Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
THE LAUFARIJA TRADITION
Ethnologists believe that the Laufarija tradition and its distinctive masks came from Austria's South Tyrol.
Lauferei
means 'running about' in German, and that's just what the crazily masked participants do as they nab
their victim.
Special (and mostly male) Laufarji societies organise the annual event. Those aged 15 and over are allowed to
enter, after proving themselves as apprentices by sewing costumes. Outfits are made fresh every year, with leaves,
pine branches, straw or moss stitched onto a hessian backing. They take quite a beating during the festivities.
The action takes place on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday and again on Shrove Tuesday. The main character
is the Pust, with a horned mask and heavy costume of moss. He's the symbol of winter and the old year - and he
must
die.
The Pust is charged with many grievances - a bad harvest, inclement weather, lousy roads - and always found
guilty. Other Laufarji characters represent crafts and trades - Baker, Thatcher, Woodsman - with the rest includ-
ing the Drunk and his Wife, the Bad Boy, Sneezy and the accordion-playing Sick Man. The Old Man, wearing
Slovenian-style lederhosen and a wide-brimmed hat, executes the Pust with a wooden mallet, and the body is
rolled away on a caisson.
Sleeping & Eating
Gačnk v Logu €
( 041 753 524, 372 40 05;
www.cerkno.com
;
per person €27-29)
This B&B and res-
taurant in Dolenji Novaki (house No 1), not far from the Franja Partisan Hospital, has nine
rooms. The restaurant (open from 9am to 11pm) is very popular with local people, partic-
ularly for lunch at the weekend.
B&B
Hotel Cerkno €€
( 374 34 00;
www.hotel-cerkno.si
;
Sedejev trg 8; s €52-59, d €76-92; )
This 75-room partially renovated hotel is in a modern building just south of Glavni trg.
It's a comfortable-enough place with a large indoor pool, sauna, gym and three clay tennis
courts.
HOTEL
Okrepčevalnica Pr' Padkejc €
( 377 57 54; Platiševa ulica 70; dishes €6.50-12; 7.30am-10pm Mon-Thu, 7.30am-
midnight Fri, 8am-1am Sat, 7am-midnight Sun)
Unduly humble, this 'snack bar' is actu-
ally more like a comfortable
gostilna
about 800m north of the centre. It's famed for its
cold cuts and other prepared meets like
pršut
(air-dried ham) and horse-meat sausages.
SNACK BAR
