I Still Get Surprised Sometimes

I had a great long weekend! We spent Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday hopping on and off a big bus full of people from various Lutheran churches in Racine, Wisconsin. My mother was one of them. The tour guide, Sue, was kind enough to let our family join in the fun (there was space on the bus) for the last leg of their trip, which started in Dubrovnik and ended today in Venice. We rented a small studio apartment in Ljubljana that was a ten-minute walk from where the group was staying and hung out with them as much as we could. It was so fun being an American tourist!! We got to wear little orange receivers around our neck with a little earphone and everything!

We have been to Ljubljana several times, but this time we did the guided tour and went up to the castle. Very nice. The next day, we went on the bus to Lake Bled, where we have also been more than once, but this time we went to the island on the little boat and visited the church.

The next day, we went to Lipica Stud Farm, which is where the famous Lipizzaner horses are from. This is about a ten minute drive from our house but we had never toured the stables before. It was an interesting visit and everyone really enjoyed seeing the horses. I learned so much. Had no idea, for example, that baby Lipizzaners are born black but become white as adults. Also had no idea that they used to be many colors but everyone wanted the rare white Lipizzaner horse because Napoleon made it popular. Now they are 99% white.

The next day, we went to the caves of Skocjanske  . Now, if you have not visited this place, please promise you will do it soon. It's one of the most beautiful places I have ever been, and I am not a big fan of caves. It is incredible. Yesterday we did not go down in the caves (the others did) because it is a big hike and the elevator that pulls you back up was out of order, so we decided Grandma Mag could do it next time she visits Trieste. Instead, we sat outside and had a nice lunch and did some gabbing.

One of the interesting things about the Skocjanaske caves is it is where the Timavo river disappears underground and doesn't resurface until Duino 43.6 kilometers later. Talk about coincidence. After we left the Americans and went home, we got ready for work the next day. My school was going on an all-school field trip. I didn't really pay attention to where we were going (I wasn't driving, after all) so imagine my surprise when the FIRST STOP was Duino, where the Timavo comes out. Now, again, I had seen this area before, but what I had NEVER NOTICED was the very cute church that is right there!  The most surprising part is that INSIDE the church, there is a garden.

Have you ever heard of a church with an indoor garden? Some people say they get sick of visiting Europe because it's all the same. Churches churches, villages, villages, churches, blah blah blah. I never feel this way, however. I find it so incredible that even after fifteen years of living here, there are still things I haven't seen and it is still a joy to discover them.