Day 25 - near Celje to Ptuj.

Day 25: 2km before Celje to Ptuj. 92km. 5:30hrs.

Our route today took us through beautiful farm lands of hops, apples, wheat, corn and vines, with small villages every 8-10 km. After about 40 km we reached the Dravinja River Valley, which we cycled along over rolling hills. 

The roses are in full bloom, and almost every house along the way has a few peonies and a beautifully tended veggie patch with potatoes and beans growing in it.

Slovenia comes to a halt on a Sunday, so by the time we arrived in Ptuj all the supermarkets were closed. Fortunately we found a bakery that was open which kept the wolf from the door.

The signposting and road signs in Slovenia are not good to put it mildly. One has to know the name of the big town that you are heading towards as this is the name that will appear on the road sign. None of the other towns in between will appear and they don't number the roads. We spent about half an hour looking for our accommodation today; we eventually located it after much cycling back and forth. Panorama Rooms is set high up on a hill with a magnificent view. We had to negotiated a steep gravel road to get there which wasn't great after a 93 km cycle, but the accommodation was well worth the effort.

Ptuj (puh-TOOey) - it sounds like someone spitting - is a quaint town with a castle set high up on the hill. Unfortunately it was closed, as we only did our sightseeing after 18:00. The walk up was great after spending a day in the saddle and the views of the Drava river were spectacular.

The town has been inhabited since the early Stone Age and was populated by the Celts, Romans, Dominican friars, Habsburg counts, Nazi's and Yugoslavs over the years.The Gothic Church of St George, the patron saint of Ptuj, is situated behind the City Tower. It has a beautiful vaulted ceiling and stained glass windows. We have not seen another example of Gothic architecture in both Slovenia and Croatia. The city tower is capped by a Baroque steeple and was built in the late 16th century to defend against Ottoman invaders.

If you are planning a trip to Slovenia, this quaint laid back town, is not to be missed. However our dinner at a local eatery, recommended by our hostess, consisted of slabs of boarding school beef that should be used by Nike and salad that was made last Thursday. 

Farmlands on route to Ptuj.

Crossing the Drava River to the old city of Ptuj.

Looking back to the Drava from Ptuj castle.

A 2nd century marble slab commemorating the Roman major of Poetovio (now Ptuj).

Sunset over the Drava River.