal Schonburg family lived there around 1853. They used it as a hunting and vacation home since they were from Germany.

Vesna & Jorgi Kralj

Vesna and Jorgi joined us while visiting with Jorgi's relatives. Karen gave Vesna some lotion and Greg and I received gifts which made us feel special. I carried the basket through 4 airports and the cloth was made by Jorgi's Grandmother. Carnations are Slovenija's national flower.

The Siraj Family

Next we drove north to Rakek to visit with the Škrabec side of the family. Mitja Siraj (right) had written an email to invite us to visit his parents home. His grandfather Ivan Škrabec (left) is the grandson of Franc Novak, brother to Anton. Thank you Marjan and Mira Siraj and their family for a wonderful visit.

KIN

Lou found a look alike. Voyko Zrimšek and Lou Novak are second cousins under Grandma Johana Katern Novak side of the family. We always thought Lou looked like his Grandfather.

More Cousins

Dušanka had called her brother and we arranged a visit while in Portroz. It was wonderful to visit with Ambroz's family, Metej, Milena, and Voyko Zrimšek. Milena brought copies of pictures and a map from 1903 which Ambroze had carried when he came to America, cool

Scenes of Venice

Pictures from our boat ride back to the car. My one day quick trip to Venice was well worth it.

Gondola Ride

Alex took us through the smelly, run down alleys of Venice. The water has destroyed the lower portion of the very old buildings and we looked up to see the beauty.

Saint Mark's Cathedral

The Mosaic art inside and outside the church is amazing.

Traveling the Grand Canal

We parked at the north part of the Island and took the water bus to Saint Mark's Square. Saw a funeral and a wedding all on boats.

Moon light in Portoroz

Great picture of the moon oat the coast. Goodnight, Greg will drive us to Venice in the morning, Friday, May 28.

Portoroz

We arrived at the coast town Portoroz and was greeted by a rainbow and the sunset. Nice after an exhausting day.

horse show

The male travelers were very patient while the girls watched the National Horse Competition.

The Running of the Horses

We bought tickets to get inside the gate and saw the horses run from the pasture to the barn. Lou counted 32 horses running between us and the thin rope.

Lipica Stud Farm

Our trip to the Lipica Stud Farm ran late for a tour so we caught the colts from the fence. The colts are born black and turn white as they grow old.

Late Lunch

The lunch restaurant didn't work out so we bought rolls and had the worker at the local 7-11 make sandwiches. We ate at the bus stop and it was very fine eating.

Prejamski Grad

This castle was built in a cave. There was an escape route through the cave system. The story is quite funny of how the law surrounded the castle for a long time and finally took the owner out by killing him while he was on the open holed toilet.

Resting

We were resting while the girls shopped. We did a 2 mile walk in the cave and it was well worth it.

Stalactites

Many many formations in the cave. In Kentucky they call the first stalactite "ribbon" but in Slovenija they call them Pusutio

Train ride

We went to visit the Postojnska Jana (cave) and rode the train for the first mile. Slovenija has discovered the 10,000th cave in their country.

France Prešeren

France Prešeren is Slovenija's greatest poet. He would write the most beautiful love poems inspired by the young lady in the window. It turned out she was 14 and he was never able to satisfy his love. The country used one of his poems for the National Anthem.

Rufus and Rotc's Slovene Odyssey