年轻的斯洛文尼亚（于1991年宣布脱离原南斯拉夫，成为独立主权国家，并于1992年5月加入联合国）位于中欧南部，毗邻阿尔卑斯山，约有一半的面积为森林所覆盖，绿化率在欧洲各国仅次于芬兰和瑞典，被誉为“中欧的绿宝石”。也许在许多人的印象中，斯洛文尼亚是一个经济水平不高的中欧小国——但事实上，斯洛文尼亚拥有良好的工业和科技基础。2005年在全球国家竞争力排行榜上名列第32位，属于发达国家行列。

本期“异域风情”带大家游览的布莱德湖是斯洛文尼亚最有名的旅游胜地。阿尔卑斯山山顶的积雪融水和山间清泉不断注入湖中，让布莱德湖获得“冰湖”的美称。这里夏季水温在22℃左右，是划船、游泳和钓鱼的理想场所；冬季多雪，湖面结冰达40厘米，又是冰上运动的绝纱去处。因此，这里曾多次举办欧洲和世界性的水上与冰上运动比赛。湖中央的布莱德岛是斯洛文尼亚境内唯一一座小岛。位于翠绿色湖面中央的小岛在蓝天白云的衬托之下，真让人彷如置身童话故事之中。

“Bled？ That sounds a bit gruesome，” said Jodie when I first suggested the idea of visiting the small town in Slovenia. We were sat by the pool in Pore， Croatia， and Id just found out that a coach could pick us up outside the hotel and take us on a guided day trip to the town of Bled.

“I know， but the place looks stunning. And its really close to Croatia，” I answered. “Theres a lake and a castle near it. They look really nice.”

But nice wasnt an adequate adjective for how breathtakingly stunning Lake Bled turned out to be. No words could. Even photographs could only come half way. But all of that came later. First， we had to get up at the crack of dawn to board our coach for the three hour journey to Slovenia.

Slovenia， lying between the Alps and the Mediterranean， is a small country dominated by mountains and rivers.

Getting to Slovenia would involve our first overland border crossing. For this I was quite excited. All I could imagine were Cold War films with spies attempting to get past the border police.

It turned out that getting past the Slovenian border was no hassle at all. The coach stopped， a uniformed woman got on， and she looked at everyones passport. No one was thrown off the coach.

As we sped into Slovenia， the view outside soon began to change. Mediterranean scrub made way for conifers and hills. Before too long， we were in a scene straight from The Sound of Music.

“Welcome to Slovenia，” said our guide for the day， a 25-year-old Croatian woman named Ivanah， “and let me tell you some things about this country.”

We all listened as Ivanah told us about why Slovenia was the richest of all the former Yugoslav countries. It was to do with the war， apparently， or rather the lack of it. “The war only lasted ten days in Slovenia， so most of the infrastructure stayed intact. No buildings were destroyed. People could carry on with their lives. And this is good. The country you are visiting is especially beautiful.” From what we could see outside， she was indeed correct.

About two hours into our journey， we passed through Ljubljana， the capital of Slovenia. Always somewhere Id wanted to visit， I was quite sad to see it passing by so quickly， but less than an hour later， we arrived at our destination， the town of Bled.

Bled lies in the Julian Alps， just 30 kilometres south of the Austrian border. It is one of Slovenias prime tourist destinations， primarily because of its large lake formed by a glacier thousands of years ago. The natural beauty of the town and its surrounds has meant the rich and famous have often stayed in Bled. In the 19th century， it was the Austrian empires finest health resort. When Yugoslavia was ruled by Josip Tito， he made Lake Bled his personal place of retreat. Even Prince Charles has stayed at one of Bleds world class hotels.

“First I take you to the castle，” announced the guide. The castle seemed to be perched high upon a rocky outcrop， flanked with lush conifers. “We will drive most of the way up， but then we will walk about a hundred metres. It will not be too difficult. And the view from the top will take your breath away.”

Ten minutes later， my breath was being amply taken away by the walk up towards Bled Castle. Others were finding it much harder. But we all made it to the top without incident. Ivanah was right， the view across the lake， with a panorama of the Alps just behind， was simply breathtaking.

The water was a beautiful turquoise hue， and it was easy to spot Slovenias one solitary island at the centre of the lake. Later we would be visiting the island， but for now， Jodie and I wandered around the castle， taking in the views below.

Although Bled Castle has enjoyed its thousand-year birthday， much of it was actually built in the middle ages. It was also extensively renovated between 1951 and 1961. Today， the castle is home to a museum and exhibition centre.

“We got married here 14 years ago，” said a man to my left. We were standing at the castles edge， a fine vantage point. His wife was by his side， and a small boy stood between them. “Its just as beautiful as it was then. And did you know that

Slovenia is the only country in the world with ‘love in its name？ From here， its not hard to see why.”

Half an hour later， we were back in the town of Bled to wander around by ourselves. After a spot of lunch， Jodie and I rejoined the tour group for the trip to the small island in the middle of Lake Bled.

Getting to it involved a very pleasant trip in a gondola-type boat called a pletna. As we set off from the shore， the boatman climbed around and begun rowing us softly towards our destination. It was all very peaceful.

“The island has 99 steps leading up to the church，” Ivanah said， “and it is a custom here in Bled that during a wedding， the husband must carry his bride up the steps， while she remains silent.”

After reaching the island， we began the climb up the steps. They were not as bad as first feared， though I wasnt carrying anyone up them. At the top we could see the Assumption of Mary Pilgrimage Church； visitors frequently ring its bell for good luck. It dates back to the 10th century， and Jodie and I strolled about its exterior before going inside. It was small but beautiful. We gazed at the altar， with its golden statue of Mary above a bed of roses. Sat in pews were a few people deep in prayer. They didnt seem to mind that a bunch of tourists had just invaded their peaceful sanctuary.

Once back across at the mainland， we took a short coach trip to the centre of town. Ivanah then led us to a large outdoor café. It was time for the cream cakes. Bled is famous for its vanilla-and-cream cakes， and we all had one each. Mine was delicious.

“Dont worry，” said Ivanah， noting the looks on some of the womens faces， “these are not like your cakes back home. They are lighter. Try it. They taste amazing！”

Mine was already gone. Jodie at last tried hers， lingering over it for far longer than I had. “Mmmm， these are nice！”

Our trip to Slovenia was over. It was time to go back to Croatia. But from what we had seen， it was a place wed try our best to return back to one day. Lake Bled in winter must look truly magical. And only an hour away from Ljubljana， it could be done.

“布莱德？听起来真有点吓人。”我第一次向乔蒂提起想去斯洛文尼亚的这座小镇时，她这样说道。当时我们正坐在克罗地亚波雷奇的水池边，我刚刚发现有一趟从酒店出发的观光车，可以带我们参加布莱德镇一日游。

“我知道那个名字是有点吓人，但是那个地方漂亮极了，而且真的离克罗地亚很近，”我答道。“那附近有一个湖和一座城堡，看起来很不错呢。”

但是“不错”这个词远不足以描绘布莱德湖惊艳的程度。……