Day 11: Cividale Italy to Breg Slovenia

What a nice leisurely day! We slept in a bit (for the first time in many days, the church bell tower wasn’t directly next to our apartment!)

Our trail today was very mild. At 8 miles, it’s our shortest and easiest of the 17 stages. Most of the day was on established roads, and it wasn’t until the last mile that we had to climb. We took advantage of this easy day to partake in some touristy things.

Day 9 on the Alpe Adria Trail

As our host had promised, there was a basket of food next to our door this morning: croissants, cured meats, soft cheese, smoked mozzarella, granola, olives, yogurt, two of the largest figs we’ve ever seen, pistachios, and juice. It was a beautiful picnic breakfast!

The entrance to our apartment

We stopped in the Cividale city center for a latte macchiato.

We explored an 8th-century temple in Cividale before leaving town. It was impressive, but we struggled a bit with interpreting the signs.

The iconic Devil’s Bridge in Cividale. Originally built in the15th century (by the Devil and his mom), it was destroyed during WWI and rebuilt by Germans.

Gelato Time! We needed some nourishment before starting our day’s walk.

We’re in wine country!! Once we left Cividale, we were mostly walking next to vineyards.

Our next destination along the trail is Breg pri Golem Brdu (shown here). It’s a small cluster of houses on a hill in Slovenia overlooking Italy.

First order of business upon arrival: order the host’s homemade wine! Second order: enjoy while looking over the valley you walked through.

Our upstairs apartment for the night. It’s a 1/4 mile walk through the countryside to reach the farm’s restaurant.

The view from our window. As mentioned yesterday, we’re staying at a “tourist farm.” It’s simply a series of guest houses on an operating farm. Our upper-floor apartment overlooks a beautiful hillside with a garden, goats, olive trees, and grapevines. It’s so unique.

Our hosts cooked a beautiful dinner. Bob had pork loin, and I had a traditional dish called Frico Friulano. It’s simply aged cheese and potatoes. What can be better?! We shared a table with a nice German couple that we met on the trail today.

Tomorrow’s walk will be long but at a low elevation, taking us to Šmartno, Slovenia—self-proclaimed as the heart of the country’s wine-making region.

Wishing everyone a good evening!

Jen & Bob