LIFESTYLE, / By G.M.

The Postojna Cave received a Golden Apple, the highest award of the World Federation of Travel Journalists and Writers (FIJET), for its extraordinary achievements in tourism.



Marjan Batagelj receives the Golden Apple Award from Tijani Haddad; (Photo: Valter Leban)

Celebration at the presentation of awards was diversified by a group of majorettes; (Photo: Janez Platiše)

Marjan Batagelj and Katja Dolenc Batagelj accompanied the FIJET president Tijani Haddad to the entry of the Postojna Cave; (Photo: Valter Leban)

Marjan Batagelj thanked for the award and dedicated it to all former and present employees; (Photo Valter Leban)

Cave guides from the Postojna Cave helped searching for the Golden Apple; (Photo: Valter Leban)

Sašo Dravinec, Tijani Haddad, Marjan Batagelj, Katja Dolenc Batagelj and Marjan Hribar, MSc.; (Photo: Valter Leban)

The Postojna Cave, the Diamond; (Photo: Iztok Medja)

The Postojna Cave, the Beautiful Caves; (Photo: Iztok Medja)

The Postojna Cave, the Beautiful Caves; (Photo: Iztok Medja)

The Postojna Cave, the Dance Hall; (Photo: Iztok Medja)

The Predjamski grad castle; (Photo: Iztok Medja)

Ice-age Postojna, February 2014; (Photo: Iztok Medja)

Ice-age Postojna, February 2014; (Photo: Iztok Medja)

Ice-age Postojna, February 2014; (Photo: Iztok Medja)

The award was presented at a ceremony in the Postojna Cave on 15 May, by the President of FIJET, Mr Tijani Haddad, who emphasised that tourism connects different cultures, belongs to the whole world and that it needs to remain responsible to the environment and to people.

The Chairman of the Postojna Cave, Mr Marjan Batagelj, did not hide his joy on receiving the award and in his acceptance speech pointed out, ”that the motto of the Postojna Cave management and development is simply to do what is best for the Postojna Cave because it is beyond the limits of human perception of eternity. It is important to show appreciation and awareness that no one can subjugate it because people are its transient part“

Four years after new ownership, the Postojna Cave prides itself on its many services and activities for visitors and its entertaining educational programs. The management have introduced the concept of sustainable tourism development to protect it and keep the outstanding natural heritage and attraction for future generations in good or even better condition than it is today - this was also the reason behind the decision to award the Postojna Cave.

Electric lights lit up in the Postojna Cave 130 years ago

On 24 May, exactly 130 years had passed since the Postojna Cave got electric lighting. Before electric lights lit up the cave, it was illuminated by cave guides with oil lamps and by cave lamplighters who lit and put out the wall candles. The scale of the lighting depended on the fee the visitors paid. The guests could choose between only a few candles or ”big lighting“, for which four to five kilograms of candles were needed.

Already in 1878, the managers of the cave became interested in electric lighting in Vienna and Paris. On 15 July 1883, at the celebration of the 600th anniversary of the reunification of Carniola with other Habsburg lands, the Postojna Cave was visited by the Austrian Emperor, Franz Joseph I. At this important event the Great Hall was lit by three electric lights.

The installation was provided by Siemens & Halske Wienna. In addition to the electrical wiring, the cave was illuminated by 16,000 candles and decorated by 600 coloured balloons. In 1884 the cave was fully lit, illuminated by electricity three years before London.

The Predjama Castle – among the Top 10 unique European castles to visit

The editors of the leading tourist site, www. tourism-review.com, have ranked the Predjama Castle among the 10 European castles worth visiting.

The Predjama Castle is the only preserved cave castle in the world. Due to the peculiarities of construction where the natural rock, cave and the castle literally intertwine, it was impossible

to determine the boundaries between them. The stunning exterior of the castle and its closeness to the Postojna Cave means many tourists also visit the castle. This year the audio guide for visitors is available in several languages.

Ice Age Postojna

After the winter ice storm the Postojna Cave is back to normal. In early February 2014, Slovenia was covered by tens of centimeters of thick ice due to a combination of cold and icy rain gathering on all exposed areas and then gravity breaking more than half of Slovenian forests. Among the hardest hit places was Postojna and its surroundings where power outages, transport chaos, energy and communication blackouts were experienced in a short ”ice age”.

Nature has been in its cruelty, incomprehensibly generous with the beauty and some of these moments can be seen at an exhibition in the Postojna Cave park. The photographer, Iztok Medja, has with the help of long exposure, shown another side of this event: the night beauty of ice studded Postojna.