Back From the Balkans

It’s been just over a week since we’ve returned from our
three-week campervanning trip through the Balkans. Technically I shouldn’t be
calling it a Balkans trips anymore, since we only travelled through two of the
four countries we planned to visit – Slovenia and Croatia. But wow, did those
two deliver!

I am in love with Slovenia.

This unassuming little country checks all three of my
happiness must-haves (mountains, forests and lakes) and even added a fourth one
to the mix (church bells). The mountains are tall and snow-capped, the forests
are dense green swathes that cover most of the country and the lakes really are
that unbelievable shade of turquoise you see on Pinterest. Picture in your
mind’s eye the forest in which Hansel and Gretel got lost – I’ll bet you just
imagined Slovenia.

[image error][image error][image error][image error]

Croatia was almost as amazing.

To be honest, I think our enchantment with Slovenia doesn’t
do Croatia any favours. Had we visited Croatia first, we might have liked it a
little more, but now it almost feels like Slovenia’s ugly red-headed stepsister
(sorry red-heads, it’s just an expression!). Croatia is anything but ugly. Think
red-tiled roofs, fortress cities the colour of dark sandstone, and an ocean so
deep blue your heart aches for it. I can understand why Dubrovnik captured the
imagination of the location scout who picked it to be King’s Landing.

[image error][image error][image error][image error][image error]

Did this trip fill the creative well? Indeed! I have at least three new story ideas and a wealth of beautiful settings for them to take place in. I am always inspired by travel, and while I don’t write any words while I’m on the road, my imagination is sparked by the places I visit.

So now we’re back home and everything is that dull shade of
grey that overlays a mundane life. Sure, I’m happy to sleep in my own bed
again, and not to have to share my bathroom with twenty-odd strangers anymore,
but I’d rather be exploring a winding mountain road, or letting my imagination
wander through the twists and turns of a medieval castle, or eat cream cake for
breakfast (seriously people, why is this not a staple food?).

[image error]Slovenian cream cake – yum!

To combat this dour state of mind, I’ll be diving straight back into Ambrose’s adventures at every possible opportunity I get. My life may not be as exciting as his is, but at least I get to live vicariously through him. I hope you’ll join me on one of his adventures very soon.

Have you been to Slovenia or Croatia? Did you love it? Do
you get post-holiday blues too? Where is your favourite fictional setting in
real life?