Travel days are never boring!

So we set off yesterday morning, headed for the village of Zuberec, without any idea of where we were staying. We walked down to the train station in Istebne, with lots of time to wait for our 9:52am train. And we waited. And we waited.

We've found the train and bus schedules to be very accurate in both Czech Republic and Slovakia. They have a great website for checking schedules at http://cp.atlas.sk/vlak/spojenie/ and it even has an English version. So when 10:00am came and went, and still no train, we were a little confused. Even the board posting the schedule at the tiny station said 9:52am, so we have no idea what happened. The next train wasn't scheduled until almost noon, so we figured we had a long wait. And then just before 10:30am, it arrived!

It's a slow train that makes lots of stops, so it was about an hour journey to Nizna, only about 34 kms (21 miles) away. Train cost €3.44 ($4.30) for the two of us.

The bus station was only a short walk from the train station, and we had to wait half an hour or so for the bus to Zuberec. Cost of the bus was €2.20 ($2.75) for the two of us.

(A) Istebne, (B) Nizna, (C) Zuberec.

Zuberec is a bit of a tourist town, but only because it is located close to several major ski areas and so there are many guest houses and private accommodation available. We are only about 20 kms (12 miles) from the border of Poland! And more importantly, we are only a few minutes from the western edge of Tatra National Park!

We walked to the tourist office and explained that we were looking for inexpensive accommodation. Many of these places are advertised at between €8.00 to €12.00 ($10.00 to $15.00) per person, per night. The lady made a few phone calls and the first couple came back as "full", so we were getting a little worried. But then she found one for us, and only a 5 minute walk away!

We walked up to the side door, and there were a couple of teen girls, one of whom spoke some English. She went to get her grandmother who owns the building, and soon we were being shown the small apartment. Best room we've had yet, and only €8.50 ($10.63) per person, per night. So, for $21.25 per night, we are staying for four nights!

Our street. We are in the building on the right with the silver roof.

And wi-fi internet included!

Fridge, hotplate, and the microwave is in the hall.

Nice little bedroom!

No picture, but even our own bathroom and shower!

So we are all set up for the next four days. We went for a short walk around town and did some grocery shopping.

This guy has a beautiful spot!

Does this look like a nice area to do some hiking??!!

Ruth, overlooking the town of Zuberec.

Slept great last night, and it's a good thing because we have an 18 km (11 mile) hike planned for today. The sky is blue, and the sun is shining! We bought a hiking map of the area, so we plan on using it. I expect there will be some fantastic pictures in tomorrow's blog post, so be sure to check in then!