"A bejewelled lake." a Bled Travel Page by antistar

The church on the tiny forested island in the middle of the pristine emerald green lake is a Bled icon that drew me to this place. I'd seen pictures in guide books and on the web, and it had me so transfixed that it pushed Slovenia up into my list of must visit countries. With such high expectations, there is always the possibilty that the reality might disappoint, but that was not the case with Bled, and I was truly mesmerised by the island jewel, amazed to be seeing it in the flesh for the first time.

The island church wasn't Bled's only sight, and I was delighted by the fairytale castle built on a sheer cliff overlooking the lake. On walking into the town for the first time, I glimpsed the castle through the buildings, high up on the mountainside, and on the day it appeared to be floating in the clouds. There is also an idyllic white church in the town, and from some points around the lake, you can see all three of these from the same place.

The downside to all these wonderful sights packed closely in a tiny town of only about 5,000 people, is that there are plenty of tourist crowds. I would guess that for every one real Bled citizen, there were about four tourists, and I wasn't even there at the height of the tourist season. However, there's a lot of space about, and it's quite easy to lose the crowds walking on some of the many paths, like the ones that take you up to the castle.

Despite the crowds, this romantic little spot cocooned by a ring of snow capped moutains in the Julian Alps is not a place you will forget in a hurry, nor want to.