The Grand Finale of the Grand Finale: Segways around Bled

Segwaying to Tito's villa

The last scheduled event of our last scheduled day on this trip was the segway tour around Bled.

Jakub, our guide, demonstrating proper segway technique to the one segway amateur in our group (who would be me)

This was an "off road" segway tour, in stark contrast to the wussified "urban" segway tours with which you may be more familiar. The "off road" segway is a little wider and, of course, has tires with more substantial tread.

Sister (L) and B-I-L (R) on their "off road" segways, right before they forced into wearing helmets due to EU regulations

Even Sister and B-I-L, relative segway professionals as they have done multiple segway tours in multiple places (including twice in Split), had never done an "off road" segway tour.

We started off going around the northern half of the Lake. We then went off road, out of the town of Bled, through some small villages outside of Bled, heading down to the Sava River, which ends up being a fairly substantial river by the time it hits Zagreb and, eventually, the Danube River in Croatia's eastern frontier.

The Sava flowing through the Slovenian countryside outside Bled

On the banks of the Sava

Fly fisherman on the Sava

The Segway tourists posing on a bridge over the Sava

The glimmering sun
(Yes! We had a sunny day in Slovenia! Who'd a thunk it?)

We tottled along the river for awhile. Going through mud puddles. Past a snake. (It looked like the size of a python, maybe an anaconda, to the snake-o-phobic. It was huge. Maybe over a foot long. It was tough to tell for sure, since it was slithering.) We then headed up the hill (much easier on full power than when it was in "turtle" mode around the Lake) back in the Bled.

We then did more of the loop around the Lake.

The signature photo of Lake Bled

Soon it was time to turn in our segways. Our two-hour "off road" segway tour lasted a nice two hours and 15 minutes.

We then had supper at my favorite restaurant in Bled (which I remembered from my last visit in 2010), the Ostarija Peglez'n.

One last Octopus Salad appetizer 

Chicken topped with salty ham and a cream sauce. It had a name. I just can't recall what it was

Finally, in honor of the B-I-L's ethnic heritage we ended the night with a visit to an Irish pub, a real authentic Slovenian Irish pub. It was the saddest looking Irish pub I've ever seen.

Look closely. The shamrocks have SIX leaves 

Only one table inside. So when we were there, all tables were full.

Used pizza boxes piled up inside. Restroom doors off hinges. Even the shamrocks on the logo weren't quite right. It was a pathetic Irish pub.

And it was a perfectly acceptable way to end the day in Bled and, with that, the Croatian/Slovenian family vacation adventure of 2014. It was a great trip, but it is time to go home.

And, with that, the Vacation Blog is closed for 2014. It will re-open sometime in 2015. Not sure where. It could be Macedonia. It could be Peru. It could be Copenhagen. It could be Bangkok. But it's probably going to be chosen by re-opening the Cookie Jar o' Potential Vacation Destinations.

Thanks for traveling with me this trip.