UNESCO protected town of Idrija tour

The 500-years-long history of Idrija began with the discovery of a rare and valuable liquid metal: mercury. The exciting discovery draw many miners into the valley and soon a lively mining settlement developed. With the discovery of the amalgamation procedure accompanying the discovery of South American silver and gold mines, mercury gained recognition and the Idrija mine soon became the second largest producer of this sole liquid metal in the world, while abroad it was renowned for its excellent technical equipment. With the mine on the rise, 18th century saw Idrija got much bigger, welcoming numerous workers from many lands. It had the best medical service in Europe, for obvious sad reasons. In the 17th century, the miners' wives began practicing the craft of bobbin lacemaking; the beauty and delicateness of their lace were held in high regard especially in the higher class. Idrija Lace School is the oldest continuous lace school in the world, keeping this amazing tradition still alive and thriving.

It will take us about 1h to get to Idrija. I just love to go there - the ride is curvy, but beautiful - through a wilderness of Idrija mountains' thick forests. - We will watch of a short movie about the amazing history of the area and then put on mining equipment, descend into the famous mine. The tour lasts about an hour and is very interesting. - After the return to the sunlight we will stroll though this small town, see town's important buildings, all on UNESCO list of cultural heritage of humankind. We will visit the famous Lace School. - We will learn about lace production and might even try it on our own ;) ladies working with lace always amaze me - how patient, accurate and dedicated they are. They as well adapted their patterns to modern time, use different colours and even make lace jewerly. - We'll stop at a typical example of a historical miners' house on the hill, enjoy in the views from above. The ride to Ljubljana will take us approx. 1h. Please know I can customise the tour if needed.