May 2024
Discover the Astonishing UNESCO Global Geopark Idrija
After a rather short drive of a bit over an hour we arrived in Idrija, where Katarina, our host for the coming night and a member of the local tourism board, met us and accompanied us to the Tourist Information Center. There we had a very warm welcome with some local delicacies and two typical Idrija bitters.
After a short talk, Mojca took us through the exhibition in the Tourist Center and compassionately explained us the geological uniqueness of the area! A geologist herself, she is the perfect person to do so and the way the exhibition is arranged, it is interesting for everybody. After that, one will never look at rocks the same way!
A stone’s throw away from the Tourist Center is the Idrija Municipal Museum, which we visited right after. It is a very interesting museum, wide area of topics (geology, mining, the two World Wars, lacing) done with a lot of passion. The lady at the cashier was very nice and helpful!
Next stop was lunch at Gostišče Barbara. We had fish spread made from trout with toasted bread and some desserts and coffee. All very good. After sitting a while, it was time to go and se our accommodation. The House on the Hill! It is a 20-minute drive from the center, up to about 1000-meter altitude. And what can we say! Incredible! A lovely house for up to 5 persons, well equipped with a fireplace outside, a sauna, hot tub, and a WW1 bunker, built by the Italian army. But not to forget the extremely nice and helpful owners, who worked hard to make our stay unique. After settling in we went for a little walk with Dejan, the sommelier, who would lead the wine tasting later and Katarina, the owner of the house. They took us on a hilltop, from where you could see in a 360° view the whole area. It was overwhelming. Green hills and valley wherever you look! They brought fresh local cheeses and sparkling wine, so we had a snack and a toast with a view and nice company.
After arriving back at the house, we had a little time for us, while Dejan and Katarina prepared the wine tasting in the old bunker. With 8°C in there we changed into something warmer and met them inside. Dejan told us a lot about wine, and you could tell, it is his life. So much compassion is inspiring, and we recommend this to everybody, who likes wine.
Shivering from the cold bunker, we enjoyed the hot tub for an hour before we went to bed.
The next day began with an Idrija Breakfast, provided by the Tourism Board. Eggs, bacon, cheese, butter, all from surrounding farms. Since we had some time, we made a nice hike up to Jelenk, a 5-kilometer hike to a mountaintop nearby.
When we came back, Valerija, the director of the Tourism Board, awaited us already and took us to the Kanomeljske klavže. A short walk of 1 kilometer took us to this very impressing structure, which is several 100 years old. An impressive piece of engineering! After that we drove to Šturmajce, an old homestead, where a farmer family with sometimes over 70 people lived. There we attended a little workshop, where we learned to make žlikrofi a local delicacy. Hungry from the activities we were very happy to be served a large portion of this fantastic specialty. Eating that in this old farmhouse, where 200 years ago where farmers and their workers eating the same dish! What an experience!
Coming back to Idrija we had our interview with Ksenija from Radio Slovenija International and we ended our Idrija experience in a café in the center.
Final words: Go there! See for yourself! You will not regret it!
Anke Dullnig in Peter Klement
Photos by: Anke & Peter
