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We said farewell to our friends and headed north to the nearby town of Krapina. This small town north of Zagreb and not very far from the Slovenian border is known for its archaeological discovery of over eight hundred fossil remains depicting Neanderthal individuals. The discovery was made in1899 by Dragutin Gorjanovic-Kramberger, a geologist and paleontologist. We arrived and found it was closed. Something about being Monday. I was disappointed and only hoped that our next destination, the Trakoscan castle, would greet us with open arms. So we took a few pictures in the rain, the scenery was beautiful.
I see the castle in the distance!!
And many thanks to Jimy for the link to this great photo of the lake and the castle.
You see that winding and narrow gravel road below? Well, we soon learned it's only meant for pedestrians. It was raining and we had Beli plus we thought the castle was not open since it was Monday, so hubby drove the car all the way up to the hilltop and through the castle gates.
We parked the car and we took a few photographs and then we noticed a security guard and he did not look happy! We gathered our coats and camera and walked under the castle's arch and into the office.
There were security cameras everywhere and the guy behind the counter had been watching our every move! He reprimanded us that driving our car was not allowed and hubby explained that he thought it was closed since the information desk and souvenir shop at the bottom of the road were closed despite having working hours of 9-4 posted on the door and there where no indications of anybody working. We offered to go back but the guard told hubby it didn't matter since we were here already plus we had a small child. Whew, thank you Beli! for a moment I thought we would get arrested for trespassing!
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| Can you see the guard by the stairs? |
And just so you know, the castle is open every single day, year round. Unfortunately no photos were allowed inside the castle and I was NOT about to disobey that nice guy behind the counter, plus I did notice more security cameras. But you can click here and here for some photos some visitors took inside the castle.
Afterwards we were hungry and since the coffee shop on the premises was closed, we followed a sign along the highway for a restaurant nearby. Look at the amazing countryside, breathtaking!
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| Following directions to the restaurant and we arrived and guess what? It was CLOSED. Hmmmmm starting to notice a pattern. |
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| So we turned around and stopped at a small grocery store but not before taking a few more photos, this view reminds me of our road trip to the Tuscany region. |
I will have to admit that despite the rain, despite being Monday and the museum and restaurant being closed, I had a wonderful time on our road trip. Visiting friends, making new friends, discovering that butter-cream Castle and driving along the countryside, well it was the perfect way to spend the weekend.
