The sun shone down hot and glistening as we explored Bled Island, a jewel of a spot set in a turquoise lake in the Julian Alps of Slovenia. We had wandered through medieval Bled Castle, been rowed across beautiful Lake Bled, and now, after seeing the ancient church and other buildings, we had time to wander the paths that wended along the island shore.

First we took a breather on some shady stone steps, enjoying the cool breezes that swept up from the water.

My brother Ryan and I took this beguiling pathway, utterly charmed by the lamp posts. 🙂

Around a bend in the path we were thrilled to see these turquoise waters, teeming with fish, the sun shining just right to make the water seem to glow from within.

We loved these boats, and had fun making up stories of the smugglers who most certainly owned them, imagining them rowing silently to the island under cover of darkness to engage in nefarious business dealings. 🙂

As we rounded the island we sighed in delight at this amazing view of the castle, church and mountains we’d explored earlier that day. All our preconceived notions of Slovenia had been obliterated by the beauty and serenity of this wonderful place.