Honestly, I rarely hike in summer. My favorite time of the year to hike is autumn. Also spring and winter. But autumn wins with all its colors and special, mystical forest vibe.
Vesna, Jana and I decided to go up to Čisti vrh. It is a 1875 m high mountain in Julian Alps. Very important – not overcrowded with beautiful, easy trail. We took less than 3 hours to climb up. It took us 2 hours to come down. The total distance was almost 14 km with a bit more than 900 m height difference.
On the way up we still have some clouds keeping us company.
But they slowly started dispersing.
We waited a bit longer on the top and the skies completely cleared up.
Photo by VesnaPhoto by another happy hiker
Going down we enjoyed some more sun and colorful forest.
Photo by JanaPhoto by Jana
After that we enjoyed some local treats from Bovec kitch’n at the comfort of our home. 😉
Photo by Jana
Thanks, Vesna & Jana for a beautiful day in the mountains.
Another short girls’ trip with my mom. I’ve been seeing all these photos of trullis on Instagram, people visiting and I fell in love with it. My mom also had it on her bucket list for a while. At first the plan was to go with the car from home and do a road trip. But then due to good connecting flights, we made it a short trip. We spent a couple of days in September when I didn’t have to work.
The trip started rather funny. I booked a rent-a-car at Felirent. Without a rental it is impossible to get around Puglia. It was one of the rare agencies, where you didn’t need a credit card. No, I don’t have one. And I think rental agencies should really change their game. Anyway, the place was filled with Fiat Pandas and really sketchy looking. It took us probably more than one hour to get a car. Of course, they charged us something extra, just because they can. Luckily, everything was good, also upon returning the car.
Anyway, let’s start the trip. We arrived early, so our first stop of the day was Polignano a Mare. We have prebooked a boat tour of the caves. We were more interested in seeing the place from the sea than from land. They took us to see many different caves – grotta.
Ponte BorbonicoPhoto by our guide
After the boat ride we continued our journey. We had a short stop in a quaint town – Locorotondo. We had a snack stop at Il Re dei Panini – the King of Sandwiches. It was so big, the two of us only ate half.
In late afternoon we finally arrived to our home away from home – B&B Salita Delle Pere. The cutest place with the nicest lady host and delicious breakfast. You actually stay in a trulli, if you book so. For an affordable price and with a great location.
Breakfast at B&B Salita Delle Pere with many different home-baked pastries.
The next day was the most exciting one – we visited Alberobello. We were just wandering the whole day around, getting lost among all the trullis. My one thing to do beside visiting Alberobello, was to try orecchiette in Coppino. I would go back just to eat that again!
Photo by strangerPhoto by momThe most delicious orecchiette.
I really enjoyed Alberobello. But since we still had some time in the day, we decided to check out Ostuni.
Finishing off the day with a proper Italian dinner.
Our last day we saved for Matera. It is around one hour drive from Alberobello, but a must to visit. Matera is a UNESCO World Heritage site with its rich history and interesting architecture. In modern times, it was used as a filming location. It served as a backdrop for films such as The Passion of the Christ, Wonder Woman, and many others. We joined one of the walking tours to find out more about its history. On our own it would be very difficult to actually find the Sassi cave dwellings.
Air vent – functional and decorative
After many steps we treated ourselves to a panini at L’Antica Credenza – La Paninoteca.
After refueling we decided to visit Palombaro lungo – the largest public cistern in the city. It was brought to life during the construction of Piazza Vittorio Veneto in 1991. Being roughly fourteen meters deep and fifty meters long, it had a capacity of over five million liters of water.
We finished our visit to Matera with a view point spot.
Found some more orecchiettes and called it a day. The next day we returned the car, they took us to the airport and said ciao, bella!
This canyon is divided in 4 parts. We have done the third and the fourth. The fourth is apparently the most technically demanding of all the parts. Altogether it took us almost 8 hours.
Lovely rock formations.
Beautiful pools.Some cold swimming.Seeing the bridge, knowing we are at the end. Well deserved Italian pizza.
Both canyons in one day. Rio Lavarie was the first one of the day. Altogether it took us around 2 hours and a half. It is beautiful, versatile lime stone canyon.
Rick walking through Rio Lavarie.
Rio Patoc is a short, but beautiful canyon. The whole tour took us around 2 hours and a half. We swam in the river on the way back to the car. Honestly, I did not enjoy it very much. It was shallow, so you were bumping on the rocks and the flow was pretty fast.
Start of Rio Patoc.Rick in action in Rio Patoc.
Thank you for another beautiful day in the canyon!
This time we didn’t go far. Just over the hill – to Gorenjska region. It was an easy day trip, with chasing waterfalls and delicious food.
Peričnik waterfall is actually 2-part waterfall. The lower one is 52 m high and the upper one is 16 m high. It is located in Vrata Valley. If you visit it in the summer season, you leave your car before the valley. There is a shuttle bus to there or you can bike or walk to it. The flow was very nice when we were there in May. Also no crowds.
Our next stop was Martuljek waterfalls. There are also lower and upper. We only went to the lower one, since it was wet and slippery. We were also limited with time.
Because the whole reason for our trip was a dinner at Restaurant Milka. A very nice experience. Started off with a drink and chef’s greetings with a great view of the Jasna lake at their lounge.
Then we moved to the dining area. The food was exquisite and the staff very nice. At the end they presented their homemade liquor, which we could try.
Restaurant Milka has 2 Michelin stars and is listed on 50 Best Discovery. Chef David Žefran has 2 Knives. All very deserved. The restaurant is only open for dinner with their tasting menu.
My second canyon of 2024. This adventure took us a total of 5 and a half hours. Walking up to the start of the canyon took around 1 hour. The fun in the canyon itself was around 4 hours.
Beautiful canyon, very grippy stone. After first two rappels there is a longer walk, but what comes next is all worth it. Photo by Rick.Photo by RickPhoto by RickPhoto by RickPhoto by RickI loved the rappels, beautiful stone and amazing scenery. Photo by Rick.Photo by RickIt is not an aquatic canyon really, so I felt quite confident and I enjoyed all the rappelling. I am not a big fan of very aquatic canyons. At least not yet. 🙂One of the last few pitches, which was the most impressive, a 57 m free hang.
My first canyon in 2024. Vertical 5, aquatic 2, combination I quite enjoy. I love vertical canyons.
Starting pool, clear water. Rappels and not much walking.The highest waterfall of the canyon.The last 2 waterfalls of the canyon. Before we rappelled down to the bottom, we saw an Alpine ibex drinking water down by the pool. Such a peaceful sight.
Very vertical, just a nice amount of walking, beautiful views. Thank you, Rick.
San Marino is one of the smallest countries in the world. It is also one of the oldest countries. It is surrounded entirely by Italy and sits high on Mount Titano. Despite its size, it has its own laws, borders and a long history of independence that makes it feel quietly confident rather than touristy. We stayed for two nights. That duration was just enough time to slow down and allowed us to really enjoy the place. We stayed in a hotel, which was right in the old center of town.
In the morning we went to see the 3 towers – Guaita, Cesta/Fratta, Montale – symbols of the Mount Titan. In the second one you will find Museum of Ancient Weapons. The third one is nice for a view.
The next thing we walked around town, stopped at Basilica di San Marino. We were lucky enough to experience a parade of the Sammarinese military forces.
I am a maniac for sunsets, so of course we had to find a good spot for it. And we did.
In the light of December festivities, San Marino was lovely decorated. My mom and I even went ice skating – probably the best ambiance I had when ice skating.
While in San Marino we mostly had pasta. I also tried strozzapreti, which are typical or common in San Marino. But you have many other options of pasta, obviously.
RavioliStrozzapretiGelato
On the way out we shortly stopped in Rimini. On the photos Ponte di Tiberio.
On the way in we had a bit longer stop in Padua, in Italy. We had a proper Italian lunch and some sightseeing. For lunch we visited Enotavola, which is listed on the Michelin guide and Falstaff.
I have wanted to try diving for a very long time now. Then Rick finally said ok, let’s do this. So we went straight to Raja Ampat, Indonesia, one of the top diving locations. Many people said we will be spoilt from now on.
We stayed in a homestay for about 10 days. No wifi, no alcohol, no choice of food. We ate fish, rice and veggies every day for 3 times a day – my tummy loved it! Once in a while we had something different, like dadar gulung – pancakes made of coconut & pandan. We had this whole beach, like from a screensaver, just for ourselves. It was picture perfect.
The island was very small, we would walk all around it in about 45 minutes. There was a school and the local men were fishing every day.
On our arrival, we had some problems finding our homestay. The boat left us at the main jetty. We found out later that ours was broken. The locals don’t really speak English. After some time using gestures and attempting to pronounce the name of our homestay, we made it.
We started our OWD at the resort of the dive center. After we passed it, we of course joined their other dives. They picked us up every day at the jetty. Every dive was special, since we were experiencing something new really. At the time, I was not taking photos yet underwater. However, our guides were so kind to take them for us. They sent us all the photos from all the dives we did.
Between the 2 dives we always had a surface interval on one of the islands. On one of them we got a chance to see fruit bats.
On another one we went to see the view of Piaynemo. It was beautiful to see it.
We had some friends trailing us around the island all the way to our homestay.
Our hosts were very kind. One day we had a privilege to get fresh coconut, straight from the palm. Our host climbed up so easily, cut it off and made it ready for us to eat. He even made a little spoon out of the peel. Amazing. Another day he came home on his narrow boat with the biggest swordfish ever. He was very proud of his catch. I forgot to put the case off of my phone, so I’m not really proud of these photos. Still, you get the picture.
Jalovec (2,645 m) is often called the king of the Julian Alps and it’s easy to see why. Rising sharply above the valleys, its pyramid-shaped peak dominates the skyline. It captures your attention long before you ever set foot on the trail. It’s a mountain that feels powerful and elegant at the same time.
The routes to the top are demanding and exposed in places, making it a true challenge even for experienced hikers. This isn’t a casual walk; it’s a mountain that asks for respect.
For many mountain lovers, Jalovec is more than a destination—it’s a symbol of freedom and endurance. It reminds you how small you are, but in the best possible way. Standing beneath it or on its summit has a way of quieting the mind and grounding you in the moment.
Photos by Rick of me starting the climbing part.
The glorious view of Jalovški Ozebnik.
Walking the main ridge just before the top, photos by Rick.
We made it to the top.
The King’s crown
Recap of the activity.
From the summit, the views are breathtaking. On a clear day, the Julian Alps stretch endlessly in all directions, with Triglav standing proudly nearby. Below, you can spot valleys carved by time. There are alpine meadows and rugged rock faces. These features make this part of Slovenia so special.
Having the top to ourselves, what a reward.
Jalovec has always stood out to me — powerful and impossible to ignore. Making it up there was far from easy, humbling and incredibly rewarding. I was proud, tired and completely in awe.
Now, every time I see Jalovec again — before or after — it feels different. It’s no longer just a mountain in the distance, but a reminder of effort and respect.
Anjability 