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Otočec Castle

If you ask us Otočec Castle is simply the most beautiful castle in Slovenia. Not only it rises like a jewel from the mists of the Krka River and is the only water castle in Slovenia, you have to love this castle because it is not as crowded as fBled or Predjama Castle can be and because it offers so many photo opportunities.

Leave your car on the parking space just near the river (you can’t miss it) and start taking photos. Immediately! Some of the best views of the castle can be captured from there. Most of the time you can find some boats in the river that can make a great addition to your photo (we all know boats are a must:)

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Also some birds are often on or near the water to pose in the foreground.

Taken with HuaweiP20Pro

Sitting on the island in the middle of a very slow river some fog is not unusual to find and it can make the whole place very mysterious and mystical.

Taken with HuaweiP20Pro.

Two wooden bridges which connect the castle with the river banks are very photogenic by themselves or with the castle in the composition.

Taken with HuaweiP20Pro.

When you are done with the first few photos cross the first wooden bridge & start exploring. The island on which the castle stands is really small, it is basically just a park and you can walk all around it. You can capture photos of the wooden bridges, trees, paths, river, swans, ducks, flowers … and the castle itself.

Taken with HuaweiP20Pro.

The castle is a popular wedding destinations, and a hotel with a bar and restaurant. Keep in mind that it is very expensive and –  whenever I was there – the coffee sucked and the service too.

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The views from the right bank are different and no less beautiful.

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Taken with HuaweiP20Pro.

After crossing the second bridge you can turn right to find a path going up the river through some nice woods. Follow it. You will come across some great views of the castle and the river and finally (after a half of an hour walk) you will end up on a bridge near Village Otočec. The place also offers some great photo options.

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You can return to the castle (& your car) on the other side of the river (from Otočec Village).

Taken with HuaweiP20Pro.

To see everything there is to see – 2, 3 hours should be more than enough. If you are looking for great photos you already know to be there early in the morning or late in the afternoon. There are some other nice places to visit nearby so you can spend a day or two in the area.

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If you have any questions don’t hesitate to send me an e-mail to info@igslovenia.si or leave a comment.

Sanja Leban Trojar – @sanya_lt

Novo mesto – Ragov log

A beautiful wooden bridge connects the NE end of the old town with the peaceful and mysterious woods on the right bank of the Krka river, Ragov log. A pleasant 15 minutes walk through the woods connects this bridge with Kandijski most bridge in the city centre, the main photo spot of Novo mesto.

A shot from the left bank towards the woods is definitely a better option, especially with some fog in the early morning, snow or colourful autumn would do no harm either:).

Following the river downstream one would find a boathouse not far from the bridge. It is not in the best shape, so be cautious trying to get a shot with the colourful boats. From there a nice view of the bridge over the river opens up as well.

The upstream part of the river bank from the bridge is located bellow the buildings and it is not easy to get close to the water. The views are nothing spectacular but with some luck one always find a nice motif.

The bridge view from this side comes with the buildings in the background but with some dramatic skies and probably autumn colours and/or mist one can always make a nice capture. Not at the time of our visit though.

From here a path leads uphill to the old town – pass the Court house and stay above the river in Šolska ulica street, than follow the first opportunity back to the river to reach a small dam if you want yet another angle of the river and the Ragov log itself.

Now the best way is to head to the old town and enjoy the rich architectural heritage of Novo Mesto!

Text and photo: Zoran Leban Trojar @zokus_gf

All photos are taken with HuaweiP20Pro courtesy of Huawei Slovenija.

Novo mesto – Kandijski most

Novo Mesto  is the city on a bend of the Krka River in the City Municipality of Novo Mesto in southeastern Slovenia, close to the border with Croatia. The town is traditionally considered the economic and cultural centre of the historical Lower Carniola region. The old town is located right at the meander made by the beautiful Krka river. Unfortunately the main square and the most interesting old street Pugljeva ulica were completely under reconstruction in the time of our visit so the only close encounter with the historical part we made was passing by Capital Church (Kapitelj) which overlooks the old town from a small hill, on the approach to our photo spot – Kandijski most bridge. (Note: all photos are taken with HuaweiP20Pro, no edit).

The Kandija Bridge (Slovene: Kandijski most) or the Old Bridge (Stari most) is an iron bridge which connects the old city on the left bankof the Krka River with Kandija, a historical suburb of Novo Mesto, on the right bank of the river. The bridge stands at the lower part of Glavni trg. Wikipedia says that it was built in 1898 to replace the old wooden bridge from 1600, located a few dozen metres upstream. The riveted structure bridging the Krka with a single 75-metre (246 ft) arch is a unique structure in Slovenia.

View from the Boter bar towards old town.

Most photos of Novo mesto which can be seen on Instagram (there are not many though) are from this bridge, the most classic view is of the old part with the Kapitelj church. With some fog on the river or at the sunset the views (and photos) are truly glorious.

But make no mistake, the views downstream are not worse at all. Calvary Chapel Church with Franciscan Convent dominate the sight on the left bank and the mysterious Ragov log forest on the right.

The bridge itself offered an interesting view when we crossed the river – we have never seen so many spider webs on any bridge, ever.

The river bank is easy accessible so one can get under the bridge as well, a change of the angle never hurts and reflections are much better when close to the water.

There is a bar with the terrace on the river just a few meters away, besides having a new angle again we were also lucky to spot local fisherman in an unusual vehicle for such an activity.

Some other spots are located upstream towards the main bridge but we decided to follow the path through the Ragov log grove which begins just behind the Kandijski bridge downstream. In the first few hundred meters some spots can be reached close to the river to get another angle at the Franciscan Convent.

After that the path follows the river but much higher on the slope, the woods are pretty thick and there is no access to the river and no photo spots either until the Ragov log bridge is reached after some 15 minutes of a pleasant hike. The photo spot there deserves a separate description, here is a photo just for the feeling.

Text and photos: Zoran Leban Trojar @zokus_gf

Photos made with HuaweiP20Pro, courtesy of Huawei Slovenija