The Slovenian Karst is a land of rare beauty - a mysterious underground world, with stone and wind intertwining with the unique architecture and heritage into a harmonious whole.
In the heart of the Karst lies the village Štanjel, a sleeping beauty in which time stopped long ago. The unconventional bell tower of St. Daniels' gothic church has become the symbol of the village, which is guarded by walls and an impressive castle. We will stroll down its cobbled streets lined with stone houses and walk through the elegant Ferrari's Garden which extends over the sunny slopes just outside the walls.Max Fabiani (1865-1962) was one of the most important personalities of the karst, mainly as architect and townplanner. He also was the mayor of Štanjel for 10 years. There are several footpaths between Štanjel and Kobdilj with interesting natural and cultural sites, named after Fabiani.In 1920’s and 1930’s Ferrari’s garden with Villa Ferrari was arranged in Štanjel. The author of the project, architect Maks Fabiani, designed a park sensibly completing the fortified settlement on the slope. The garden is characterised by water supply system which used to feed the pond and several water cisterns.
A nice walk is to start at the south-eastern tower, pass Ferrari’s Garden and at the crossing go up to the church St. Gregor from where you have a nice view on Štanjel. If you go down the other side and turn right to go back the lower path, you’ll pass a niche called ‘Chapel’ with a statue of St. Mary.
Enjoying walking the narrow streets of Štanjel as every corner offers another surprise. Many houses are built in stone and some of them have some really interesting architectural features made in stone. They are very picturesque with their narrow windows, portals and chimneys. There are many gothic elements demonstrating that already at that time the village reached its present extent.
People in Karst always had to cope with the problem of the shortage of drinking water, so numerous stone wells were built in the squares. Very interesting is also the Karst House with its ethnological collection. It reflects the architectural characteristics of the first Karst houses built during the romanesque and gothic period.
A well kept 600 year old house (Kraska Hisa) is part of the tour. If you're on your own get the key from the cafe inside the castle.The roof is all made of stones to protect it against harsh bura winds. There's an old stone well right outside the house.
At the end, in a genuine Karst environment we will savour the local specialities – delicious slices of prosciutto (pršut) and the local dark red Teran wine.