June 2021
Discovering Brkini with e-bikes’
Are you interested in learning to cut your own paper-thin prosciutto, or tasting fennel flowers with locally made cheeses? How about exploring the restorative effects of various herbs and spices and the curative power of a potato? Or maybe you’d rather chase down ogres and witches living in forests teeming with local legends, and then share a glass of the finest plum brandy with an actual living legend? Fortunately, in Brkini you don’t have to choose—you can do it all in a day!
After a short drive from Ljubljana, we started our morning at Belajevi herbal and ethnological farm in Kačiče. We were greeted by Andrejka and Tony, and given a tour of the lovely, naturally farmed herbal gardens surrounding the property, where lucky tourists can “glamp” at certain times of year. When Patrick got too friendly with one of the plentiful bees, Andrejka ran to get a cut potato to help soothe the sting, an old family secret. Patrick’s skepticism turned to surprise when the pain and swelling quickly abated! We returned to the centuries-old farmhouse, and were treated to a mid-morning feast of hand-cut prosciutto, fresh bread and local cheeses, beautifully paired with herbs and spices straight from the garden.
Sad to go, we knew we had more excitement waiting for us, so we hopped on the provided e-bikes and cruised off to meet Valerija at the Mythic Park visitor centre in Rodik. There we took a tour of an exhibition explaining the mythological past of the area, before again hopping on our e-bikes – this time on an adventure! We followed the winding, hilly ‘Baba route’ by bike, in search of the ‘ogre’ and ‘baba’, who dwell in the hidden caves and forests of this stunning karst landscape. Seeing the landscape through the lens of local tradition and folklore gave a fresh perspective to the sunny hills and shady woods.
After a sun drenched hour or so, we set our e-bikes to ‘turbo’ and made our way to File’s tourist farm in Slope. The owner of File’s is Franc Jelušič, also known as the Ambassador of Brkini, due to his proud representation of the region around Slovenia and abroad. Franc regaled us with tales of his family’s impressive exploits, and treated us to his award-winning and geographically protected brkinski slivovec (plum brandy). We also tried his excellent cognac-style brandy and famous kraški brinjevec (juniper brandy), the latter made exclusively from crushed juniper berries, giving it an altogether different taste compared to its more widely known relative, gin.
Mildly merry, and hungry from the day’s adventures, we then made the short trip to the Linč homestead in Rodik, where we were served a beautiful late lunch of local delicacies: karst pršut, goats cheese caprese, jota (both a vegetarian version and the more traditional local specialty, made with turnip and meat), and hand made pasta with young asparagus. Stuffed, we were still tempted by the delicious apple strudel (zavitek) and štruklji. All of this was served with a refreshing local malvazija white wine, typical for this region.
Savouring the slow pace of this region and not quite ready to head home, we took a slow bike cruise back to our starting point, basking in the final rays of sunshine for the day. After such a gorgeous day enjoying this delightful region, we would have been heartbroken if we hadn’t assured ourselves that we would be back very soon!
Stephanie & Patrick
Photos by: Stephanie & Patrick
