Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
PREDJAMA CASTLE
Predjama Castle
( 700 01 03;
www.postojnska-jama.eu
;
Predjama 1; adult/child/student €9/5.40/7.20;
9am-7pm summer, 10am-4pm winter)
is a short hop from Postojna and is one of the world's most dramatic castles.
It teaches a clear lesson: if you want to build an impregnable redoubt, put it in the gaping mouth of a cavern halfway
up a 123m cliff. Its four storeys were built piecemeal over the years from 1202, but most of what you see today is
from the 16th century. It looks simply unconquerable.
The castle holds great features for kids of any age - a drawbridge over a raging river, holes in the ceiling of the
entrance tower for pouring boiling oil on intruders, a very dank dungeon, a 16th-century chest full of treasure (un-
earthed in the cellar in 1991), and an eyrie-like hiding place at the top called
Erazem's Nook
, named for Erazem
Lueger.
Lueger was a 15th-century robber-baron who, like Robin Hood, stole from the rich to give to the poor. During the
wars between the Hungarians and the Austrians, Erazem supported the former. He holed up in Predjama Castle and
continued his daring deeds with the help of a secret passage that led out from behind the rock wall. In 1484 the Aus-
trian army beseiged the castle, but it proved impregnable. Erazem mocked his attackers, even showering them with
fresh cherries to prove his comfortable situation. But the Austrians had the last laugh - finally hitting him with a
cannonball as he sat on the toilet. An ignoble fate for a dashing character.
In mid-July, the castle hosts the
Erasmus Tournament
, a day of medieval duelling, jousting and archery.
The
cave
below Predjama Castle is a 6km network of galleries spread over four levels. Casual visitors can see
about 900m of it; longer tours are available by prior arrangement only.
Gostilna Požar
( 751 52 52; Predjama
2; meals from €11; 10am-10pm Thu-Tue, daily Aug)
is a simple restaurant next to the ticket kiosk and in heart-
stopping view of the castle.
Joint tickets can be bought for the castle and Postojna Caves.
Eating
Čuk €
( 720 13 00; Pot k Pivki 4; starters €5-7.50, pizza & pasta €6-9.50; 10am-11pm
Mon-Fri, 11am-midnight Sat, noon-11pm Sun)
A large, excellent restaurant southwest of
Titov trg just off Tržaška cesta, Čuk takes its pizza seriously but offers a wide range of
Slovenian mains too.
PIZZA
PIZZA
Pizzeria Minutka €
