By William Coleman
So today has been an eventful day to say the very least. We have covered three countries, well started in one then travelled across another 2, we completed our 1000th miles as we drove through Italy, saw some of the most beautiful terrain through the mountains and then towed through rain that was so heavy you could not see 30 feet in front of you. That will get your heart pounding.
I started the day at around 7am with a brisk walk to the showers, while being showered by rain on the way, to get an early start so we could cross another 3 countries and arrive at Lake Bled in Slovenia at a reasonable hour for dinner.
With a 200 mile drive under my belt today I must say towing on an Italian motorway is something that a thrill seeker would love. Being caught between to large lorries who simply will not move did make me a little anxious, but then the training kicked in and i quickly got myself out of an uncomfortable situation. The Skoda Octavia I was driving today was an absolute joy to use. Thanks to the spot on weight balance in the caravan it made to towing feel effortless at times.
After what seemed like an eternity on the motorway we came off a few miles outside of Austria, which is one of our 21 countries. The views that can be seen on the drive from Italy to Austria are some of the most jaw dropping sights so far. The French Alps were amazing but these vast mountain ranges, with a scattering of gargantuan cascading waterfalls may tip the scales in their favour. Driving through the mountains of Italy toward Austria may have to be best driving experience I have ever had. There were quite a lot of rain crowds but that added to the feel of being in the mountains. Surrounded by misty mountains as far as the eye can see, very Lord Of The Rings. Anyone who is thinking about visiting do not hesitate and make this a priority booking.
We entered the tunnel Karavanke through the mountains to cross the border into Austria, I knew we had entered Austria due to a handy text from EE informing me of the high prices they charge for text messages. The tunnel through the mountain was extremely long (around 5 miles) and seemed never ending. Once we exited the we entered an entirely different landscape, still very mountainous but with a completely different feel to the buildings and layout of the houses and streets.
Aside from the huge amounts of open space it seems not one single house or building in Austria are the same. Each house is very large and seems to be located on its own wide open plot of land which makes the whole place seem perfect to live, very different from the towns and cities of the UK.
I know I have said it a lot recently but this place is beautiful. You can tell that they intentionally leave a lot of open space and shy away from over building structures, unlike most countries around the world.
One thing I noticed about the immaculate town of Faak Am See was that there seemed to be quite a lot of shops, bars and restaurants closed. After a small broken English conversation with a local it seemed the town does not re awaken until the 22nd of April. So as we made our way through the smaller roads of Austria we headed toward to border and eventually made our way into Slovenia.
Slovenia is very similar to Austrin in quite a few ways. The one real difference I noticed was that the area is catered a lot more towards its tourists attractions. Slovenia is known for its white water rafting, castles, town squares and of course the picture perfect Lake Bled which is where we are actually staying.
The Lake Bled site is amazing and actually has an impressive 5 star rating. Once you read my review you will see why. So we have just finished our evening meal where we were totally spoilt by the staff while we dined on a 4 course meal with beer, wine and a lovely dolcetto wine with pudding.
All in all today has been totally fantastic all round. From the mountainous drive through italy to Austria to the Italian service station lunch all the way up to the amazing sights and food of Slovenia.
