Ups and downs
The morning started off surprisingly well, with even some sunshine, but one could see large dark clouds, so I figured the best way to escape the rain is going into the cave. This is not an ordinary one: it has a train riding through it for about 2 kilometers, then it's a 5 kilometer walk, leading to a "concert hall" fit for some 10,000 people! It has amazing stalactites and stalagmites, many of them have grown together. For more info please turn to your nearest Slovenian tourist office.
Coming out a few hours later, it was indeed raining heavily, finally, just after noon, it stopped and I could start riding. So I started off in the direction of Predjama castle, of course involving a long uphill ride. Somehow something was wrong, my bike behaved like a Smart on a motorway (just sit in one, you'll see what I mean, it was wiggling). Then I discovered the culprit: my back tire was torn and the tube was poking out. Ouch. Thank God for Savo, who, just like Andrea in Italy I met a few days earlier, is a basketball player; we met up while I was waiting for the rain to die, he was kind (or crazy) enough to give me his number, saying I can call him if there was a problem. Neither of us anticipated it would be one hour after our encounter that I would actually call, but helpful as he is, he came to fetch me outside Postojna and drove around till we found a shop that had a fitting tire. Thanks a lot to Savo!!! Frankly, would something like this happen in e.g. Austria? I guess not.
After the issue has been fixed, I reached the castle, which i/s 7-story high built in front of a rock face and is above a cave. Again, the Slovenian tourism office is paying me commission, so please look it up on the internet and click on the button "recommended by some crazy biker". Thank you.
So basically Monday and Tuesday were characterized by rain, more rain, bicycle issues and some more, and around half past three on Tuesday, it was high time to cover some miles. So I did, first on some beautiful (but unpaved) roads midst of the forest surrounding the castle, then I ran into (yet another) very friendly person, who recommended some back roads, through some rolling hills. In the late afternoon I reached the Croatian border, the very pretty customs lady thought for a second to look through my bags, but wisely decided against it. Not that there was anything valuable, but it wouldn't have been a pretty sight, as anyone on a long bike trip can attest.
Funny thing is some time after leaving Slovenia, I found a leaflet which I collected a few days back, it offered discounts from the top sites. Alas, it was after the fact that I discovered I could have not had to pay a fortune for the entry to the sites, but that's not the point. The leaflet listed five top sites in the country, which were Ljubljana caste, Bled lake, Postojna caves, the Predjama caste and the town of Lippiza (where the famous horses come from). Even without planning - as I usually never plan my trips in advance - I got to four of the main attractions (the first two with Anne)...who needs planning, anyways?
In Croatia, it was getting late and I knew about a road that would roll all the way to the coast downhill. I managed not to take the direct road, instead I took one that goes about 5 miles uphill and only then it descends. It was beautiful, though, I spotted the coastal town of Rijeka from the hills above, beautifully lit by the sun, with the water it was engulfing all dark dark blue. Quite a sight, knowing I was at the finish line. Or was I? I must have overlooked a turn, suddenly rolling faaast downhill, seeing that the distance to Rijeka is increasing. Now I knew that I was lost and it was clear that all this downhill descent will have to be made up for...I discovered that in order to get to Rijeka, I would have to back-track, steep uphill - this was out of the question. It was by now really late, 10 at night. It took me about 2 hours to find a hotel; but I was really happy when I did around midnight. All this happened in the a town called Cavle - and I was really glad to have a roof above my head that night.